The partnership's agreement covers excess carbon fiber from 11 Boeing airplane manufacturing sites.

Boeing, Seattle, and ELG Carbon Fibre (ELG), Coseley, United Kingdom, entered into a partnership to recycle excess aerospace-grade composite material, which will be used by other companies to make products such as electronic accessories and automotive equipment. According to an ELG Carbon Fibre news release, the agreement covers excess carbon fiber from 11 Boeing airplane manufacturing sites and will reduce solid waste by more than 1 million pounds per year.

Carbon-fiber reinforced material is strong and lightweight, making it attractive for a variety of uses, including in building the 787 Dreamliner and 777x airplane, ELG Carbon Fibre reports.

According to an ELG Carbon Fibre news release, Boeing has been working for several years to create an economically viable carbon fiber reuse industry. The company improved its production methods to minimize excess and develop a model for collecting scrap material. However, technical barriers remained in the way of repurposing material that had already been “cured” or prepped for use in the airplane manufacturing process. ELG reports that it developed a proprietary method to recycle these “cured” composites so they do not need to be thrown out.

“Recycling cured carbon fiber was not possible just a few years ago,” says Tia Benson Tolle, Boeing Materials & Fabrication director for product strategy and future airplane development, in a news release. “We are excited to collaborate with ELG and leverage innovative recycling methods to work toward a vision where no composite scrap will be sent to landfills.” 

Boeing and ELG conducted a pilot project where they recycled excess material from Boeing’s Composite Wing Center, Everett, Washington, where massive wings for the 777x airplane are made. In the pilot, ELG put the excess materials through treatment in a furnace, which vaporizes the resin that holds the carbon fiber layers together and leaves behind clean material. Over the course of 18 months, the companies saved 1.5 million pounds of carbon fiber, which was cleaned and sold to companies in the electronics and ground transportation industries. 

“Security of supply is extremely important when considering using these materials in long-term automotive and electronic projects,” says Frazer Barnes, managing director of ELG Carbon Fibre, in a news release. “This agreement gives us the ability to provide that assurance, which gives our customers the confidence to use recycled materials.”

With the success of the pilot project, Boeing says the new agreement is likely to save a majority of the excess composite material from its 11 sites, which will support the company’s goal to reduce solid waste from going to landfills by 20 percent by 2025. Boeing and ELG are considering expanding the agreement to include excess material from three additional Boeing sites in Canada, China and Malaysia.

As a result of the partnership, ELG estimates the number of its employees will nearly triple from 39 employees in 2016 to an expected 112 employees by the end of 2019 as the recycling market continues to expand.

Deadline for applications is March 31, 2019.

The Paper Stock Industries (PSI) Chapter of the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI), Washington, has officially kicked off its 2019 academic scholarship program, with plans to give $2,000 scholarships to eight students next year, matching its 2018 record.

According to a press release, the PSI scholarship program provides funds to select students who are dependents of employees in the recycling divisions of PSI Chapter member companies.

Interested students can review the 2019 scholarship requirements and access the new application here. The deadline for applications is March 31, 2019, with winners announced June 1.

“For more than 20 years, PSI Chapter scholarships have helped qualified students pursue higher education and achieve their academic dreams,” says PSI scholarship committee chair Nini Krever of Wilmington Paper Corp. “These scholarships can change lives, and PSI is thrilled to be able to offer eight scholarships again next year.”

PSI supports its scholarship program through raffles, donations and an annual fundraising bowling tournament held in conjunction with Recycling Today's Paper & Plastics Recycling Conference North America.

Nick Doyle will consult with Tomra partners, customers in the newly created sales position.

Tomra Sorting Recycling, a supplier of sensor-based sorting equipment, appointed Nick Doyle as its sales manager for the West Coast North America. In this newly created position that expands sales and customer support of Tomra’s equipment to waste and plastics recycling operations, Doyle will consult directly with Tomra partners and customers to implement the right sorting solution to improve recycling recovery rates, increase product purity and boost profitability.

