“We aim to become the leading recycler of LDPE in the Nordics”
English version of the previous post in Swedish.
Omni Polymers, which restarted its operations in March this year, aims to become the leading recycler of LDPE in the Nordics. CEO Josef Tapper shares this and more about their future plans.
What are the future plans for Omni Polymers?
- Our business with recycling mixed film continues. However, our goal is also to become the leading recycler of sorted LDPE material in the Nordics. Sorted LDPE requires a different pre sorting process prior to the material arriving at Omni Polymers for recycling, but it also has significant benefits for more types of consumer packaging.
- During the summer, together with our customers, we are developing an LDPE granulate product that will be suitable for manufacturing new film packaging.
- Our main owner, TMR, has begun sending household packaging to Fortum in Finland for sorting this year. TMR plans to procure sorting services this autumn, where one of the requirements will be that the supplier can sort out the LDPE fraction that we at Omni Polymers will then recycle and offer to the packaging industry, with TMR’s customers as the first priority. Thus, we will continue to be an important recycling supplier for TMR and its producer responsibility customers. That said, we are also open to receiving material from other systems and sorting facilities. Negotiations with mainly Nordic actors are already in full swing for 2025. The goal is to recycle 10,000 tons of sorted LDPE next year. The market for this type of material is broad, and we are at the forefront of technology development for recycling in the Nordic market. Already in June, we will start sending out test products of recycled LDPE to plastic film manufacturers in Sweden and Europe.
Do you still have a close collaboration with TMR?
- We have a close and valuable collaboration with TMR. TMR is an important representative for manufacturers of household plastic packaging. At the same time, it should be noted that TMR does not have an exclusive right to use our recycling solutions. We are happy to partner with more companies that handle producer responsibility and sort household plastic packaging.
The world economy has been in a recession until quite recently. Has it been noticeable in the recycling industry?
- It has been noticeable broadly in the industry and also by us. Now the economy seems to be turning around. But by focusing more on recycling LDPE, we are moving up the value chain. The product is more difficult to produce but is more stable in price regardless of the economic situation.
- Looking ahead a few years, we assess that the regulatory pressure on recycling LDPE and other plastic materials for the packaging industry will increase within the EU. Recycling from packaging to packaging will become a requirement. By entering and developing the technology for the market, we believe that we will be well-positioned.
You restarted your production in March, how has it gone?
- We are ramping up our production, but it has been a couple of months of fine-tuning the new equipment. Right now, we deliver three full trucks of our MDPE granulate per week to our largest customer in the Netherlands.
- The new water treatment system with enhanced safety features has been central to the production. It means that we can minimize water wastage in the manufacturing process. With the new system, we have minimized the use of chemicals in the purification process.
- We now also have the opportunity to adjust the technical properties of the plastic by adding various additives in the extrusion stage, which contributes to a greater demand for our products among plastic product manufacturers.
Have your recruitment needs changed due to the plans to recycle LDPE?
- We have been recruiting since the turn of the year and have gone from 17 to 31 employees. We have received several hundred applications, which makes me happy. We started three-shift production in April, and the next step is to start two-shift weekends.
- But we are still looking for more staff. Anyone with relevant competence who thinks Omni Polymers sounds like an interesting workplace is welcome to contact us. Anyone with the appropriate skills who is interested in working at Omni Polymers is encouraged to get in touch with us.
Finally, it has been almost a year since the accident where two employees died. How are you and the other employees today?
- We are feeling better, but there is still a sorrow that we carry with us. My focus this year has been to try to support the employees in the best way possible. After a long production break following the accident, and the subsequent upgrade to a new safer water treatment system, the employees, despite a lasting sorrow, are very glad that the business is up and running again and we can look towards the future.