STADLER installs packaging sorting plant in Germany

Environmental services provider PreZero has commissioned automated sorting systems solutions provider STADLER to design and install a new state-of-the-art light packaging sorting facility in Eitting.

The new facility is set to become ‘the most advanced light packaging sorting plant in Europe’, according to a STADLER press release, capable of sorting packaging by colour, including black plastics. With an annual throughput of approximately 120,000 tonnes, it is also likely to become the biggest light packaging plant in Europe.

The sorting plant receives light packaging made up of tin foil, ferrous and non-ferrous scrap, aluminium, composites with aluminium content, film PE plastics, nets and foam, PP and PS plastics, EPS, PET bottles, other PET, PVC and plastic packaging, TetraPak cartons, paper and cardboard. The process, which includes advanced fines preparation and automated film colour sorting, results in 18 different output fractions separated by material and colour.

No small amount of innovation was required in the design and creation of such a processing plant, as described by Project Managers Wolfgang Köser and Benny Kalmbach: “This was the largest project to date for us, with 272 conveyor belts installed filling the hall on five levels and supported by over 1,000 tonnes of steelwork,” Köser said.

“To achieve the high-quality sorting PreZero was looking for, we used state-of-the-art technology in our design. The advanced equipment included 38 NIR (Near Infrared) optical sorters, our ballistic separators and robot-assisted secondary sorting,” Kalmbach added.

A fully automated bunker management has been incorporated at the plant to ensure operatives are no longer required to remain at the baler. Specified bale weights and lengths can be achieved through weighing cells situated beneath all bunkers. 

The project was completed in a very short time, as Köser explained: “We had a very tight schedule, with just 12 months from signing the contract to start-up with material, but we succeeded with a good and close co-operation … Short decision-making processes and a target-oriented approach enabled us to move forward quickly at every stage.”

PreZero Head of Engineering Sorting Systems Stefan Kaiser agreed by highlighting the importance of “open communication, straightforward thinking, focused and time-efficient collaboration, and on-time delivery … The start-up of the sorting plant was on schedule in early January 2022, and the ramp-up phase is running perfectly.”

For PreZero, the plant represents a step in the transition from a waste plant to a production plant of industrial standards. For STADLER, the project provided an opportunity to develop innovative solutions to serve the recycling industry with high-quality recyclates.