MBA Polymers UK Opens Dedicated Line for Advanced Recycling of Car Bumpers

The facility will also help car manufacturers meet proposed amendments to the ELV directive in the EU and the UK which has proposed that at least 25% of plastics in a car must be made from post-consumer plastics.

The state-of-the-art line based in Wimblington, Cambridgeshire, will create a circular supply chain for high-quality plastics sourced from end-of-life car bumpers.

The dedicated line will be supplied from MBA Polymers’ growing number of collection sites and access feedstock from the UK’s biggest ELV recycler, EMR. This creates consistent and high-quality recycled resins for the production of high-impact polypropylene and filled polypropylene.

MBA Polymers UK’s pioneering technology and the reliable performance of its recycled plastics has already seen some of the largest automotive manufacturers switch to using the firm’s sustainable materials in their new vehicles.

By expanding the recycling of car bumpers, MBA Polymers UK will significantly reduce the more than 900,000 tonnes of plastic from cars which currently goes to landfill or incineration in the UK and EU each year.

In contrast, the sustainable materials MBA Polymers UK delivers on to manufacturers achieve carbon savings of between 75% and 86%, making them the first recycled plastics to carry the Carbon Trust’s Low CO2 label.

Earlier this year, MBA Polymers UK announced it had achieved RecyClass certification for the sorting, washing, extrusion and pellet production for a range of recycled plastics including ABS, PP, FPP, HIPS and HDPE. RecyClass is a not-for-profit cross-industry initiative that uses rigorous scientific analysis to ensure the traceability of waste in plastic recycling processes based on the principles of the EN 15343 standards.

Paul Mayhew, General Manager at MBA Polymers UK, said: “As the automotive industry faces the challenge of meeting recycling targets mandated by the upcoming revision to the EU’s ELV Directive, sourcing truly sustainable recycled plastics is becoming more important than ever.

“The opening of this new dedicated line at our facility in Wimblington will enable MBA Polymers UK to recycle ever greater volumes of plastics, using our advanced separation and processing techniques to deliver high-quality polymers back to manufacturers.

“Plastics make up around 12% of a cars’ weight and this latest development highlights how MBA Polymers UK will enable the automotive industry to create truly circular supply chains on the path to net zero.”