TAFF Awards 2012: Environment Award nominations

In recent years, the subject of the environment has assumed ever-greater importance as regulations have tightened their grip. Only two survivors from last year's final shortlist have made it through to this year's. These are Vellco Tyre Control (who won in 2011) and Bandvulc, which is the only retreader in the final five. The other finalists are newcomers (to the TAFF Awards) Murfitts Industries, DME Tyres and Sapphire Energy Recovery.

Bandvulc

Bandvulc has been providing industry leading products and services for over 40 years and is one of the longest running companies based on a recycled product.

The growth and acceptance of a recycled truck tyre is due to the proven quality and safety built into the Bandvulc tyre along with belief in the product by its customers. A truck tyre does not easily degrade and therefore the only true option is that of reuse into a product that is as good as new, thereby saving another new tyre being brought into the recycling loop. The savings achieved in retreading v. buying a new tyre amount to 68 litres oil, 44kg rubber and 182.24 kg CO2. With production now approaching 200,000 tyres per year the savings are significant and afford customers a great advantage in promoting their ‘green endeavours’.

Firmly rooted in quality, safety and efficiency Bandvulc’s commitment to innovation goes hand in hand with a strong bias on sustainability. Its whole philosophy is one of minimising waste and pollution alongside reducing the amount of raw materials and energy used; Bandvulc’s Energy Efficiency Programme is a major step in reducing the Group’s carbon footprint and making a greener retread. 

As a flagship for environmental best practice Bandvulc’s wide-ranging approaches include:

• Energy Team

• Energy saving metering technology

• Machinery and process improvements

• Tyre design and rubber compound

• Fleet low carbon and efficiency projects

• Raising awareness

DME Tyres

With over 35 years’ experience in waste tyre collection and reprocessing from its Midlands-based processing facility, DME Tyres offers a reliable and professional service on a national scale to existing and potential customers looking for safe disposal of waste tyres of any shape or size.

DME is a 14001 accredited company, and all environmental compliance documentation is supplied.

Murfitts Industries

In just 10 years since beginning production, Murfitts has grown to become the leading tyre recycling company in the UK, recycling over 11 million tyres each year. This growth is due to the company’s parallel objectives: recycling 100 per cent of every tyre and producing zero waste; and manufacturing the highest quality rubber granule products possible.

In 2010, Murfitts invested £10 million in a purpose-built plant and over the last year has been focused on overcoming the last barrier for complete tyre recycling – recovering the fibre.  The new plant has enabled Murfitts to successfully recycle 100 per cent of the rubber, the steel and the fibre; a process the company believes to be unique among tyre recycling plants across the world. By recovering the fibre effectively, it can be used as a highly efficient fuel, a process which saves in excess of 10,000 tonnes per annum of fossil fuel.

Murfitts is now well underway with a programme to use some of this fibre to provide the plant’s own electricity, with the result that the company will be a net energy generator, rather than a consumer.

Alongside completely recycling a tyre, Murfitts has also dramatically reduced the transportation costs involved in the process. It has worked with Kwik Fit, a major customer, to establish a satellite shredding facility alongside their national distribution centre in Corby. Processing tyres on site and transporting them in shredded format saves more than 50 per cent on fuel emissions compared to whole tyres. 

At the heart of Murfitts’ environmental success is the fact that it considers itself to be a manufacturing company, as much as a recycling one.  It produces rubber crumb of such high quality that it is used by the world’s leading builders of sports stadia. A crucial environmental factor in any sector is ensuring products have longevity and Murfitts is the only manufacturer to offer an eight year guarantee on its products. It is this focus on quality which has led to Murfitts’ products being used at world class stadia including Twickenham and Wembley, as well as the UK’s newest international standard hockey pitches. 

Sapphire Energy Recovery Thank

We provide waste disposal solutions which are both cost-effective and environmentally sustainable, benefiting waste producers looking for safe waste management options and the cement industry wanting to reduce CO2 emissions. 

Our work means that waste producers have an alternative to landfill or other disposal routes, and cement producers have access to replacement materials that can turn waste to energy and reduce reliance on fossil fuels.

Vellco Tyre Control

Vellco Tyre Control’s environmental credentials are amply demonstrated by the fact that the company has won the TAFF Environment category award on no fewer than four occasions; the latest being last year.

The company, which has ISO 14001 Environmental accreditation, collects literally millions of end-of-life tyres a year and, working on the principle of Re-use, Recycle, Recover, Vellco is proud of the fact that, despite the many thousands of miles clocked up by its extensive fleet of collection vehicles, the company has achieved carbon negativity. 

Even more impressive is the fact that this has been achieved through Vellco’s own efforts rather than the more artificial method of planting trees to offset CO2 emissions. When it comes to minimising the effect on the environment, Vellco practises what it preaches – not only does it offer a valuable collection service to its customers, helping to lessen their environmental impact, but its own carbon footprint is extremely light.

Despite this, Vellco is continually striving to improve its performance and innovations in maximising the number of casings carried per vehicle were instrumental in helping to achieve carbon negativity. The vehicles themselves are as efficient as possible, with many incorporating exhaust gas recirculation technology, which returns over 30 per cent reduced emission rates.

Vellco will continue to work towards reducing the impact on the environment – for both itself and its customers – while at the same time maintaining the high levels of service that its customers have come to expect.