LRS Chicago MRF wins top NWRA honor

Rosemont, Illinois-based waste and recycling services provider LRS' Exchange material recovery facility (MRF) in Chicago, featuring technology from CP Group, has been honored with the 2024 Recycling Facility of the Year Award by the National Waste & Recycling Association (NWRA).

The award recognizes the facility's "groundbreaking advancements in sustainability, innovation and operational efficiency, setting a new benchmark for the recycling industry.”

LRS is the nation's fifth largest independent residential and commercial waste and recycling services provider, and the LRS Exchange MRF, located in the Stockyards neighborhood of Chicago, represents a $50 million dollar investment.

Opened last year, the MRF has been designed to divert 1 million pounds (500 tons) of recyclable materials daily, “playing a pivotal role in enhancing waste diversion efforts for both the city of Chicago and surrounding communities and businesses,” CP Group says.

The facility currently has a processing capacity of 25 tons of recyclables per hour but is poised to expand to 35 tons per hour in the near future, according to LRS.

“Equipped with cutting-edge sorting technology, including a CP Auger Screen, advanced screening equipment, six MSS optical sorters and three Fire Rover units, the Exchange is poised to safely divert 224 million pounds [112,000 tons] of recyclables annually,” CP Group says.

Regarding community engagement efforts, LRS has an "open-door policy" at the Exchange MRF, welcoming community stakeholders and partners. Since the LRS Exchange MRF opened in 2023, LRS has hosted more than 800 guests to visit and tour the facility, with those visitors including university professors and students, package designers, government leaders, businesses and community groups.

“LRS builds advocates for recycling when the veil is lifted, and visitors are shown the complexities and challenges of the operation," CP Group says.

According to CP Group, earning the 2024 NWRA Recycling Facility of the Year Award “is a testament to the LRS Exchange MRF’s unparalleled commitment to advancing the recycling industry.”

LRS, founded in 2013, provides service to several million residential and commercial customers in Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Kansas and Arkansas. The company owns and operates more than 70 facilities and has nearly 2,300 full-time employees.

CP Group designs and manufactures material sortation and recovery equipment used in the waste and recycling sector worldwide.