Helsinki-based ZenRobotics Ltd. has announced a ZenRobotics Recycler unit will be installed in a new material recovery facility (MRF) at Singapore-based V8 Environmental Pte. Ltd. 

The three-armed, robotic waste separation system is expected to be operational by mid-2018. 

With more than three decades of waste business experience, V8 Environmental will become the first company in Southeast Asia to use the robotic system at a MRF. With the investment of the robotic arms, V8 Environmental says it aims to revolutionize and bring the waste industry to greater heights in Singapore.

Derrick Yu, V8 sales and operations director, says, “We want to be the perceptive partner who offers solutions of the best value for our customers. We believe that ZenRobotics’ technology supports our vision that is to be Singapore’s leading professional partner in waste management. By incorporating best available technology, we add value to our processes and communicate our commitment to being forerunners in the industry. As the first MRF plant in Singapore adopting the robotics technology, we position ourselves with a forward-looking approach and constantly exploring new initiatives to upgrade efficiently.”

The ZenRobotics Recycler is the world’s first robotic waste sorting system, according to the company. The system reclaims multiple fractions simultaneously with the help of industrial robots and smart machine learning technology. The three-armed ZenRobotics Recycler unit can make up to 6,000 picks per hour and throws the sorted objects in several waste chutes, the manufacturer says. A wide working area of 2 metres by 2 metres (6.5 feet by 6.5 feet) ensures the system’s high sorting performance, according to the manufacturer. The ZenRobotics Smart Gripper is specifically designed to meet the demands of solid waste.

The robotics system delivery to Singapore will be ZenRobotics’ first installation in Southeast Asia, following deliveries to other Asian markets such as Japan and China.

“Currently we’re feeling a strong pull from Asia as well as the U.S. where the interest toward new solutions and eagerness to invest in innovative technologies has been great,” says Rainer Rehn, ZenRobotics chief commercial officer.

Tewksbury, Massachusetts-based Thermo Fisher Scientific says personnel in the scrap recycling, metal finishing, metal fabrication, automotive and aerospace industries who require accurate measurements of coatings can now turn to the newest software update to its Niton XL5 hand-held X- ray fluorescence (XRF) analyzer.

 

Thermo Scientific Niton describes the XL5 as the smallest and lightest hand-held XRF alloy analyzer available. The new software release includes WiFi support and a new coatings mode for expanded functionality and applications support.

 

The new coatings mode allows users to measure the thickness or weight of up to four coating layers on an object or sample, including alloys, compounds and pure metals. Additionally, users of the analyzer can define substrate layers consisting of alloys, pure metals, plastics and wood. This doubles the number of coating layers that could be measured by previous models, according to the company.

 

Also being introduced is a new WiFi support option Thermo Fisher Scientific says enables wireless connectivity between the Niton XL5 analyzer and the user’s computer network. This give users the option to automatically transfer data from the analyzer directly to a specified network folder, potentially saving time and streamlining workflows.

 

“These new capabilities are intended to help our customers address and overcome the most complex challenges when assessing the chemical composition of metals,” says Julie Planchet, vice president and general manager, portable analytical instruments, Thermo Fisher. “We will continue to evolve the Niton XL5 analyzer by rolling out additional software updates and WiFi capabilities designed to help our customers with their analytical challenges.”

 

The Niton XL5 weighs 2.8 pounds (1.3 kilograms) and features a compact, ergonomic design, according to the company. The Niton XL5 is intended to reduce operator fatigue and enable users to easily access hard-to-reach spots and crevices. The analyzer provides low limits of detection (LODs) and is designed to deliver fast and highly-accurate results.

 

Other features of the new Niton XL5 software release include:

• fingerprint mode, allowing users to scan and store materials within the analyzer’s library to help identify unknown materials when compared to existing library entries;
• data field sets, offering users the ability, both on the analyzer and now in the NitonConnect PC software, to create collections of customized fields for data entry during analysis;
• easy trigger functionality, designed to offer operators the ability to scan materials using a single click, eliminating the need to hold down the trigger button for the duration of a scan; and
• alloy identification in general metals mode, following German DIN and Chinese GB standards and nomenclature.

More information on the Thermo Fisher Scientific Niton XL5 handheld analyzer can be found here.

The National Waste & Recycling Association (NWRA), Arlington, Virginia, announced the recipients of its annual awards March 27 during an event broadcasted via Facebook Live.

Twenty-two industry professionals will be honored for their commitments to safety, contributions to the communities they serve, trailblazing efforts within the industry and the work they have achieved that has made waste and recycling safer, smarter and stronger, NWRA says. Awardees will be honored at the annual NWRA Awards Breakfast at WasteExpo, Tuesday, May 9, in New Orleans.

Individuals are being honored in the following categories: Drivers of the Year, Operator of the Year, Members of the Year, Chapter Leadership and Distinguished Service. Also, four industry legends are being inducted into the NWRA Hall of Fame.

