Industry-led initiative Paintback has opened a world-first facility for reclaiming and repurposing unwanted paint and packaging, the Paint Circular Economy Headquarters (PaCE HQ).
This state-of-the-art dedicated facility can process over 19,000 kilograms of raw paint per day as well as 3000 kilograms of plastic and 5000 kilograms of metal paint packaging.
PaCE HQ is dedicated to end-to-end sorting and separation of paint material from its packaging, turning them into clean, reusable materials all under one roof, along with a significant research and development capability. Paintback has a target of repurposing more than 90 per cent of the paint and packaging that it collects.
The activities at PaCE HQ will include:
- the receival of mixed domestic and trade architectural and decorative paint and packaging
- the sorting and separation of the paint from its packaging, washing and sorting of materials
- sorting of the material streams for reuse as part of the circular economy
- research and development into new ways to repurpose unwanted paint materials
- production of new products from reclaimed paint such as Paintback Greyscale
PaCE HQ has been fully funded by Paintback and has injected $14 million into the Victorian economy. It will bring 30 jobs to Braeside, in Melbourne’s southeast, including 17 new full-time employees based at the plant.
“We are extremely proud to be opening PaCE HQ today; it’s the culmination of years of research and development and hard work by our team and shows that Australia truly is a world leader in circular economy initiatives,” said John Ferraro, Chief Executive Officer of Paintback.
“Paintback is a pivotal industry-led initiative committed to diverting unwanted paint and packaging away from landfills and crucial waterways. Since inception in 2016, we have successfully collected and treated over 60 million kilograms of unwanted paint and packaging.
“We provide an extensive network of cost-free collection points, which span over 165 locations across Australia and cover over 85 per cent of the general population.”
Ferraro said the City of Kingston has been supportive of PaCE HQ. He also thanked the paint companies, industry, and university partners that founded and support Paintback.
Paintback is driven by the Australian paint industry and the major companies that supply around 90 per cent of all the architectural and decorative (A&D) paint sold in Australia. Its founding members are Dulux, Haymes, PPG, Resene and Wattyl.
As an independent not-for-profit organisation, Paintback is funded through an Australian Competition and Consumer Commission-approved 15 cent plus GST per litre levy on eligible paint products between one litre and 20 litres inclusive.
Ferraro said PaCE HQ will fill a gap in the commercial waste and recycling industry to treat unwanted paint and packaging.
Colin Brooks, Minister for Industry and Advanced Manufacturing, attended the opening and praised Victoria for leading the way in advanced recycling and circular economy innovation.
“Facilities like PaCE HQ show how we can work together to create a cleaner, more sustainable future. This world-first facility is not just creating new jobs – it’s driving new industries that will power Victoria’s economy for decades to come,” Brooks said.
