Allerton Waste Recovery Park Declared Fully Operational
Allerton Waste Recovery Park will transform an annual 320,000 tonnes of waste from households in North Yorkshire and York into enough power for at least 40,000 homes, but potentially as many as 60,000 homes, based on Ofgem’s most recent figures for a typical UK household’s usage.
It will also reduce landfill and increase recycling.
The three-year build programme by Amey reached its final construction milestone on 1 March when it formally moved into its 25-year operational phase following a period of rigorous independent commissioning and testing.
Allerton Waste Recovery Park is unique in the UK for combining three state-of-the-art technologies on one site – mechanical treatment, anaerobic digestion and energy from waste (EfW).
Allerton Waste Recovery Park can deal with up to 1,400 tonnes of waste per day. First, the waste passes through mechanical treatment where machinery separates the recyclable, food and biodegradable material. Recyclates can be reprocessed into new products while biodegradable materials pass to the anaerobic digester for conversion into electricity.
The remaining waste is burned in the energy from waste facility to create electricity. Comprehensive filter systems capture and control emissions and even the resulting ash is suitable for re-processing once metals have been removed for recycling. Every year, the EfW will generate around 74,000 tonnes of ash which will be turned into construction-related materials for use on highways and infrastructure projects.
Anaerobic digestion and EfW treatment will together generate around 218GWh electricity per year. Some of this is used to power the facility itself but the plant will also export enough electricity to support a town up to one and a half times the size of Harrogate. Early signs suggest the turbine is working efficiently and has already started exporting electricity above the designed 24MW per hour onto the national grid.
Biffa Expands Road Sweepings Treatment
Biffa has expanded its capacity for treatment and recovery of aggregates from road sweepings at its Meece landfill site.
The aim of the new road sweepings recycling facility is to provide a waste treatment location for local councils and commercial waste producers to maximise the capability of a waste stream and divert it from landfill.
This development of Biffa’s strategy will strengthen the network of waste management sites serving Staffordshire and contribute to overall recycling rates. The aim of moving this waste type up the waste hierarchy has never been clearer for Biffa following the installation of a first CDEnviro system in 2016.
“The system is both robust and practical for us, while helping achieve our waste targets. We were assured of the high-quality product we could produce and developed our facilities throughout the UK to offer a nationwide approach to waste.”
John Orchard, Biffa Waste Services: “Following the successful installation and operation of the recycling system at Brookhurst Wood in 2016 we were confident in CDEnviro’s ability to replicate a twin system at the Meece landfill site.
“The system is both robust and practical for us, while helping achieve our waste targets. We were assured of the high-quality product we could produce and developed our facilities throughout the UK to offer a nationwide approach to waste.”
The CDEnviro technology has been developed to receive and treat up to 25 tonnes per hour of road sweepings and residual waste. With efficiency in mind, the system has been designed to effectively clean and separate the incoming waste to produce recyclable and reusable materials.
The CDEnviro solution exists of a reception hopper for the feed material, trommel pre-screen, the HYDRO:GRADE product that both washes, scrubs and screen the waste material before further dewatering occurs. The Meece facility has the addition of a water treatment solution, the CDEnviro HYDRO:FLO.
The HYDRO:FLO will ensure clean water will be recycled around the system continuously in an effort to reduce waste water volumes cast by the system. By maximising their reception capacity, the Meece landfill site can now offer treatment of contaminated materials once sent to landfill, in turn minimising landfill volumes.
Specialist Fleet Services Wins Hinckley & Bosworth Vehicles Bid
Hinckley & Bosworth Borough Council have opted for contract hire rather than outright purchase to replace their waste and recycling fleet, following a comprehensive cost comparison and tender procurement process.
Caroline Roffey, Head of Street Scene Services, Hinckley & Bosworth Borough Council said: “When we compared contract hire with the outright purchase of vehicles, contract hire proved to be the cheapest and most cost/risk-effective solution.”
Specialist Fleet Services Ltd (SFS) was successful in delivering the winning bid, which was based primarily on price. The new 7-year contract starts on 1 September and comprises the provision of 20 vehicles, including Refuse Collection Vehicles, sweepers, hook loaders and box vans. SFS will continue to maintain the vehicles at the council’s depot in Hinckley.
