Not There Yet On Window Recycling

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With such an emphasis on recycling influencing our daily lives, recycling old PVC-U windows should be second nature. Not yet, writes Stuart Stockley, MD of Veka Recycling but we are getting there.

Every British homeowner is now compelled by their local authority to separate and recycle their household waste, whilst our streets are lined with distinctive green bins that call for materials that may be recycled.

Packaging is marked to be either recyclable or manufactured from recycled material – or indeed both. And yet whilst we recover and recycle an estimated 80% of old PVC-U window and door frames that are removed during the process of replacing them with new, getting those last frames into the system remains a challenge.

Anecdotal evidence shows that many installers continue to skip frames along with the other debris and waste that results from an installation. And whilst these will invariably be sorted by the waste contractor, we know that many frames still ‘disappear’ – and we have to assume that they end up being landfilled.

What is surprising is that homeowners, despite being compelled to return all other recyclable waste materials into the system by their local authority as well as being heavily influenced to do so through constant messaging, often show little interest in what is happening to the old frames being removed from their homes.

Marketing tool

Our evidence is again anecdotal but if a homeowner even asks what is happening to their old windows, they are easily satisfied with a vague response and few challenge the installer for a comprehensive answer. We want to encourage every installer not only to return the old frames back into the system for recycling but to use that as an effective marketing and sales tool to secure sales.

Convenience

I believe the first step to encourage uncommitted installers to return old frames, is to make it so convenient and cost-effective that it becomes intuitive – and let them earn out of if as well.

We are increasingly offering local collection of old frames, either from site or from installers’ yards. And we are able to do this by creating hubs to allow relatively local collections and consolidation into bulk loads, with the first now open in Burnley. This allows us to collect smaller loads from Scotland and the north of England, to then consolidate these into larger shipments back to our central Wellingborough headquarters where the recycling process is completed.

The creation of the depot also allows Veka Recycling to deploy smaller vehicles to carry out local collections, perhaps within 50 miles of the Burnley depot, which is coincidentally located near the firm’s PVC-U profile producing sister company. The depot will also collect virgin offcuts from local fabricators, irrespective of the brand of profile. Further, installers may drop off old frames to suit their own needs and schedule.

Glass

Disposal of old glass units remains a problem. Many feel that whilst disposal of frames is sorted, they are still stuck with the problem of deglazing windows and getting rid of the glass, including the Georgian bar and spacer. Some therefore feel it’s easier just to throw it all in the skip and get rid of it.

Not anymore. We are now looking at recycling solutions for the IGUs and can offer bespoke solutions to installers.  We believe that this will be a great incentive for installers to work with us…simply because why wouldn’t you?

Picture: Veka Recycling’s Lancashire hub.

www.veka-recycling.co.uk

Article written by Stuart Stockley, MD of Veka Recycling
11th December 2023

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