“Just like Tomra, Nick is a true champion of the circular economy, so he is a natural fit with the Tomra team and work philosophy,” says Carlos Manchado Atienza, regional director of Americas for Tomra Sorting Recycling. “With his extensive previous sales experience for one of our plant-building partners, Nick offers in-depth knowledge of Tomra sorting equipment. He is the right person for the western North American territory to support our customers and help them boost product purity and circuit productivity.”

“When I sold Tomra equipment with my previous employer, it was my favorite solution because of its versatility and impact on the sorting circuit,” Doyle adds. “I’m excited to work for a company that brings about a positive change for the environment and ushers in more sustainability to the market.” 

Doyle will work from his field-based office in Los Angeles. He can be reached at 916-215-9215 or nick.doyle@tomra.com.

High-volume wire chopping line expands market, growth opportunities for GLE.

Wendt Corp., Buffalo, New York, has announced the sale of a high-volume MTB wire chopping line to GLE Scrap Metal. The purchase of the MTB line represents part of an overall company strategy by GLE to broaden its presence in the scrap industry, according to a Wendt Corp. press release.

“The scrap market is constantly changing,” says Dave Siejka, Wendt's MTB business development manager. “By adding wire chopping capabilities to their operations an already successful company like GLE takes its destiny into its own hands by adding the flexibility to meet the quality needs of their expanded customer market.”

A first generation, family-owned business, GLE Scrap Metal found its roots in electronics recycling in 1999. The company acquired its first nonferrous metals facility in 2004 and has grown to three ferrous and nonferrous facilities in Florida and Michigan with more than 150 employees.

A newly acquired facility in Ocoee, Florida, will house the wire chopping installation. GLE operates balers and collects scrap metal from the public, as well as industrial accounts and scrap dealers in the U.S., Wendt says.

GLE’s automated wire chopping line includes the “latest models of prechoppers, granulators, air density tables and vibratory screens” that MTB offers. The line can process a multitude of materials, from aluminum and copper cables to shredder wire and aluminum copper radiators.

“After our visit to France and processing our materials through the MTB processing facility, we were not only impressed with the equipment’s capabilities, but we felt that the personnel from both Wendt and MTB had similar core values and vision to that of ours at GLE,” says Danny Zack, GLE vice president. “Our commitment to growth in the scrap industry requires us to work with the best in order to be the best. We view our purchase of this wire chopping line as an investment in our future and as a partnership with Wendt and MTB that will continue well beyond this equipment.”

Siejka adds, “The demand for quality is a part of GLE’s culture; it permeates throughout their organization. Commitment to quality is what ties GLE, Wendt and MTB together.”

The company plans to start by processing copper wire and cables with the equipment, which is operational at the site. GLE plans to sell the upgraded materials package domestically and overseas.

“Our continued belief in organic growth and the new opportunities available to us with this equipment will not only provide more opportunities for our employees but will allow us to maximize the value of our products and ultimately the service we provide to our customers,” Zack says.

The company plans to switch output of paper machine from uncoated freesheet to linerboard and containerboard.

International Paper (IP), Memphis, Tennessee, has announced that it plans to postpone its plans to convert its No. 15 paper machine at its Riverdale Mill in Selma, Alabama, from producing uncoated freesheet to make white-top linerboard and containerboard. 

IP had initially anticipated converting its 235,000 ton-per-year uncoated freesheet machine to have the capacity to produce 450,000 tons per year of containerboard products. The company’s goal as of September 2017 was to have this completed by the third quarter of 2019. 

However, Mark Sutton, chairman and CEO of International Paper, reported on Nov. 28 at the Citi Basic Materials Conference in New York City that the company intends to postpone this project until the first quarter or half of 2020. According to Sutton, it would cost more for IP to complete this project sooner rather than later. He also cited issues with equipment and skilled labor. 

Recycling Today reached out to International Paper about this update, and the company declined to provide any additional comments on this.