As general contractor for Republic Services in Las Vegas, Krones has supplied the entire recycling plant for PET and polyolefins from a single source. The Republic Services Polymer Centre is the first plant of its kind in North America. Following successful commissioning at the end of 2023, final acceptance has now taken place.
The market for recycled plastics is booming. To meet this demand, Republic Services' Polymer Centre in Las Vegas is set to open with an expected annual Output of more than 50,000 tonnes of recycled plastics contribute. To achieve these ambitious goals, Republic Services relies on the technology and expertise of Krones. A linked system with two different input streams now produces high-quality PET recyclate in washed, unmixed and colour-pure quality.
The other plastics PP and HDPE account for around half of the throughput volume. These are sold to Blue Polymers as single-colour and single-variety bales, a joint venture that Republic Services founded with another company in 2023.
„We have heard time and time again that the Krones washing line produces the highest quality rPET flakes. With these lines, we are able to produce both food-grade and colour-sorted materials in a way that was not available to the market in the past.“
Pete Keller, Republic Services Vice President, Recycling & Sustainability
As a turnkey specialist, Krones supplied the entire line from the sorting plant and granulators to the washing line and flake sorting through to utilities for compressed air generation, water treatment and wastewater treatment, for example. Following its successful commissioning in December 2023, the plant has now also passed the final acceptance test with flying colours.
„We are pleased to be working with a customer like Republic that is a leader in its industry. Years of experience in managing and operating facilities in the recycling industry has made the transition to processing post-consumer plastics as smooth as one could wish for.“
Jon Larson, Head of Product Sales at Krones Inc.
Only a first step
Republic Services plans plants at three further locations in the USA by 2026. Dr Michael Gotsche, Head of Krones Recycling, continues: „The cooperation is of great strategic importance for Krones. We want to support Republic Services in expanding its presence with polymer centres in the USA.“ Blue Polymers is also part of these growth plans. A Blue Polymers plant is to be built in the immediate vicinity of each of Republic Services' Polymer Centres, where polyolefins will be further processed by cleaning, mixing and pelletising.
Towards the end of the year, the Republic Polymer Centre and the Blue Polymers complex in Indianapolis will go into operation. Here, too, the company is relying on technology from Krones - above all the tried-and-tested MetaPure washing modules, which are both for PET recycling as well as for polyolefins can be used.
Source: Krones
