The Alba Group, a Germany-based recycling firm, has sold its Alba Metall Sud GmbH scrap metal yard in Manheim, Germany, to the ferrous scrap processing and brokerage firm Bernhard Westarp GmbH & Co. KG, based in Aschaffenburg, Germany. The purchase contract was signed May 29.

In announcing the sale, Axel Schweitzer, CEO of Alba, says, "We are continuously advancing the strategic realignment of our group. Our goal continues to be to add value to our core businesses."

Last year the facility processed roughly 100,000 metric tons of ferrous and nonferrous scrap.

Alba Metall Sud will consolidate its business operations at its other locations.

The Mannheim location was mainly used by Alba for purchasing, preparing and selling scrap metals for the castings and steel industry. 

No layoffs are expected at the plant, Alba says.

The Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR) program that is designed to expand market demand for recycled resins and improve plastic recycling in North America has announced new participants during the Washington-based trade organization’s June meeting.

The APR Recycling Demand Champions Campaign seeks to expand the market for residential plastics, driving investment, increasing supply and producing more high-quality postconsumer resin (PCR). The initial phase of the campaign focused on purchasing new volume PCR through “work in process” (WIP) durable goods used in manufacturing facilities. It has expanded to include all new applications for PCR, as well as an increase in PCR usage in a current application.

“APR recognizes that many companies have historically incorporated PCR usage into their business practices,” says Liz Bedard, director of the APR Rigid Plastic Recycling Program. “We applaud and appreciate those efforts and encourage them to continue. However, APR Recycling Demand Champions commit to boost the current demand for PCR—it is all about new demand,” she continues. “Due to current market conditions, the critical need for an increase in demand has become glaringly apparent.” 

Four companies joined the APR Recycling Demand Champions Campaign in June:

• Avangard Innovative, a Houston-based plastics recycler and provider of waste management and recycling services;
• EcoProducts, a sustainable food service packaging brand based in Boulder, Colorado;
• Unilever, with global headquarters in the U.K. and U.S. headquarters in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey; and 
• UPM Raflatac, a Helsinki-based global supplier of pressure-sensitive label materials.

These companies join those that committed in October 2017 and February 2018.

“Demand Champions sign a commitment letter to identify and utilize WIP items with PCR content in their facilities, detail another new application for PCR that will be developed within a year or an increase of PCR usage in a current application,” Bedard says. “Within 12 months of becoming a Demand Champion, those companies must purchase or manufacture PCR containing item(s) and report to APR.” All data submitted to APR will remain confidential but will be aggregated and developed into a reporting tool, the organization says.

“We are pleased at the growth of this campaign, and, as predicted, it has already become a seminal program of APR,” says Steve Alexander, president and CEO of the trade association. “We commend the companies that have signed on to the program and look forward to working with them to expand the market for mixed residential plastics, increase the demand for postconsumer recycled resins and enhancing the plastics recycling industry.”

The 23^rd International Congress for Battery Recycling (ICBR) 2018, which will take place Sept. 26-28, 2018, in Berlin, will feature keynote speakers Kerstin Kuchta, a professor at Hamburg University of Technology; Didier Marginèdes, director of Blue Solutions, Ergué-Gabéric, France; and Gudula Schwan of the German Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure, Berlin.

In fall 2017, the Switzerland-based conference organizer ICM AG opened a call for papers, searching for contributions on topics such as battery recycling technologies, materials supply in a circular economy and transport and safety.

“This 23^rd edition of the ICBR has raised interest among many new actors in the field of battery recycling,” says Jean-Pol Wiaux, chairman of the ICBR Steering Committee. “Proposals for papers reflect the battery industry’s diversification and growth. Recycling has become an inevitable part of the discussion between the parties concerned as EU environmental and economic policy moves towards a circular economy.”

Wiaux says the three keynote speakers will open the congress, addressing progress in their respective fields: Kuchta will discuss the role of batteries in a circular economy; Marginèdes will review the effect of electric mobility on new market demand for car manufacturers; and Schwan will address the importance of controlling hazards and monitoring risks when transporting batteries for recycling.

“The battery recycling industry has operated in Europe for more than 50 years. During the last 20 years it has adapted to many technological cycles, including lead-acid and primary alkaline battery recycling, but also nickel-cadmium and nickel metal hydride processing as well as more recently dealing with lithium primary and lithium-ion rechargeable types,” Wiaux reports.

The keynote speakers reflect the topics of the conference, which include:

• pressure from the EU Environment Authority;
• pressure from original equipment manufacturers (OEMs);
• the recently launched European Battery Alliance;
• the move toward a circular economy;
• review of the EU Batteries Directive;
• battery recycling technologies; and
• safety Issues.

Wiaux says the move from a linear to a circular economy is “a big push for recyclers,” but they must operate on a globally competitive technical and business basis. He also says the EU Authority must clarify the “equivalent performances” concept and its enforcement as it calculates recycling efficiency.

Conflicting parameters affect the battery recycling business, Wiaux says, including the low return rate of end-of-life batteries, the unfixed chemistry of lithium rechargeable batteries and the number of advanced batteries processed without fully balancing costs against the value of the recovered materials.

“Factors such as reuse and second life may also impact the volume of returned batteries. Innovative business models offered by OEMs to control the flow of batteries at the end-of-life stage and secure access to raw materials and stable battery pricing are necessary,” Wiaux says. “Last year, industry barometer initiative results showed an optimistic trend in the battery recycling business arena. This year we will again present to participants our battery recycling industry barometer. The results will be interesting.”

The ICBR traditionally offers an opportunity to meet with industry partners. Plant tours from Nickelhütte Aue GmbH, Aue, Germany; and Electrocycling GmbH, Goslar, Germany, will be offered to participants.

For more program details and registration information, visit https://www.icm.ch/icbr-2018.

Sierra International Machinery, Bakersfield, California, has announced that Randy Gibson has been named director of sales for the company's Macpresse line in the United States and Canada. Gibson will be responsible for evolving Sierra’s relationship with current Sierra-Macpresse customers and building relationships with new and upcoming industries, such as refuse-derived fuel (RDF). Gibson will assist Sierra regional sales managers in communicating the advantages of Macpresse single-ram balers and reaching out to new markets and industries that can benefit from using a Macpresse machine, according to the company.

Gibson comes to Sierra with more than 28 years of experience in the solid waste and recycling industries. He has a strong background in the design and mechanical engineering of single-ram and two-ram balers as well as in conveyors, Sierra says.

“I am excited for the opportunity to take the Macpresse single-ram balers, which are world-renowned products, and grow them into the industry leader in the U.S. and Canada,” Gibson says. “I am thrilled to be a part of the Sierra team. This is a company that has an outstanding reputation with their customer service and a trustworthy product line.”

“The Macpresse single-ram balers are extremely innovative products, and we recognized that we needed to bring a specialist in single-ram extrusion balers on board at Sierra to properly promote and sell the Macpresse line in the United States and Canada,” says John Sacco, president and owner, Sierra International Machinery. “With Randy’s engineering background and sales capabilities, he’s going to lead Sierra and the Macpresse line to great success.”

Sierra International Machinery is a leader in the sale and support of processing equipment for the scrap and recycling industries, offering a full range of equipment to meet the demands of today’s processing facilities.