Sustainable Electronics Recycling International (SERI) will release an updated version of the R2 (Responsible Recycling Practices) Standard later this year, according to the January 2019 issue of “R2 Update.” The e-newsletter is produced by Boulder, Colorado-based SERI, the housing body for the standard.  

R2v3, the third version of the R2 Standard, “will mark the next phase in the evolution of the R2 Certification program,” writes Corey Dehmey, SERI executive director, in “R2 Update.”

He writes that a draft will be released for public comment early this spring, with the final version being published in the fall. “The SERI team will be spending this year developing and retooling resources to assist auditors and R2 certified organizations to begin the transition to R2v3,” Dehmey adds.

He writes that updates will be available on the organization’s LinkedIn page at www.linkedin.com/showcase/r2-certification.

Consumers of secondary commodities, including plastic, paper, metal and wood scrap, all maintain specifications related to the purity and the quality that these materials must possess, as they are key ingredients in the goods they produce.

Many of these consumers advocate for collection that is as source-separated as possible. That is, if a plant is using clear PET (polyethylene terephthalate) scrap as feedstock, the owner of the plant wants only that specific feedstock shipped to the facility without contamination.

Managers of waste and recycling companies often reply, however, that to obtain sufficient volumes of a given material—including clear PET bottles—using only pinpoint targeted collection methods will come up short.

This disparity between what is able to be easily collected and what materials are desired by a given consumer has helped lead to one of the priciest research and development (R&D) efforts in the waste and recycling sector this century: the ongoing quest to deploy automation to separate commingled recyclables from one another.

The effort has a long history of industry stakeholders bridging mechanical, magnetic and laser-optical techniques to achieve this end goal. Some of the latest technology deployed fits into the artificial intelligence (AI) or machine learning categories with a healthy side order of robotics included.

Defining the tactics

Operators of material recovery facilities (MRFs) and other recycling plants face the risk of being overwhelmed with technical terms as they sift through pitches and proposals from technology and machinery vendors.

To understand the basics of these technologies, distinctions need to be made regarding the differences between AI and machine learning. AI is considered a broader category of computer systems developed to perform tasks normally requiring human intelligence, including visual perception and follow-up decision-making.

Within AI, machine learning is defined by ExpertSystems.com as “an application of AI that provides systems the ability to automatically learn and improve from experience without being explicitly programmed. Machine learning focuses on the development of computer programs that can access data and use it to learn for themselves.”

When it comes to identifying and separating materials in a commingled recycling application, machine learning is a segment of AI that is playing a starring role.

Companies including Europe-based TOMRA Sorting Recycling; Eugene, Oregon-based Bulk Handling Systems (BHS); Canada-based Machinex; and Finland-based ZenRobotics are among those focusing on tying machine learning into devices and systems to offer thorough automated sorting options for recyclers.

Learning to sort

Companies such as BHS with its MaxAI systems, Machinex with its SamurAI line of sorting machinery and ZenRobotics with its Recycler have all gained attention and investments from recycling plant operators who have calculated that such advanced technology will yield a healthy return on investment (ROI).

Even before machine learning became an integral part of commingled recycling sorting systems, investments in automation focused on two priorities: improving the quality of shipped secondary commodities and decreasing labor costs on the sorting line.

BHS marketing plays heavily into both. “Max,” the spokes-robot for MaxAI, states on BHS’s website, “I don’t get sick. I don’t need breaks, lunches or days off. I work harder, longer and better than anyone else.” Regarding quality, Max adds, “I’m more accurate and more efficient than anyone could be.” And when it comes to machine learning capabilities, Max states, “Thanks to my intelligent neural network, I’m capable of learning on the job so I can adapt to changing conditions and variables.”

Jonathan Ménard, an executive vice president with Machinex, describes the company’s SamurAI product line as a “self-aware sorting robot [that] answers a worldwide need for increased automation.”

Ménard says the SamurAI was unveiled at the April WasteExpo event in Las Vegas, and then internationally a month later at the IFAT trade fair in Germany. He says the MRF market has responded positively to it. “Machinex has officially sold eight SamurAI units, including three of them that will be running before the end of 2018,” he says.

Buyers in the MRF segment are attempting to garner their ROI on the commingled container front, and they’ve turned to AI-enabled technologies to fast-track improvements in lowering contamination rates.

“The majority of our applications are currently for the recovery of different types of recyclables on the reject quality control line, which mainly allows the recovery of natural and colored HDPE [high-density polyethylene], PET [polyethylene terephthalate], metals, Tetra Pak and other types of plastics otherwise missed by the previous sorting equipment,” Ménard says.