Continued Caroline: “Not only are we saving money by using contract hire we are really pleased to be continuing our relationship with SFS. We have been working with them for over 14 years and I have no concerns at all that we will continue to receive an excellent standard of service.”
“The hire vehicles are exactly the same specification as the new fleet so there will be a smooth transition when the new vehicles arrive.”
The council used to outsource its dry recycling service but has decided to bring it back in-house. From 1 April 2018 the council will be collecting co-mingled recyclables from local households.
Caroline said: “The new service will be easier for residents. We are changing to fully co-mingled, instead of dual stream, using the same blue lidded bins. We plan to change the rounds to increase efficiency and will be adding an extra round due to housing growth. We have experienced a 11% increase in properties in the past 7 years.”
SFS is helping the council through interim arrangements including the provision of 5 brand new recycling vehicles, via its municipal vehicle hire division CTS Hire.
Caroline added: “We are very grateful to SFS who are supporting us with the launch of our new recycling service in April before the contract starts in September. Their expertise, both in the workshop and from their Head Office, helps us to deliver a high-quality service. The hire vehicles are exactly the same specification as the new fleet so there will be a smooth transition when the new vehicles arrive.”
CMS SupaTrak Team Expansion To Support European Market
CMS SupaTrak, the Wiltshire-based vehicle telematics company, has recruited six new members of staff to support its ongoing development of new products and services for the European market.
Recently, the company has partnered with Garmin, a leading worldwide navigation specialist that delivers GPS technology across a range of sectors including automotive and aviation. Some Garmin products now come pre-loaded with CMS SupaTrak’s innovative software.
Jason Airey, MD of CMS SupaTrak, said the expansion of the workforce is a reflection of the company’s commitment to continue to innovate, and to expand into new overseas markets.
“All our software for our UK and European markets is developed in-house, which allows us to be both innovative and responsive to customer needs”
“All our software for our UK and European markets is developed in-house, which allows us to be both innovative and responsive to customer needs,” said Airey.
“We are always on the look-out for fresh new talent to sustain our continued growth within existing and new markets, and we have been fortunate to be able to attract some of the highest calibre people in the industry. They will join our current highly successful CMS SupaTrak colleagues in developing cutting-edge software products that add so much value to our customers here in the UK and abroad.”
The new members of staff will occupy a variety of newly created roles within CMS SupaTrak. One, an apprentice, will bring the total number of apprentices at the company up to five.
New & Improved Leeds Service Centre For Dennis Eagle
Refuse collection vehicle manufacturer Dennis Eagle has announced the relocation of its Leeds Service Centre to a new, larger Service Centre at Gildersome Spur, providing customers in the region with more convenient access to a wide range of services.
The new facility has been custom-fitted to Dennis Eagle’s specification and includes a state of the art workshop area, along with parts warehouse, training conference room and separate offices and a main reception area.
A drop-in event for customers and employees will take place from 10am-2pm on 22 March to mark the official opening of the site. This will include a product clinic providing information on the latest developments, as well as a chance to see some of the latest products from Dennis Eagle and Terberg Matec UK.
Attendees will also be able to view live demonstrations of the DennisConnect telematics system, as well as a fascinating display highlighting the rich history and heritage of the brand in the region.
“We look forward to welcoming customers to our open day, which will provide an opportunity for networking with local authority and private sector decision makers, as well as key Dennis Eagle Directors, Managers and employees.”
Service Centre Manager Gary McLauchlan comments: “The workshop area at our new site is around one third larger than at our previous facility, while our office space has almost doubled in size. This will provide us with greater capacity, enabling us to deliver an enhanced service to our customers.
“We currently employ 15 members of staff, but hope that the relocation will give us the opportunity to expand our workforce over the coming months, to include taking on more apprentices.”
Geoff Rigg, Aftermarket Director for Dennis Eagle, adds: “The relocation of our Leeds Service Centre is an extremely positive development, and reflects the growing demand for our services in the region. Our heritage in this area dates back to 1901 and the Yorkshire Patent Steam Wagon Company. This became part of the Hestair Group in the 1970s, which eventually became known as Dennis Eagle.
“We look forward to welcoming customers to our open day, which will provide an opportunity for networking with local authority and private sector decision makers, as well as key Dennis Eagle Directors, Managers and employees.”