The winners of the Driver of the Year award, sponsored by 3rd Eye and Heil Environmental, Chattanooga, Tennessee, were evaluated based on their driving records, as well as their commitments to customers. This year’s class of honorees includes the first woman to receive this recognition. The recipients are:

• Javier Verduzco, Large Commercial, Republic Services, Huntington Beach, California; 
• Jesse Peña, Large Industrial, Republic Services, Phoenixl 
• Mark Rutkowski, Large Industrial, Waste Management, Baltimore; 
• Rick Thomas, Large Residential, Waste Connections, Eugene, Oregon; 
• Halsey Wolford, Regional Commercial, Rumpke, Cincinnati; 
• Greg Figueroa, Regional Industrial, WCA, Tavares, Florida; 
• Terry Russell, Regional Residential, Rumpke, Circleville, Ohio; 
• Derrick Belin, Medium, All Waste Inc., Hartford, Connecticut; 
• Bill Kuhlman, Small, Walters Recycling and Refuse, Blaine, Minnesota; and
• Rhonda Kitchen, Public, Wasatch Front Waste and Recycling District, Midvale, Utah.

The Operator of the Year Award, sponsored by Volvo, with U.S. offices in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania, recognizes the safest and most industrious heavy-equipment operator in postcollection operations. This is a new award and its first recipient will be Bruce Russin of Casella Waste Solutions.

The Chapter Leadership Award recognizes outstanding contributions to advocacy and advancement of the industry through NWRA’s state chapters. This year’s recipient, Charlie Latham with Waste Management, chairs the NWRA Florida chapter.

Distinguished Service Award recipients are honored for their continuing contributions toward the advancement of the industry and for their community involvement. This year’s winners are:

• Carmen Smothers, Environmental Solutions Group, Chattanooga, Tennessee;
• James Thaxton, Rumpke Waste & Recycling, Cincinnati; 
• Robert Pfister, Advanced Disposal, Ponte Vedra, Florida; and
• Carl Hornbeger, Republic Services, Phoenix.

NWRA Member of the Year awards, sponsored by McNeilus, are given to individuals who make outstanding contributions to the advancement of the industry. This year’s recipients are:

• Michael McLaughlin, Scranton Manufacturing Co., Scranton, Iowa; and
• Garrett Trierweiler, Waste Management, Houston.

Four industry leaders are being inducted into the NWRA Hall of Fame for lifetime contributions to the waste and recycling industry:

• Ronald Mittelstaedt, Waste Connections Inc., The Woodlands, Texas; 
• John and Douglas Casella, Casella Waste Services Inc., Rutland, Vermont; and
• Kenneth Burkett, American Waste Control Inc., Tulsa, Oklahoma.

“We are so proud of these men and women for their commitment to safety and excellence and for going above and beyond the call of duty to serve families and communities,” says Kevin Kraushaar, NWRA interim CEO. “I look forward to celebrating them all in May at our annual Awards Breakfast at Waste Expo.”

The state of New York’s Onondaga County Resource Recovery Agency (OCRRA) and the paper company WestRock Co., Norcross, Georgia, have announced a joint effort to convert the mill byproduct produced at WestRock’s Solvay, New York, recycled paperboard mill into electricity and to capture thousands of tons of metal for recycling.

“We are excited to build on our long legacy of recycling by working with the Onondaga County Resource Recovery Agency to turn the Solvay Mill’s manufacturing residuals into electricity,” says Nina Butler, WestRock chief sustainability officer. “This project is perfectly aligned with WestRock’s sustainability goals to reduce the landfill disposals and increase recycling in the communities where we work.”

Westrock’s Solvay paperboard mill recycles more than 850,000 tons of recovered fiber, primarily old corrugated containers, per year.

“OCRRA is proud to collaborate with WestRock’s Solvay Mill to divert valuable resources from the landfill, to generate electricity and to recover 3,000 tons of metal that would otherwise be buried forever,” says John Copanas, OCRRA board chair. “Onondaga County residents are world class recyclers; we are thrilled to support a local business in achieving its sustainability goals that align so well with OCRRA’s mission.”

The residual material collected through the joint project will be shredded at OCRRA’s Ley Creek transfer station, Liverpool, New York. The scrap metal collected, projected to be more than 3,000 tons per year, will be recycled. In addition, the remaining byproducts will be transformed into electricity at OCRRA’s waste-to-energy facility in Jamesville, New York. The WTE facility is expected to generate 25 million kilowatt hours of energy per year, enough to power 3,800 homes.

“The OCRRA–WestRock project helps our community be more sustainable while recovering thousands of tons of resources,” says Dereth Glance, OCRRA executive director.

The recycling partnership is expected to divert 44,000 tons per year from an out-of-county landfill.

In a news release, the OCCRRA notes that the cardboard recycling byproducts fall within the parameters of the agency’s existing operating permit from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.