Case Studies: Coles Fish

EPS compactor nets huge savings for fish merchant

Greenbank has provided a leading supplier of fish and shellfish to the catering industry with the ideal solution to the challenge of disposing of the polystyrene boxes used to transport fish.

Since we installed a specialist polystyrene compacting machine at Cole's of Kings Lynn, the West Norfolk-based firm has not only seen a dramatic decline in the volume of waste it produces but its rubbish collection costs have plummeted by almost 96 percent.

The polystyrene boxes used to transport salmon to Cole's and which weigh over 1kg when empty, are reduced down by the compactor to virtually nothing, making disposal relatively straightforward and far less costly.

Paid for itself in six months
A delighted Brian Cole, joint owner of thebusiness that holds a Royal Warrant for supplying fish and shellfish to the Queen, says the compactor has saved him a fortune!

"We used to pay £100 a time for twice weekly collections and now it costs us £37 every five weeks," he said.

"I can't praise it enough. It's an incredibly simple system and has paid for itself in six months."

"It's a fantastic solution for what used to be quite a problem for us - storing and getting rid of huge volumes of polystyrene boxes and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to anyone."

Compact and simple to operate
The machine that we installed is a robust, low maintenance SC1000 EPS (Expanded Polystyrene) Compactor that provides a very straightforward way to dispose of polystyrene. It achieves good results with both wet and dry polystyrene, reducing the volume down to 40 times less than its original state.

Greenbank's Sales Director Robin Evershed said they had looked closely at what would suit Cole's business before recommending the SC1000.

"It is simple to operate, can be loaded as soon as the waste is produced and doesn't take up a huge amount of space," he explained.

"It is part of a range that can be used by anyone who has to dispose of polystyrene - from fish processors to furniture distributors. The largest model can handle up to 200kg of polystyrene an hour. And with landfill tax set to increase by 25 percent during 2009, anything that reduces volumes of waste for businesses has to be welcomed!"

Compacted waste can be recycled The benefits of the new compactor are not limited to cost reduction for the compacted polystyrene is also recyclable. The blocks produced by the machine can be used in a variety of applications from fences to garden furniture.

Brian Cole said that, prior to the recession, they could even have made money from their waste by selling the compacted polystyrene.

"That market has declined for now but when the economy picks up it is another source of possible revenue to look forward to!" he added.