Röchling Sustainability Center closes material cycles
Since 2021, offcuts from our own production and from customers have been returned to our site in Geeste-Dalum and processed into new, valuable raw materials. They are cleaned, sorted and ground on site. The resulting recyclates are processed back into high-quality semi-finished technical plastic products at our plant in Haren. “Thermoplastics in particular are ideal for material recycling due to their properties. Together with our customers, we systematically close material cycles and thus conserve valuable fossil resources,” explains Wilhelm Korte-Dirxen, COO of Röchling Industrial.
“For their part, our customers can then reduce their waste volumes, return unused production waste and obtain new semi-finished products from it. Our comprehensive range of services and the high quality of our sustainable products strengthen the close relationship with our customers in the long term,” adds Korte-Dirxen. The semi-finished products are sold in the Röchling-ReLoop® product family for sustainable plastics, which the plastics processor launched on the market in 2022.
Innovative technologies for the successful recycling of plastics
The company is not only breaking new ground in its collaboration with customers. “The separation of waste by type is a prerequisite for successful reprocessing. We use the latest technologies and systems to ensure reliable and efficient sorting of plastics,” says Korte-Dirxen. Polyethylene and polypropylene in particular are processed in Geeste-Dalum. Other thermoplastics that have been processed in one of Röchling Industrial’s 40 subsidiaries worldwide can also be processed there.
Sustainability on more than 30,000 square meters
On completion, the Röchling Sustainability Center will occupy an area of more than 7,000 square meters on the more than 30,000 square meter company site. “Our goal is to process more than 10,000 tons of plastic waste per year in Geeste-Dalum,” explains Heiner Englisch, who is responsible for the site. In addition to the modern sorting plant, several new shredders as well as grinding and production facilities will be purchased. A modern office building and a new production hall with more than 4,000 square meters are also being built in Geeste-Dalum. Both will be equipped with a large-scale photovoltaic system in order to use electricity from renewable energies. In total, the expansion and the associated increase in capacity will create around 20 new jobs.
Röchling Industrial has already invested five million euros in Geeste-Dalum. With the expansion, the total investment amounts to 15 million euros. “The expansion is not only a clear commitment to sustainability, but also to our location in Emsland,” emphasizes Korte-Dirxen. Röchling Industrial’s headquarters are located in Haren, around 30 kilometers away. Helmut Höke, Mayor of the municipality of Geeste, is delighted about the strengthening of the business location: “In just three years, the Röchling Group’s premises in the Dalum district have developed into a center for the circular economy. Over the next two years, 10 million euros will be invested. Röchling Industrial has the option of acquiring additional space for further growth.”
Sustainability as an important pillar of the corporate strategy
Sustainability is an important factor for the internationally active plastics processor, which has developed a comprehensive sustainability strategy “Products, People, Planet”. “We take our responsibility as a plastics processing company very seriously. That’s why we are working to make our products and processes more sustainable and to strengthen fossil resources and the circular economy,” explains Lübbers.
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Further links
👉 www.roechling.com
Photo: PBA Eiling
