£10m recycling plant opens in Burton

A £10 million advanced recycling plant has been opened in Swadlincote by Burton-based Willshee 's Waste & Recycling.

Willshee 's is the largest privately-owned waste management business in the Midlands.

Managing director Dean Willshee said he was delighted that the firm is leading in the evolving sector.

He said: “Opening this new site is a huge step forward for our company in terms of technology, efficiency, and also the environment.

“This state-of-the-art equipment produces over a third more material that can be reused, versus other plant - extracting wood, soil, plastic, metal and rubble from general waste.

"With a process involving three stages of shredding and a sophisticated system of shredding, screening, air separation, magnets, and near-infrared technology, we are able to extract every last piece of recyclable material. What is left, is made into Solid Recovered Fuel (SRF) which is then used by manufacturers. Cement works will use SRF in their kilns, for example.

“The other great thing about SRF is that it is already carbon offset - creating more environmentally friendly energy from waste. ”

Willshee 's new depot will give customers a fully traceable guarantee of zero waste to landfill. The Swadlincote facility is powered by solar panels - with the excess power being sold back to the national grid.

Willshee 's employs more than 100 staff across its Burton and Swadlincote sites, delivering a one-stop-shop waste and recycling management service across the region.

For further information, please visit www.willshees.co.uk

Pictured (l-r): Susan Purnell, technical compliance manager; Craig Willshee, S.H.E.Q. manager; Jenna Willshee, office manager; Dean Willshee, managing director; Maria Willshee, director; and Malcolm Lawson, director