Advances in robotics

Learning-enabled robots are also gaining a presence in the sorting of mixed construction and demolition materials (C&D), where objects in a commingled stream can be picked in either a negative or positive sort. Recently, robots programmed by ZenRobotics have made an impact on how operators in this space are able to sort incoming materials.

Operators of mixed C&D recycling facilities face labor cost and quality control issues similar to those encountered by MRF operators. As have many MRF operators, C&D recycler Walter Biel of Austin, Texas-based Recon Services has invested in machine learning and robotics to address both of those issues.

In 2017, Biel and his staff worked with ZenRobotics and its U.S. distributor Plexus Recycling Technologies, Denver, to become the first C&D recycler in the country to deploy ZenRobotics robot sorting arms. (A profile of Recon’s overall operations can be found on the Construction & Demolition Recycling magazine website at www.CDRecyler.com.)

At the Recon plant in Austin, two robot arms with “smart grippers” have been programmed and deployed to pick 12 different kinds of materials, and they can separate plastics based on polymer, color, shape and size.

Recon Services says the robots can make roughly 2,000 picks per hour, selecting objects with market value in a positive sort process. By comparison, according to Recon and ZenRobotics, humans can make approximately 800 such picks per hour.

“The robots have added a positive piece to our overall concept,” Biel told Construction & Demolition Recycling magazine earlier in 2018. “Being the first to implement something always has its good and bad, but it never affected any decision we made. It was something we saw value in and decided to add into our operation.”

Whether to be a pioneer of a new technology or wait and see if early adopters benefit will be an ongoing decision-making process for recyclers of all commingled materials as AI and machine learning continue to be configured to work along with sorting devices.

One thing is for sure: These technologies aren’t going away. Sorting technology companies have committed to AI, machine learning and robotics as an integral part of their future. The question is how advanced these machines can become.

According to Ménard, this is an ongoing process.

“We are still working with our partner [Colorado-based] AMP Robotics to further develop enhanced identification technologies and capture rates for plastics applications,” he comments.

When it comes to robotic arm sorting, Ménard states, “In reality, the robot is a tool powered by the AI. Once the neural network of the AI is well-developed, the technology can be inserted in many existing sorting technologies to enhance their performances (recognition, purity, maintenance requirements, auto adjustments, etc.).”

Technology providers such as Machinex are not standing still with their current AI-related product lines, says Ménard. Beyond the sorters themselves, he says a “focal point of development” at the company right now involves “technologies needed to design a connected smart facility,” referred to as “Industry 4.0.”

“We are currently establishing the foundation needed to collect and analyze essential data that will be available and useful to track for the MRF operator,” he says. “This data would help any operator in his or her decision-making process and would be supported by clear indicators of what is currently going on in the plant. Ultimately, this information would also lead to automatic adjustments of certain equipment, assuring complete system performance optimization.”

When it comes to investing in machine learning and AI sorting technology, recyclers clearly will continue to have plenty of vendors and options to choose from. By examining variables such as the type of incoming feedstocks, desired purity rates, speed, accuracy, manpower and automation, operators can help narrow their search and find the sorting solution that best fits their needs.

The author is a senior editor with the Recycling Today Media Group who can be contacted at btaylor@gie.net.

Ben & Jerry's, South Burlington, Vermont, has become the latest company to announce its move away from single-use plastic. As a first step, the company says in a press release that it will no longer offer plastic straws and spoons in any of its more than 600 Scoop Shops worldwide in early 2019. The company also announced a plan to address plastic cups and lids used to serve ice cream by the end of 2020.

Jenna Evans, Ben & Jerry's global sustainability manager, is leading the transition. She noted that Ben & Jerry's Scoop Shops currently hand out 2.5 million plastic straws and 30 million plastic spoons a year. If all the plastic spoons used by Ben & Jerry's in the U.S. were placed end to end, they'd stretch from Burlington, Vermont, to Jacksonville, Florida, the press release says. "We're not going to recycle our way out of this problem," Evans says. "We, and the rest of the world, need to get out of single-use plastic."

"Single-use plastics are a pollution threat unlike anything we've seen before," says Paul Burns, the executive director of the Vermont Public Interest Research Group. "Across the globe, discarded plastics are choking our environment and threatening wildlife. The only solution is to stop using them. That's why Ben & Jerry's plan to move away from single-use plastics is exactly the kind of leadership we need. We urge other businesses to follow Ben & Jerry's example and kick the plastics habit."    

