RPC Tedeco-Gizeh, with headquarters in Port Talbot, Wales, has introduced a new recycling scheme for the company's plastic vending machine cups. The company is billed as the only manufacturer of vending cups in the UK.
Vending customers can collect the cups and deliver them to partner company RPC bpi in Dumfries, Scotland, for recycling. The cups will be reprocessed and blended with other recycled polymers before being used to produce RPC bpi's moulded wood product.
Marketed under the brand name Plaswood, the wood product is made from 100% recycled plastic. The maintenance-free Plaswood does not crack or degrade with age. It is used to produce a variety of products, including fences, posts and outdoor furniture.
Scotland's leading vending machine supplier, Excel Vending, is the first company to use the service, collecting cups from customers across the country.
Jane McDonald, managing director at Excel Vending said: “This is a great initiative. The cups are a valuable resource that can be put to good use rather than going to landfill. It will help support our environmental and CSR strategies.”
RPC Tedeco-Gizeh's UK sales manager, Nigel Cannon, says that the new programme provides a closed-loop supply opportunity for vending businesses.
“Our cups already offer important benefits in terms of a lower carbon footprint from more efficient logistics and deliveries. They can now have a significant end-of-life use that keeps them out of the waste stream,” he says.