Cambridge Project Development launches Swedish 'round bale' technology in the US

Florida-based solid waste planning and engineering firm Cambridge Project Development Inc. has partnered with Flexus Balasystem of Sweden, maker of the Flexus Typhoon Round Baler-Wrapper System. Cambridge supports its clients in determining which system configuration and size could meet their needs and expedites the acquisition, shipping and installation process.

Photos courtesy of Cambridge Project Development

The round bales are suitable for managing a variety of materials, including municipal solid waste (MSW), scrap tires and refuse-derived fuel/solid recovered fuel (RDF/SRF). The round bales are designed with a number of “game-changing advantages in mind, Cambridge says:

•  no methane emissions;
• no leachate leakage;
• no odor or birds;
• no cover soil or tarping needed;  
• no bale wires needed;
• no weak bale corners as with square bales;
• designed to be stable when stacked;
• can remain in a landfill indefinitely or easily recovered for transport if it becomes desirable to recover airspace;
• do not require transfer station building in many locations;
• do not need specialized rail car, semitrailer or marine configurations (such as enclosed intermodal containers), yielding extra payload and for ease of loading and unloading;  
• modest initial cost and low, predictable ownership costs; and
• the contents’ calorific value is retained indefinitely for later energy recovery.

According to Cambridge, the round bales produced by the Flexus Typhoon can generate high added value for public and private clients engaged in landfill operations, waste transfer and transport operations and waste-to-energy storage and transport of RDF/SRF.

Based in Nossebro, Sweden, Flexus has been engineering, manufacturing and supplying its round baler wrapping systems since 1995. Flexus Balers are known for their precision manufacturing and durability and operate in heavy-duty waste applications worldwide.

Leonard Enriquez, president and founder of Cambridge, has more than 30 years of experience in the Solid Waste industry, including 10 years as a vice president at Veolia-North America.

Waste transfer & transport

In waste transfer applications, Cambridge says a transfer station building is not needed for preparation and storage of baled material in many applications, since the round bales are inert and watertight and can be prepared and stored outdoors. 

When it comes to transporting round bales by road, a conventional flatbed tractor-trailer can be used for additional capacity per trip (though a standard walking floor trailer can be used, as well). The inert, tightly wrapped round bales do not require tarping or enclosure, during transport, Cambridge says.

 

For rail transport, round bales can be loaded onto common flatbed railcars.

“Many waste-by-rail operations today are hampered or made more expensive through use of closed intermodal cargo containers or covered high-sided rail cars,” Enriquez says. “The specialized loading/unloading equipment and railside infrastructure these enclosed containers require lead to a significant additional capital investment.”

In marine (ship or barge) transport, no specialized loading or unloading equipment is needed, and the lack of litter and odors makes Round Bales more environmentally secure compared with conventional barge or specialized vessel transport. No Dockside Transfer Station is needed, Enriquez adds.

Placing round bales in landfills

After nearly 20 years of use, the round bales also have been proven to indefinitely prevent methane generation, thereby avoiding the expense of landfill gas flaring or collection systems operations, Cambridge says. They also avoid the need for daily cover.

 

Typhoon balers compress and wrap MSW so tightly that many air pockets are squeezed out, halting aerobic degradation, according to Cambridge.

“At the same time, the Typhoon’s compression causes moisture in the MSW to be dispersed throughout the waste mass, and the wrapping excludes the entrance of any outside moisture, thereby making moisture unavailable to aerobic or anaerobic degradation processes and halting decomposition within the Round Bale,” Enriquez adds.

The round bales can be stacked with stability to heights of 12 or more rows, which has been proven over the years, according to Cambridge.

Waste to energy and energy recovery

“Round bales are especially useful at WTE plants as a means of storing waste during peak waste arrival periods when arrivals exceed plant receiving capacity or when the WTE plant internal process is paused for scheduled or unscheduled maintenance events,” Enriquez says. 

Additional information is available by contacting Enriquez at 305-926-3309 or LNE@cambridgeprojectdev.com.