Author : POLYSTAR Co.

With the growing importance of recycled-based products for both rigid and flexible packaging, the demand for plastic recycling continues to increase worldwide. Recyclers are now buying multiple machines at the same time and more notably, larger-capacity machines.

Producers understand the relevance of recycling the plastic waste created by their facilities. The shortage of resins drove plastic producers to respond faster and take action to recycle their factory waste, and thus to explore innovative ways to recycle post-consumer waste.

The packaging film sector (stretch film, CPP film and etc.) and plastic bag producers are required to use a much higher percentage of recycled pellets in the end products. For better quality control and to maximize the reusability back into the film extrusion lines, more producers have decided to recycle all the production waste internally instead of outsourcing it.

In general, 8% of production waste is generated during the process (from tape line production, looming and printing). The price of raw material is almost doubled comparing to the cost of having it recycled in-house. It would make sense for medium and large-sized Indian producers (who generate more than 30~40 tones of scraps per month or more) to recycle the production waste internally to reduce production cost.

New regulations in many countries now require producers to use a higher percentage of recycled content in flexible and rigid packaging products. Instability of raw material prices and supplies also forces plastic producers to better recycle their own production waste. The growing demand for plastic recycling directly reflects the machine sales for POLYSTAR.