A new life for construction waste – Deschacht recycling
Deschacht partners with recycling company Peter Laureys
Every year, the Belgian construction sector produces more than 15 million tons of waste. Part of that is already recycled, but there is room for improvement. Because the more construction materials we reuse and recycle, the fewer new raw materials we need. And Deschacht is happy to contribute to that. Together with Peter Laureys, we are bringing plastic waste back into the circular economy.
Collection of hard plastics
Filip Ausloos, Business Unit Manager at Deschacht: “As a leading supplier of plastic piping systems, Deschacht is aware of the “circular challenge in the road construction sector” and is therefore entering into a partnership with Peter Laureys. He specializes in the recycling of polyethylene, polypropylene, PVC, and post-consumer plastic waste. Through this collaboration, we are giving even more plastic construction waste a new lease on life.”
From contaminated plastic to new raw material
How does it work? Peter Laureys: “In our hangars, we wash and grind plastic products. Using a sink-float technique, we separate the polypropylene (PP) from the polyethylene. This yields different qualities. The less PP, the purer the regrind. The recycled raw materials go to compounders to make new materials from.”
Every year, Peter processes 7,000 tons of PE and PP waste, 1,500 tons of which are HDPE pipes. 5,000 tons of recycled plastic are returned as regrind or granulate to the construction industry in Belgium and abroad.
Filip Ausloos: “In a constructive dialogue with the sewerage partners and responding to product certification legislation (including by printing construction products with a reuse guarantee), Deschacht is committed to this contribution to a sustainable future.”
In practice, this means that plastic pipes are printed with a recycling guarantee so that any construction waste or excavated materials can be disposed of and reprocessed.
To put this into practice, an agreement was concluded with Peter Laureys's company from Dendermonde. His years of expertise and passion for recycling can certainly still benefit Deschacht.
Deschacht recycling
As a leading building materials merchant, Deschacht assumes its responsibility regarding a sustainable economy and care for the climate and environment. In all our activities, we strive to leave as small an ecological footprint as possible.
As a specialist in the fields of sewerage and (separate) drainage, we genuinely contribute to a sustainable water management system. Regarding plastic recycling, all our products comply with VLARIO regulations.
Due to the geographical distribution of our 10 branches, Deschacht is ideally situated to organise this recycling in a rational and sustainable manner, specifically by collecting recyclable material at construction sites nearby and delivering it to recycling companies with a minimum of transport kilometres.
Generally speaking, Deschacht considers a rational organization of its logistics and transport as the primary area in which the company can contribute to the reduction of CO2 emissions.