Date: September 12, 2011
Source: News Room
A Salt Lake City company is converting municipal solid waste into a building material that can be used as railroad ties, fence posts, pylons and lumber-like planks. The company, Better World Materials, grinds the heterogeneous residual waste from recycling facilities and feeds the material through a complex system of hoppers, heaters and augers to produce a wood-like substance that, although uniformly gray on the outside, consists of black melted plastic and brown flecks of paper on the inside. Its pilot plant converts about 20 tons of waste per day into artificial railroad ties. Better World is negotiating with an international company, currently under confidential agreement, to ultimately build commercial scale plants, capable of processing up to 2,000 tons per day, in 15 states.
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What we do
Our facilities are designed to process MSW (Municipal Solid Waste) into usable raw material for manufacturing our composite products. The remaining raw material is re-directed to secondary markets, where it is again used to manufacture new products. Alliance partners generate energy, clean water and compost, completing the cycle to use 100% of the available MSW delivered to our facilities. Nothing goes to waste. It is all directed to its most valuable use and ultimately to society's highest good.
We are committed to building the cleanest and safest facilities in the world. Our technologies and processes will ensure that we consistently achieve that goal every day.
Along with providing superior products, it is our goal to support local economies with jobs, a solid tax base, economic stimulation and solutions to regional waste management issues. We believe that everyone can win with this model for a new economy.
How we do it
We employ partnership with local municipalities and the waste management community to leverage environmental and financially sustainable practices. We use current, patented and patent pending technologies to process the MSW stream, providing an almost unlimited source of high grade raw materials for manufacturing.
There is value derived during each phase of the process. By diverting MSW from the landfill, we limit environmental exposure and reduce the cost of disposal. During the MSW processing phase, we create a new source of usable raw materials for the manufacturing community. This process reduces the amount of energy necessary to extract virgin raw materials. We then use a portion of the recovered raw materials to manufacture our patented composite products. These products replace traditional solid wood products, such as railroad ties and dimensional lumber with a 100% recycled product. And when this product is no longer wanted, it too can be recycled into other products.
Why we do it
We believe that we have a responsibility to Mother Earth, all of her creatures and the Creator to re-create a new economy, based upon balance and abundance. We believe that all of the things that we need are here on this Earth and plentiful for everyone. We understand the economic realities of business, and realize that everyone must participate in the new economy for it to be successful. We believe in cooperation and strategic alliance, understanding that we are interdependent as individuals and living systems. As an enterprise, we do not act in isolation, but as a part of a holistic and purposeful endeavor. We believe that our deliberate and loving actions today will ensure the future of generations to come.
To learn more about Better World Materials Inc., visit: www.bwmaterialsinc.com.
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