A new construction and demolition (C&D) recycling plant is fast tracking the circular economy ambitions of a Victorian business.
Jake Mansfield describes Fieldmans Waste Management as a small family business, but he and brother Dylan are thinking big.
In September 2023, Fieldmans Waste commissioned a multi-million-dollar recycling plant for construction and demolition (C&D) waste.
The static plant by M&K Recycling Systems adds to the growing number of successful C&D and construction and industrial processing systems operating in Australia.
Within months the plant has increased timber recovery by about 50 tonnes per month and non-ferrous metal recovery has doubled. And it’s opened more market opportunities.
“It’s exceeded expectations,” Dylan says. “We’ve always had a handful of external customers who bring waste to us, but we didn’t realise how much this plant would speed up processes.
“We need more waste than what our trucks can collect.”
Every year in Australia, the building industry produces 27 million tonnes of waste, according to the National Waste Report 2020 – equal to 44 per cent of all waste generated throughout the country.
Based in Dandenong South, Fieldmans Waste provides construction, demolition and commercial rubbish removal to building and construction companies throughout Melbourne. Recovered materials, including masonry, clean timbers, cardboard, plasterboard, metals and soil, are separated and sent offsite to end processors.
Jake says an increase in the need for sustainable waste solutions, and the potential to recover vital resources, drove the decision to invest in new infrastructure.
He and Dylan looked at what was being achieved overseas and say they didn’t want to sit idle. They reached out to specialist equipment supplier FOCUS Enviro to design, construct, and commission a new waste recycling plant that would increase the waste they could process and provide opportunities to grow.
FOCUS Enviro has been involved in some of the largest resource recovery projects in Australia and has a reputation for providing turnkey, tailored solutions. Jake says FOCUS Enviro’s expertise gave them confidence they were going down the right path.
“We’ve had a good relationship with them right from the start,” he says. “It was evident that the level of detail and what we could achieve was just as important to them as it was for us.”
Following multiple site visits to gain an understanding of the project, and using 3D animation and drawings, FOCUS Enviro custom-built a plant that not only suited Fieldmans Waste requirements but was able to fit within the constraints of its existing site.
Key considerations for Jake and Dylan were the flow of materials, machinery and trucks around the plant, and the health and safety of staff.
Prior to the plant being commissioned, staff were working on the floor of the shed, manually picking up and sorting waste. With the new plant, staff are positioned in a purpose-built sorting cabin, standing up and sorting the waste as it comes by on a conveyor belt.
A better working environment, it’s also helped improve recovery rates. Dylan estimates the plant will process up to six times more waste than currently handled. While he’s aiming to run the plant five days a week, it’s now operating three times a week because they’re running out of waste.
“Before, one load might have taken half an hour to 45 minutes to sort through, now as quickly as we can load the waste into the machine it’s being processed,” he says.
“Previously we were losing a lot of non-ferrous metals because they were getting lost in different streams, but this machine is picking up every nut and bolt.
“We’ve been able to recover more of the waste streams we already had, create efficiencies within the business, and a better environment for everyone working in the yard.”
The brothers say the M&K product stood out because of the quality of the build and safety aspects such as walkways, access points and operator control systems. All components are also made in house by M&K – from start to finish – streamlining the process but also ensuring all components are compatible.
The plant arrived in about 16, 40-foot shipping containers and was pieced together onsite while Fieldmans Waste continued operations.
“To watch it come together is astonishing,” Jake says. “Every piece fits perfectly. It doesn’t have anything on it that doesn’t need to be there.
“It’s compact and does everything we need it to.”
The plant was several years in the making, from start to commission, and Jake says that over that time Fieldmans Waste and FOCUS Enviro have a strong relationship that goes beyond a typical sale. Both he and Dylan are impressed by the team at FOCUS Enviro for its knowledge in the product, after sales support and investment in their future.
The FOCUS Enviro team was on site when the first waste was run through the plant and continues to be a phone call away. Since the plant was commissioned, it has arranged several interstate visits to see the plant in operation.
“They’ve gone beyond what they had to,” Jake says. “FOCUS Enviro saw our growth potential and helped us unlock it. They’ve opened a new window for us because of what the recycling plant is capable of.
“We know we’ve got some good power behind us to go and look at other avenues to service our recovered materials and target a whole different division of the market.
“With Australia transitioning to a circular economy and shifting away from landfill, we can stand proud that we’re doing something legitimate about this and it’s just the beginning.”
For more information, visit: www.focusenviro.com.au
