RPS has commenced collections for Evonik, one of the world’s leading chemical companies. Evonik supply their UK customers with product packed on wooden pallets, which RPS are now collecting to make available for return to their German Rheinfelden site. Up until now the pallets have been replaced with new pallets but with RPS expertise in logistics and pallet inspection and repair, their existing packaging assets can be reused numerous times. This reduces the amount of new packaging required as each pallet already in the system can be recovered and returned to Germany, replacing the need for a new pallet. This will also help Evonik achieve a cost saving of up to 35% per pallet.
Regulation 12 of the waste hierarchy insists that before recycling, items deemed as waste must be reduced and reused. Each wooden pallet, unless excessively damaged, can be repaired to original specification and reused. Any excessively damaged pallets can be chipped or recycled for biomass energy, again demonstrating an environmental benefit as none will go to landfill. The reuse of pallets helps reduce the need for new packaging, not only complying with the waste hierarchy, but reducing overall spend on new packaging, with the added benefit of reducing the business’s packaging waste obligation.
Pallet recovery and reuse is important for environmental and economical aspects of any businesses using transit packaging. With the new government directives adjusting the waste hierarchy to reuse over recycle, and the cost of new pallet prices increasing, the RPS collection, inspection, repair and return process can not only help utilise your packaging assets but also help reduce your overall spend on new packaging.