Ben & Jerry's says it has already embarked on its plan to get out of single-use plastic in its Scoop Shops:

• August 2018—Scoop Shops made plastic straws available by request only. Many Scoop Shops had already transitioned to plastic alternatives by this time.
• By April 9, 2019—Scoop Shops will complete the transition to wooden spoons. Paper straws will be available by request only.
• By the end of 2020—Ben & Jerry's will find an alternative to clear plastic cups, plastic-lined cups and plastic lids.

The company says it has a history of striving for more sustainable packaging solutions. Pints and "tubs" (as Ben & Jerry's containers are known in the U.K. and Europe) have been made with Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Certified paperboard since 2009. But because they are coated with polyethylene to create a moisture barrier, they are difficult to recycle.  Evans says Ben & Jerry's is looking at options. "Over the past year, we have begun an intensive effort to find a biodegradable and compostable coating that meets our product quality requirements," she says.

"In the short term, eliminating plastic straws and spoons is not going to save the world," Evans says. "But it's a good start toward changing expectations. We're committed to exploring additional options to further reduce the use of disposable items. This transition is the first step for us on a more comprehensive journey to eliminate single-use, petroleum-based plastic in our supply chain, and we look forward to reporting on our progress.”

AMCS, the Limerick, Ireland-headquartered integrated software and vehicle technology provider for the waste, recycling and resource industries, completed its Digital Transformation Barometer 2018, which serves as a benchmark for the waste and recycling industry. It investigates how organizations in the waste industry use technology to improve the performance of their operations and how they adapt to changes. The benchmark also emphasizes which technologies add value and where the industry can find areas for improvement. 

For the Digital Transformation Barometer 2018, AMCS studied which priorities are on the agendas of management in municipalities and private sector waste collectors in Europe and the US. We also wanted to understand the biggest challenges they face in the digital transformation of their operational processes, and whether there were any significant differences in digital maturity within the target group. The respondents included a significant number of organizations with more than 250 employees. More than half of respondents have more than 50 vehicles for waste collection.

The waste management and recycling industry is not very enthusiastic about its progress in adapting to new technologies. According to the study, about 60 percent of waste management and recycling professionals gave themselves a failing grade for the application of new technologies. Also, most companies gave themselves a grade of “unsatisfactory” in these areas. Yet about 64 percent of those surveyed expect an increase in their information technology (IT) budgets, with 20 percent expecting an increase to their IT budgets of more than 5 percent. 

According to AMCS’ study, more than 80 percent of participants—regardless of whether they are municipalities or private sector waste management companies—believe that digital innovation is important for their business success. At the top of their priorities list is improving customer satisfaction (73 percent) and increasing productivity (72 percent). 

Additionally, more than half of respondents (52 percent) indicated that improving sustainability is a big priority. Yet to achieve this, AMCS reports that the most important issue for management is how to organize the operational process in terms of both harmonization and digitalization. The main barriers include obsolete legacy IT systems, implementing a paperless organization and creating a culture open to change.

“The research shows that there are five elements that are critical to success in transitioning into a digital organization,” says Mark Abbas, chief marketing officer for AMCS. “Besides engaged employees and a management team that gives people the space to innovate, it is very important to have a comprehensive understanding of the digital trends and advancements in the value chain. It is also down to a smart application of new technology within the organization and using (reliable) data to make decisions.”

Key findings

AMCS’ study participants were asked to rate their organization on a variety of statements that measure progress on the five elements of success in digital transformation, and the average score on the 10-point scale was 6.3. 

AMCS reports that the following are some findings it determined as a result of the study:

1. Digital transformation requires leadership in change management: The results of the survey show that leaders in the waste management industry clearly understand the importance of ‘soft’ factors, such as leadership and employee engagement, in making the transition.

2. The digital part of digital transformation is the real challenge: Unlike the softer aspects like leadership, it is exactly the 'harder' technical aspects of transforming the organization, as in using Business Intelligence (BI) and data science or applying new technology, that forms the biggest challenge. When it comes to the application of emerging technologies, 60 percent of respondents gave themselves a failing grade. Average scores for business information were slightly better, but nearly half (45 percent) still gave themselves a grade of unsatisfactory.

3. Legacy systems are the biggest barrier to digital transformation: For 54 percent of organizations surveyed, it is the problem of legacy software and systems that creates the greatest barrier to full implementation of the digital transformation.

According to Abbas, the research results provide insights into an interesting group of companies that have taken the lead in digital transformation. “This group approaches digital transformation in a completely different way and has very different priorities from the rest. Their operations are already very nearly paperless, they use digital invoicing systems and they have self-service web portals available for their customers. They are also more likely to already be using other digital techniques and applications, such as RFID, GPS Monitoring, Route Optimization, and in-vehicle tablets.”

According to AMCS, a detailed report of the research findings has been published and is now available for download.