Case study: Colombia-based manufacturer gains more autonomy through recycling in partnership with WEIMA Maschinenbau GmbH

Based in Medellin, Colombia, Plásticos Ojara is well-known as one of the leading manufacturers of plastic clothes hangers. Due to the use of a WLK 4 single-shaft shredder from German manufacturer WEIMA, the company has been able to recycle rejected products on-site and return the material to the production process.

For more than 40 years, Plásticos Ojara, which now employs around 200 people, has been an important supplier of hangers to the local textile industry.

The Colombian company was looking for a way to further optimise production and become more environmentally friendly, so those responsible chose to reintegrate the raw material into the manufacturing process. The cycle begins with an industrial WLK 4 shredder from WEIMA.

The WLK 4 single-shaft shredder has a working width of 600mm and an electromechanical drive with WEIMA's own WAP gearbox in combination with a V-rotor and a generously dimensioned hopper in logspacer design. This prevents feed material from forming bridges. As a rule, it is operated with a throughput of approx. 350kg per hour, but a higher throughput is also possible with continuous feeding. The rotor cutting blades can be flipped several times when worn, which drastically reduces the machine's maintenance costs. The shredder can be operated intuitively via the touchscreen display.

Up to 30 per cent of the manufactured clothes hangers are made from recycled plastic. Plásticos Ojara uses only PP, PS and PE to produce them and around 250,000kg of these materials are processed every day, most of which come from the company's own production. Waste generated in the production process is shredded by the WLK 4 before being granulated and returned to the manufacturing process to produce new hangers. Around 30 per cent of the clothes hangers are now made using regranulate and the company also collects old clothes hangers from surrounding customers or stores.

By creating an internal recycling line with WEIMA shredding technology, Plásticos Ojara has now become even more independent of external influences. Expensive raw material purchases are reduced to a minimum, creating new opportunities for entrepreneurial activity and further opportunities to optimise production. Furthermore, unused storage areas have become available again and intralogistics expenses for waste handling are reduced. Thus, Plásticos Ojara has become a Colombian flagship for the local recycling economy.