The new German Packaging Act (VerpackG) came into force on 1 January 2019, superseding the previous Packaging Ordinance. Companies now need to deploy technologies which guarantee a high degree of sorting. Christian Hündgen opted to work with STEINERT because it is a one-stop shop for magnetic separation, non-ferrous metal separators and NIR technology, meaning he therefore has to spend less time on coordination. What is more, alongside the proven UniSort PR sorting devices, the UniSort Film and UniSort Black NIR sorters deliver the key percentages of sorting now required by the VerpackG.
Processing 270,000 tons of waste a year, the Hündgen disposal site at Swisttal near Bonn is the largest approved single site for recovering post-consumer packages in Germany. The family-owned company has built the innovative sorting facility in response to the more demanding packaging legislation and its future requirements. The sorting systems used reflect state-of-the-art technology and increase the percentage of pure-grade, recyclable materials and plastics. At the helm of the company, Christian Hündgen contacted Cologne-based STEINERT for help with selecting and realizing systems to improve recycling rates. STEINERT supplied the 20 sorting systems used in the project. The facility’s design capacity is fifteen tons of post-consumer packages per hour with scope for further expansion.
“Our collaboration with STEINERT has been intensive and effective given the huge scale of the task we faced. We have been able to combine our strengths and thereby make very rapid progress,” says Christian Hündgen of how the project has run. “We fully appreciate that we have a partner who has plenty of their own ideas to contribute, but who also took account of our expertise. Following a short commissioning phase, the facility now produces the products desired in line with statutory requirements
.”From a personal standpoint, this project represents another milestone for the Hündgen family and their company’s history, not to mention a great success, says Christian Hündgen in summary. The new post-consumer packages facility is much more efficient and cost-effective. The proportion of recyclable valuable residues has been increased significantly. The “Ressource.NRW” initiative, an award for highly resource-efficient projects, promotes the establishment of this new standard.
