Sustainable manufacturing: using recycled plastic in components manufacturing
As the sustainability of purchases becomes a focus for customers, minimizing environmental impact has risen up the priority list for manufacturers. Alongside market demands, new legislation means setting environmental, social and governance (ESG) targets for supply chains has become essential to corporate planning.
Increasing numbers of US manufacturers have built ESG-focused terms into supplier contracts. Efforts to make procurement less impactful have mostly been customer-driven, with 77% of companies saying they’d received environmental-specific requirements from them.
The environmental impact of plastics is widely reported and well-known among consumers. As a result, choosing more sustainable plastic products and components, including compostable plastic, will be high on the priority list for manufacturers and their procurement teams.
One option is using components made from recycled plastic rather than conventional plastic from virgin resin, but do they still perform well and offer the quality manufacturers need? This article will explain.
• What plastics can be recycled?
• How can recycled content be used in plastic components?
• What are the benefits of using recycled content?
• Does using recycled content affect product quality?
• What sustainable materials can be used for polymers?
• How does Essentra Components help OEMs improve sustainability?
What plastics can be recycled?
A range of plastics can be recycled for industrial purposes through plastic recycling. To do this, the polymers have to be broken down into simple monomer structures using either a chemical or mechanical recycling process.
Chemical recycling uses scientific processes such as pyrolysis, gasification or hydrocracking to break down plastic waste into monomer substances. These can then be purified and returned to feedstocks or the plastics supply chain.
Mechanical recycling involves collecting the same type of plastic waste, washing it, breaking it down and reprocessing it. The base material can then be reused to manufacture new components. This process requires machinery, but isn’t as reliant on specialist expertise, meaning plastics that can be broken down mechanically tend to be more widely recycled.
Recycled plastics
Below is an outline of the main types of plastics that can be recycled for reuse in components or other products:
• Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) is highly recyclable and can be sorted by color and resin type for mechanical recycling
• High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) is a thermoplastic that’s widely recyclable and can be mechanically reprocessed easily
• Low Density Polyethylene (LDPE) is usually recycled using a combination of chemical and mechanical processes
• Polypropylene (PP) also has to be mechanically broken down before being extruded into a base form of the material
• Polyamide (PA) or Nylon has a complex molecular structure that makes it difficult to process, although it is possible
By taking plastic waste from manufacturing and mechanically recycling it into base materials, Essentra Components reduces its environmental impact. This is a key part of our contribution towards the circular economy.
We are also a member of the European Circular Plastics Alliance. Essentra has joined the initiative to boost the EU market for recycled plastics with a commitment to increase the number of recycled plastics in our products to 20% by 2025. We hit this target two years early at the end of 2023.
How can recycled content be used in plastic components?
Once chemically or mechanically processed, recycled resin or base material can be reintroduced into the plastic components manufacturing process. In the case of injection molding, the recycled thermoplastics are made molten and mixed with virgin polymers ready for remolding.
By mixing the recycled and virgin content, manufacturers can reduce the amount of new plastic they use without affecting the final quality or characteristics of the product.
Since 2019, Essentra Components has substituted recycled content into more than 7,000 products across their range, meaning they have a lower carbon footprint and environmental impact.
What are the benefits of using recycled content?
Using recycled plastic content in component manufacturing reduces the environmental impact of a final product. When we recycle plastic, it conserves non-renewable fossil fuels, reduces energy consumption, and minimizes solid waste and gas emissions. It does this in two ways; reducing the demand for virgin polymers and diverting plastic waste from landfills and incineration.
Reducing the use of virgin polymers helps to cut down on plastic waste:
• Fossil fuels use, with less oil or petrol required to create new plastics and more plastic recycled through processes like sorting, washing, melting, and pelletizing
• Carbon emissions, with less plastic produced or burnt using energy-intensive processes
• Energy use, as chemical or mechanical recycling aren’t as intensive as the creation of new polymers
As a result, manufacturers that use recycled plastic components will quickly improve supply chain sustainability. Plus, with new technologies being constantly developed, they can be confident that these products will offer the quality and characteristics they need alongside the environmental benefits.
Does using recycled content affect product quality?
A major worry for manufacturers is whether recycled plastic components can balance quality with sustainability. Concerns about the polymer degrading through the recycling process mean manufacturers have been sceptical about whether components made from these plastics would have the same characteristics. Additionally, the challenges associated with recycling plastic, such as the confusion surrounding different types of plastic and the low percentage that actually gets recycled, further complicate the issue.
However, as the science and technology behind recycled polymers have developed, creating quality components has become possible. The quality and performance of our raw materials is of great importance to us and our customers.
Our Centre of Excellence in Kidlington, UK, has a dedicated engineer who tests recycled content and various biodegradable and bio-based materials, including bio-woods and nylon. This establishes how they perform when replaced or added to existing resins used in manufacturing plastic components.
Sustainable manufacturing
By investing in the right equipment, such as an all-electric and servo-drive machine, the Essentra Components team has led the development of components that meet manufacturers’ and OEMs' environmental and commercial needs.
These machines enable us to test how the materials will behave in the manufacturing process and the impact of different types of tooling. This process ensures we deliver high-quality, more sustainable products to our customers, including the use of compostable plastics.
What sustainable materials can be used for polymers?
Alongside recycling polymers, developing bioplastics for component manufacture offers another sustainable alternative. However, the challenge lies in identifying sustainable materials that enable us to manufacture products to the high quality and performance specifications our customers expect from us.
These materials need to bring sustainability benefits such as reduced emissions, improved recyclability and circularity. However, they also need to meet key tests for manufacturers. Depending on their end use, this could be criteria such as tight tolerances, durability and good electrical insulation.
Although some sustainable sources of bioplastics have been identified, including sugar cane, sugar beet or wheat grain, manufacturers such as Essentra Components have invested in research and development to find the most commercially viable options.
At our Centre of Excellence, we use several methods to source new sustainable materials. We participate in industry events and are continually working with innovators and suppliers as a key collaborator in the sustainable materials space and wider industry. This ensures we remain at the forefront of new innovations and technologies.
We will continue transitioning our plastic products to sustainable alternatives. We have a target that 50% of our polymers and 100% of our general protection and security seals ranges will be sustainable by 2030.
How does Essentra Components help OEMs improve sustainability?
Alongside investing in the research and development of sustainable, high-quality components, the expert team at Essentra Components works hard to understand manufacturer’s requirements and design bespoke solutions. This helps them meet their specific ESG targets and bring real benefits to their customers.
Essentra can provide custom products that fit our customers’ sustainability needs. For example, Essentra provided a product alternative for Iracroft, one of the UK’s leading manufacturers of rigid tube assemblies. We were able to offer a product alternative to the original, unrecyclable PVC cap. We supplied the customer with an alternative LDPE tear cap that could be chipped and recycled to manufacture more mouldings for the customer’s vehicles.
By investing in sustainable product development and setting ambitious ESG targets, Essentra Components helps manufacturers meet their customers’ needs while minimizing environmental impact.