Waste and recycling innovators nominated for AWRE Innovation Awards

The Australasian Waste & Recycling Expo Innovation Awards will be held this evening at the Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre and are set to reward forward-thinking waste and recycling innovations. The awards will celebrate products and projects which strive to perform beyond what is considered achievable.

New processes, systems and products which stimulate growth and raise standards across the entire industry are being independently judged by Jon Dee, founder of Do Something!; Nic Burt, CEO Facility Management Association of Australia; and Robert Verhey, Strategy LGSA.

A safe, simple and economical solution to the thermal compaction of polystyrene (Styrofoam) waste is among this year’s finalists. The Styromelt EPS Densifier from Brentwood Recycling Systems is specially designed for applications where traditional hydraulic compaction is not economical or practical, or where lingering odours and contaminants are present in the polystyrene, such as organic matter from fish or meat.

Another finalist is the MAS DRD 18 DS by Koga Recyclingtech - a dry cleaning system for post-industrial and post-consumer plastic waste streams. The technology is used to dry and clean agricultural film, post-industrial film, shopping bags and other materials for the re-extrusion to plastic pellets. Washing without water conserves this precious resource.

Reinventing the way waste collection field staff work and communicate is the Wastedge.com iPad/iPhone app, also a finalist. This entry is the first on the Australian market for waste collection and provides a paperless system with many features, including a map showing drivers where their jobs are and directions to them.

Australia’s only indoor/outdoor emissions-free electric waste and facility service vehicle by Wrightway Products was also announced as a finalist in 2012. Waste-specific vehicles provide safe, efficient collection, transportation and emptying of bins, solid or liquid waste. These smaller, low-noise, emission-free vehicles allow access and use to otherwise difficult or inaccessible bulk transfer situations, such as limited access basements/loading docks of high-rise buildings or events management.

The winners will be announced at the Australasian Waste & Recycling Expo, held over 21-22 November. To find out more about the show and to register for free entry, click here.