The MRF Operations Forum is the only event specifically dedicated to plant operations, not policy and markets.
The forum is the result of numerous conversations with plant owners and operators who desire in-depth discussions on the obstacles of operating a material recovery facility (MRF). Faced with the dual challenge of increasingly complex, capital-intensive equipment and radically changing markets and material streams, meaningful discussions with industry professionals are invaluable.
Technology Has Changed Plant Operations
MRFs have significantly evolved as machinery and systems have become more advanced. Robotic sorting, machine learning, artificial intelligence (AI) and optical sorting integrated with AI are the newest technologies reshaping MRF operations, while fiber screens are being replaced with better solutions.
Optimizing this equipment to run efficiently is challenging. It requires plant operators to understand each component and how these components relate to one another and the material streams being processed.
Advancements in technology also mean that retrofitting new components into a plant can add real boosts to production, efficiency and material quality. Understanding when and how to do this is critical; it can provide a tremendous competitive advantage or become a costly mistake.
Materials and Markets Have Changed Plant Operations
Material flows have also significantly changed. Lightweighting means the volume of material that constitutes a ton has increased. Long fiber has largely disappeared from the streams with the reduction in newspapers, while single-sheet fiber, old corrugated containers (OCC), and boxboard volumes have grown.
All of this has occurred while end markets in China have all but disappeared, creating a new paradigm for quality measurement and materials marketing with a growing emphasis toward domestic mills.
$2 Billion in Costs
It is estimated that MRF operations and maintenance costs exceed $2 billion annually in the U.S. This is a huge figure, and effectively managing a plant’s costs is the difference between profitable and unprofitable processing.
Optimizing wear parts, energy consumption, downtime and recurring maintenance is crucial. Additionally, contamination remains a leading factor of unplanned downtime and increased wear. Materials that don't belong in the recycling stream, also known as "out-of-program" materials, often lead to costly disruptions in MRFs.
Today, managing material audit programs and providing detailed, quantifiable feedback to program administrators is a key component of a MRF operator’s responsibilities. Doing it right, doing it regularly and not interrupting operations to make it happen are critical.
Safety: A Top Priority
Managing all of this while ensuring a safe environment for your workforce—so they can be productive, accurate and return home to their families—is the job. These combined demands require a platform where MRF operators can come together to learn, grow and share experiences with one another.