THE PROMPT Newsletter of the Canadian Association of Recycling Industries Volume 9, No. 4, April 2017

THE PROMPT

Newsletter of the Canadian Association of Recycling Industries

Volume 9, No. 4, April 2017

SAFETY TIPS

THE FUTURE OF E-SCRAP PROCESSING 

We’ve experienced a global growth in e-waste and e-scrap, and the opportunity created by this is why many CARI members are in the business today.

But what does that future of our industry look like? How will processing change for the better?

Many see a future where the economy is more sustainable than the current one and where the world is free of waste. There are two challenges to realizing this vision: processing more materials, and increasing safety. Technological innovation is key to overcoming both difficulties.

1) Processing More Materials, With Greater Ease

Waste diversion is the core of the recycling industry; we keep end-of-life materials out of landfills. Although there are many materials we can extract from e-scrap and divert from landfills today, many more materials cannot be extracted as easily. Black plastics are a good example of a problem material. Identifying the different types of material, which require different processing, is essential to the plastics recycling process.

Black plastics are used heavily in electronics, and have been virtually impossible to sort and recycle correctly because the colour makes it difficult to tell the differences in their physical properties.

CARI member Greentec has been working on this challenge through a partnership with Conestoga College and their Mechanical Engineering program. This partnership has lead to the development of an imaging system that will analyze and provide data to determine the type of the black plastic material and its shapes and features, to make the sorting process possible.

2) Increasing Safety

Part one of this article discussed the importance of workplace safety in our industry. Flat Panel Displays (FPDs) are a common type of e-waste that presents a serious safety challenge. FPDs are full of valuable commodities, but the bulbs underneath the screen contain mercury, which is extremely toxic. These products are currently dismantled by hand. This allows for more control to ensure the bulbs stay intact, but this process is slow and does not allow for error.

Here again, Greentec’s innovation partnership is discovering new processing possibilities. They are exploring the use of robotics and how they might enable us to automate this entire process making it more efficient and safer. This solution will also allow for the extraction of more valuable materials, with greater ease.

CARI members believe the future of our industry is a bright one, and that technological innovation will help us process more materials than we can today, and in a way that improves safety. The result will be a more profitable and sustainable economy.

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76th ANNUAL CONVENTION UPDATE 

Banff, Alberta, June 8-10

We are pleased to announce that out exhibit space is sold out! 

Contact Donna at (705) 835-1592to discuss alternative opportunities for exhibitors and please visit our website for full convention details and to register.

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CARI MEMBERS MAKING NEWS 

EVENT CALENDAR

76^th Annual Convention ISRI Empire Chapter Dinner Banquet 
June 8-10
Banff, Alberta

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Canadian Association of Recycling Industries

130 Albert Street Suite 1906

Ottawa, On K1P 5G4

Canada

Telephone: 613-728-6946

Fax: 705-835-6196