RecoMed, the expanding PVC takeback scheme for medical devices, has won the Chartered Institute of Waste Management’s (CIWM) Sustainability and Resource Award for Best Recycling Project 2017.

It’s the scheme’s fourth award since it was established in 2014. Having grown year-on-year, RecoMed now operates in 11 hospitals across the UK with more than 10 new ones currently in the process of implementing the scheme.

Run in partnership by Axion and the British Plastics Federation with funding from VinylPlus®, the voluntary sustainable development programme of the European PVC industry, RecoMed is the UK’s first PVC takeback scheme for single-use medical devices from hospitals.

RecoMed saves participating hospitals money on disposal costs by putting devices into recycling containers for collection rather than sending them for incineration or specialist landfill. Uncontaminated items collected in the scheme include oxygen and anaesthetic masks, oxygen tubing and IV bags.

So far, the scheme has recycled over 5,000kg of uncontaminated PVC (equivalent to over 150,000 masks), 2,800kg of which has been collected this year alone.

The collection of devices is all managed by RecoMed. Hospital staff contact the RecoMed team when they are ready for a collection and a logistics company is then organised to exchange the full pallet crates with empty crates. The material is transported to a specialised recycler where it is transformed into horticultural products such as tree ties.

Commenting on the award, Axion’s Jane Gardner says: “The scheme has gone from strength to strength, with 2017 seeing an exponential increase in the volume of PVC medical device waste collected. We hope this award will help to further showcase the scheme’s sustainability goals and we are excited about growing the number of hospitals where it is implemented.”

BPF Senior Industrial Issues Executive Matt Davies states: “RecoMed is flourishing and we are very proud that the scheme has won its fourth award. As it is implemented in more hospitals, even more valuable material can be recovered and put to good use in new applications.”

Brigitte Dero, VinylPlus General Manager adds: “Looking at the successful results of RecoMed, we, as VinylPlus, are proud to fund this scheme since 2014. The RecoMed scheme is a concrete example of how PVC waste – in this case PVC used in medical applications – can be recovered safely and used in new applications. VinylPlus will continue to invest in the recycling of medical devices in the future.”

Axion Polymers has re-formulated its recycled ABS polymer product to give improved physical properties and a superior surface finish suitable for diverse applications from corner supports in window frames to furniture component parts.

In response to customer feedback, Axion has invested significantly in re-compounding its 100% recycled Axpoly® ABS52 raw material to deliver a higher impact strength and a shinier, deeper-black finish. The new Axpoly® ABS grade reference is ‘ABS52 1003’.

Recovered from the non-metallic waste fraction from end-of-life vehicles, the Axpoly® ABS resins deliver a carbon footprint saving of ~90% when compared with virgin ABS made from petrochemical feedstocks. That level of saving is equivalent to driving a forty-foot lorry 45,000 miles, based upon a single 20-tonne order of Axpoly ABS.

Continued process development, including a focus on purification and accurate quality analysis, is a key factor behind the polymer’s improved characteristics, according to Axion’s Product Development Technologist Mark Keenan.

He comments: “This has been confirmed by one of our customers who said it made a ‘massive difference’ in a visually-critical product. Another customer who sampled our new ABS grade told us ‘it works for us’ and wanted their 100-tonne order delivered as soon as possible.”

With its more consistent and better surface finish, the new ABS polymer is suitable for durable goods where higher strength and aesthetics are important customer requirements. Applications include office and home furniture products and assembly parts for the construction sector, as well as a wide range of components for electrical goods.

Welcoming on-going customer feedback that ‘keeps the challenge of our business moving forward and driving growth’, Axion Director Keith Freegard says further investment will be made in staff and product development over the coming months.

“Our next priority is to focus on getting higher impact strengths for even tougher applications,” adds Keith. “Having experienced record sales in October and November, we’re looking forward to carrying on our profitable growth trend. So watch this space from early 2018 when we expect to add more grades to our growing ABS range.”