BHS selected to oversee, supply MRF upgrade

Concord, California-based Mt. Diablo Resource Recovery (MDRR) has selected Eugene, Oregon-based Bulk Handling Systems (BHS) to undertake a major retrofit of the company’s Mt. Diablo Recycling Center (MDR) in Pittsburg, California.

Originally commissioned in 2009, the MDR plant currently processes up to 20 tons per hour of recyclables. The renovated material recovery facility (MRF) will be operational in the second quarter of 2021 and will be able to process more than 35 tons per hour, BHS says.

Through what the supplier calls a creative installation strategy, MDR and BHS are anticipating just 35 days of downtime.

The retrofit design includes process upgrades and new equipment to increase throughput, recovery, purity and overall system efficiency, BHS says. Included are BHS Tri-Disc screens, National Recovery Technology (NRT) optical sorters and Max-AI artificial intelligence (AI) technology.

According to BHS, Max-AI technology identifies recyclables similar to the way a person does to direct robotic and optical sorters and collect and report material characterization information. For MDRR, the Max-AI AQC (Autonomous Quality Control) robotic sorter will work at the “last chance” position to identify and capture remaining recyclables before they exit the recycling process. The AI technology also will work in collaboration with an NRT SpydIR optical sorter to identify and remove nonfiber from the mixed paper product.

“The world of recycling has changed, and this powerful new system will keep Mt. Diablo Resource Recovery at the forefront of recycling excellence,” says MDRR Chief Operating Officer Gary Lazdowski. “BHS offers the overall quality, partnership and advanced technology to help MDR achieve the throughput and quality to meet our business goals. We believe the future of recycling will rely heavily on using technology and data to optimize performance, [and] Max-AI and NRT equipment throughout our system will deliver that for our operation. We are excited for our future and confident that this innovative technology will empower us to meet recycling expectations for our state regulators, for our community and for our business.”

BHS CEO Steve Miller comments, “This major retrofit is an excellent example of a company like Mt. Diablo Resource Recovery adapting to change in the industry. The new system features proven screen technology to increase throughput and precisely present material downstream to NRT and Max-AI sorters to maximize both recovery and product purity. We are thrilled to deliver this creative solution that meets our customer’s business objectives and to have worked out an installation plan with our partners that minimizes system downtime. I want to thank the MDRR team for choosing BHS and we look forward to future collaboration.”

Mt. Diablo Resource Recovery, a family-owned company, provides solid waste, recycling and yard waste service to the areas of Concord, Pittsburg, Brentwood, Discovery Bay, Oakley and Rio Vista, California, northeast of San Francisco.

Bulk Handling Systems describes itself as a worldwide leader in the innovative design, engineering, manufacturing and installation of sorting systems and components for the solid waste, recycling, waste-to-energy and construction and demolition industries. Its subsidiaries include Amsterdam-based Nihot, Tennessee-based NRT and California-based Zero Waste Energy.