Linpac Polymers save money with Pollution Abatement Technology

LINPAC Polymers are based on the Moor Lane Trading Estate in Sherburn-in-Elmet. They are part of a large international LINPAC Group who make automotive and other plastic parts, mouldings, food packaging and articles for other plastic packaging sectors. LINPAC Polymers in Sherburn have been running for nearly 20 years producing the polystyrene for LINPAC food packaging companies. Much of their environmental success over the past years has come from their ability to integrate new ideas and technology into their industry.

In 1985 they applied for one of their first standards, the Product Quality Standard, which they gained and have held ever since. It was recently revised in 2003. They are now in the process of applying for the ISO 14001 Standard from the British Standards Institute (BSI) which will integrate this Environmental Management System (EMS) into their business system. This will also include Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series (OHSAS) 18001.

The General Manager, Mr Bryan Cass is confident that the company will have all the systems that are required in place by the beginning of 2005. He explained that LINPAC have already made many environmental improvements that have saved the company money, helped reduce its impact on the environment and conserve valuable raw materials.

A particularly good saving came from the re-use of waste materials as a fuel. LINPAC were required under the Climate Change Levy to reduce their energy use by 6%. The re-use of their waste, which before would have been removed by a contractor, has helped to achieve this goal, as well as saving the company £30,000 per year. Previously 400 tonnes of waste were removed annually. It is now all burnt on site for fuel with a permit licensed by the Environment Agency. The emissions are low and the new source of fuel has cut energy bills. The initial capital costs of the scheme were roughly £30,000 but this was quickly paid off within a year.

Other initiatives include the on site recycling of waste water. Water is used for cooling and removing styrene from polystyrene and must therefore be disposed of safely. It was previously disposed of by contractors but now a carbon drum system is used to clean and reuse the water. This reduced the water waste by 20 tonnes a month and has saved roughly £25,000- 30,000 per year. In 2002 LINPAC Polymers reduced the cooling tower water usage by 3,400 m3 through the installation of a water softening unit and in 2003 they further reduced the water usage by 3,200 m3 by better management of the tower system. In total the cooling tower water usage was reduced by 35%.

The company also uses water savers in lavatories, recycles cardboard and have fitted motion sensing lights in some little used areas. The LINPAC group have also opened a plastic recycling factory to recover some of the waste packaging that their sister companies produce. This has been a growing success and is currently expanding.

Involvement in the community is also important to LINPAC and they currently recycle paper through the local Brownie pack and are key participants in the Selby Waste Minimisation Group. The Group is organised and supported by the Business Environmental Forum and the Environment Agency, and is composed of industries from the Selby area who meet to discuss waste minimisation plans, share information and exchange ideas. The gathering of industries with similar interests is important for networking and environmental action such as waste exchange and implementing regulations such as Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC).