the american chemistry council acc declared the winners for innovation in plastics recycling awards of this year. three companies sony electronics inc., kw plastics, and safeplay systems were honored. this year, the awards are being given to the winners for developing innovative products andor processes by using postconsumer recycled plastics. kw plastics was given an award for its revolutionary approaches to recycle postconsumer polypropylene packaging. as the vast array of polypropylene products are found in household waste, many reclaimers have had problems handling the many layers, melt flows and additives. kw plastics has created specifications, processes, and equipment that surmount these challenges, allowing the processing of juice boxes, ketchup bottles, butter tubs, yogurt cups and even corrugated yard signs that are made from polypropylene&mdashand all as part of an included processing system. the troy, which is an alabamabased firm, now buys these items from around the nation and reprocesses them. along with this, kw plastics is also a trendsetter by forging new areas as the first domestic reprocessor to amass and recycle nonwoven and woven flexible polypropylene. currently, kw plastics has the capability to reprocess 300 million pounds of polypropylene and 450 million pounds of highdensity polyethylene yearly. stephanie baker is the director of market development for recycling division of kw plastics. according to her, being the largest plastics recycler of world, kw plastics has often been the leader in developing new technologies and markets to redirect plastics from the landfill while generating revenue and jobs for the regional economy. she further said that the inventions they have implemented, together with supportive efforts with their suppliers and partners, are making plastics recycling simple and easy than ever before. safeplay systems&trade won an award for ecoplay®, its admired line of playground equipment for parks and schools made up of postconsumer recycled highdensity polyethylene hdpe. ecoplay lumber is developed from at least 95 percent postconsumer recycled materials. though the marietta, which is a georgiabased company, manufactures custom products that can array from smaller structures designed for young kids to larger structures of around threestories high, on average every playground structure diverts 35,000 milk jugs out of landfills. safeplay has created its own recycling program and also accepts all its products for the purpose of rerecycling at the end of their intended lives. eric torrey is the director of marketing at safeplay systems. eric mentions that they are proud of their highperformance polypropylene structures which don&rsquot crack, swell, splinter or rust and are almost maintenance free. however, more than that, environmental stewardship is a fundamental part of safeplay systems&rsquo business. sony electronics inc., a company which is based in san diego, california, won an award for its development of sorplas. it is a material that is made up of 99 percent recycled polycarbonate, which is used in the packagings of some of sony&rsquos recognized consumer products, especially in highend cameras. to create sorplas, sony utilizes 50 percent postindustrial waste from the optical disc manufacturing, for example, bluray discs, dvds, and cds, and remaining 50 percent postconsumer recycled plastics is used, which is derived from containers, endoflife products, and other items. this process also has added environmental benefits in helping to minimize co2 releases during transportation and manufacturing. the sony group utilizes above 17,000 tons of recycled plastics on a yearly basis, including sorplas, in various products. smith is the director of corporate environmental affairs for sony electronics inc. smith said that sony is dedicated to improving and protecting the environment in all parts of their business. smith further mentioned that they are excited to be recognized for developing sorplas, which is a longlasting resin, created from recycled polycarbonate that helps to preserve resources and reduce gas emissions in the production process. smith also said that they are devoted to increasing the use of recycled plastics in their products as research continues. steve russell is the vice president of plastics for acc. steve thanked the creative advancements that were brought to them by these recyclers and others like them, which able them to keep more useful plastics out of landfills like never before. steve also mentioned that used plastics are so valuable that it cannot be directly dumped in the landfill and can be recycled to create innovative and highquality products, such as packaging, furniture, home building products, car parts, and fashion. source of information httpwww.americanchemistry.commediapressreleasestranscriptsaccnewsreleasespl…
