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16-07-2022
Leestijd: 5 min.
A better environment and plastics in one sentence.
Plastic components do not have the greatest reputation when talking about a better environment to say the least. We see single use plastics being banned in more and more countries. We, as a plastic component producer, take responsibility in contributing to a better environment and in this week's article we explain how it’s done.
Staying on top of the game in this industry, means adapting to the needs of our clients and their customers. But then we wonder, who should take responsibility for global plastic pollution? Should this be the consumer or the manufacturer? We think it starts with the producer. Unfortunately, change cannot happen overnight. But bit by bit and with hard work we are aiming for a better and sustainable environment.
How does Rompa Group contribute to a better environment?
Rompa’s global footprint
Having a global footprint with regards to manufacturing means having manufacturing sites all over the world. Rompa Group is proud to have many production sites all over the globe. These production sites are located across Europe, Asia and North America. This means that our clients do not have to travel far to have a production site nearby. This also translates into delivery nearby. “Buying local” has been a worldwide trend and this becomes possible thanks to our global footprint. Nearby manufacturing saves a lot on transport costs and produces significantly less CO2 emission. Reducing transportation emissions is however not the only benefit of our global footprint.
A small stock with a big impact
We explained to you why less transport has an impact on a better environment. But our global footprint also gives the possibility for our clients to have a smaller inventory. When your production site is nearby, you can easily and quickly respond to the demands of your market. For example, It’s no problem if sales increase rapidly in a short period of time. So this is not only very beneficial for our environment but also gives reassurance to everyone: producers, clients and consumers. Unsustainable inventory has a great impact on transport and warehousing. Keeping items on the shelf simply results in unnecessary carbon emissions and this is what we can reduce thanks to our global footprint. Did you know that Rompa Group offers a vendor managed inventory solution? You can read more about our VMI method here.
A sustainable design and production method
Every product starts with a design and prototyping. It is here that we start the considerations of usage of reusable materials and the full life cycle of the product. We ask ourselves questions about the end-of-life phase and how we make sure nothing goes to waste. There are many design considerations we take into account when we start the process. Two of the main and well-known methods are the methodologies of Design for Assembly and Design for Disassembly. But also Design for Recycling and Design for Manufacturing are some of the best methods to follow when in the design process. Would you like to learn more about these methods? Below are several articles about these sustainable design methods:
- Design for Assembly: “Less is more, let’s take it apart with Design for Assembly”
- Design for Disassembly: “Recycle, reuse, repair and remanufacture: Design for Disassembly with Rompa”
- Design for Recycle and Design for Manufacturing: “Sustainability starts with the design”
Plastic vs sustainability
We want plastic, but we don’t want the waste. We sometimes need and want plastic for the production of our products as an optimal solution for the item. Think about the protection plastic offers for certain items and how it can prevent contamination of many products. We can take packaging for food as an example. The plastic packaging makes the food last longer and it protects the food from bacteria and humidity. It increases shelf life which in turn means a contribution to less food waste.
But what we do not want is the waste and pollution created from plastics. In the design and production process, we take sustainability into consideration. But what happens afterwards? This is where waste management comes in. There are two main methods when it comes to recycling plastics.
Mechanical recycling is the easiest. This process collects the plastic bits and pieces and after washing it, it is melted to transform it back into raw material. This raw material can be used for a new production process. This method is very well known around the world.
Feedstock recycling is also called “chemical recycling”. This process is rather complex. The chemical structure is modified during this process so manufacturers can reuse the materials.
At Rompa Group we recycle plastics by collecting unused plastics. Then the process of disassembly and washing of the plastics follows. At the final stage, we shred the plastic to make granulate and save it for the next project where we reuse the granulate.
Read it in our Whitepaper
Whitepapers are written for the explanation of complex problems and to give our partners a clear view of where we stand in this complex problem. A life without plastic is unthinkable, but the way we handle plastic can be improved in many ways. In our whitepaper, we give you more information about our point of view with regards to plastic vs sustainability and how we can create a better environment for everybody without losing the quality of plastic usage.
Download our whitepaper “What if plastic would disappear?”