THE
PROBLEM

Glass can be melted down and reshaped an infinite number of times.
However, the current mixed collection process in the UK prevents this.

Once the glass is collected with other materials, several complex
consequences begin to unfold.

Here are some examples:

Handling
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During transportation and handling, the glass shatters into shards so tiny that the materials recovery facility (MRF) cannot separate glass from the other materials

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Glass which is recovered at the MRF is sent to a specialist glass recycler they can only sort by colour if shards are bigger than 10mm. This is often not the case as such, glass is downcycled.

Cross Contamination
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Glass shards often embed into other materials, such as card and paper. This means all end up incinerated or in landfill, thus reducing the recyclability of many other materials.

Economics
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The price and availability of cullet is inconsistent due to the varied standard of recycled glass. This means manufacturers cannot accurately forecast their outgoings for supply making recycled glass an unreliable option.

Handling
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The numerous stages of transportation leads to many more vehicles on the road, meaning more emissions!

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Multiple processing stages demand more equipment and more energy.

Export
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The UK has only a few facilities able to process contaminated glass; as a consequence, our glass is exported to Europe where there is more sophisticated machinery.

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Packaging Export Return Notes
(PERN)
incentivise glass collectors to export their glass abroad.

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In the UK, 20% of glass suitable for recycling was exported in 2022; this has increased to nearly 30%. To achieve a circular system, it is vital we keep our glass within the UK.

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THE
SOLUTION

By utilising reverse vending machine technology, we will be able to create a separate waste stream. This will enable glass containers to be used repeatedly, creating a recycling system that will be able to re-melt 99.9% of the glass it captures while reducing the contamination of other materials, making them more readily recyclable.

This is the Reglassify plan:

the solution cycle
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Collected of Uncountable Glass
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Specialist Glass Recycler
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Cullet is Melted in Furnace
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Cullet is Re-melted in Glass Bottle Container
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Purity of Material

The purity of the glass is maintained, meaning specialistic machines can separate the glass to the necessary standard for remelt.

Minimise Contamination

Glass won t contaminate or embed into other materials this makes them more readily recyclable, improving overall recycling rates.

Safety

Worker safety is improved when glass is removed from other materials, reducing risk of injury!

Efficient Processing & Transport

Emissions are reduced as transportation is streamlined: glass can be sent directly to specialist facilities.

Economic Benefits

As we remove the expensive processes currently taken to separate glass, its market price is simultaneously reduced: this makes recycled glass an attractive, and financially viable, option for manufacturers better for the planet, and better for business!

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Resource Conservation

Using one ton of cullet in the glass making process avoids the extraction of 560kg of sand, 185kg of soda ash and 172kg of limestone.

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Energy Efficiency

There is a 10% energy saving for every 10% of cullet used in the production process. Using 100% cullet could save up to 30% of the energy compared to using virgin materials.

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