In 2016, Şişecam took a significant step forward in its efforts to foster transition to a recycling society. Şişecam Çevre Sistemleri A.Ş. was established in conjunction with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). Şişecam Çevre Sistemleri aims to become a key authority in the field of environment and energy, particularly waste management, in Turkey. Besides engaging in glass recycling and waste collection activities, Şişecam Çevre Sistemleri plans to provide consultancy services to the sector, on quality, environment and occupational safety, while supporting suppliers in developing their corporate structures. With this initiative, Şişecam delivers financial support to accelerate modernization of waste collection and recycling companies across the country. In addition, this effort firmly puts Şişecam in a leadership role in the industry, while successfully sustaining its activities, including know-how transfer.
As the leader in Turkey’s glass recycling sector, Şişecam Çevre Sistemleri continues to steadily grow its volume of recycled waste glass with its expanding production capacity, in line with its strategy which aims to create value added products and generate customer-focused value.
To highlight that glass is the most sustainable packaging material, Şişecam launched the “Glass and Glass Again” initiative in 2011. Since that time, Glass and Glass Again has become one of Turkey's most extensive sustainability and social responsibility projects.
About the Facilities
In 2018, Şişecam Çevre Sistemleri commissioned two glass recycling facilities. This important step aimed to improve the quality of waste glass collected and ensure its use as a raw material in glass packaging production in line with sustainability principles. Applications were filed on behalf of both facilities operating in Bursa and Eskişehir as part of the Regulation on Environmental Permit and License. Non-Hazardous Waste Recycling and Packaging Waste Recycling certificates were obtained for these facilities. Şişecam plans to further boost its efforts towards recycling with capital investments and sustainable supplier management. The target is to reach a glass recycling capacity of 250,000 tons/year by end-2020.
Recycling Technology
During the glass recycling process, cullets and intact pieces of glass waste are sorted. Waste goes through a breezer, a machine that separates light materials among the waste. Cullets, which are remainder of glass packaging, are fed into a crusher; cullet volume shrinks as a result of crushing. These smaller pieces then go through a delabeling machine. The resulting materials are then transferred to eddy current and magnetic separators. Non-magnetic metals are separated through eddy currents; meanwhile, magnetic metals are separated through magnetic separators.
Following this process, waste from glass packaging (e.g. plastic caps and lids) are filtered and sorted. The remaining cullets are filtered to sort by size. These are transferred to separators where they are sorted by colors (e.g. amber, flint, green) and material type (e.g. stone, ceramic, porcelain).
Contribution to Sustainability
Since 2011, Şişecam has recycled a total of 1.3 million tons of waste glass as part of its targeted efforts. Some 875,000 tons of CO2 emissions were eliminated as a result of substituting natural resources with recycled waste glass for use as raw material in production. Our sustainability approach – “Care for Next” – is anchored in our historic heritage and ability to excel beyond business-as-usual. Driven by this strategy, Şişecam aims to become an active global stakeholder to deliver long-term value for future generations to come.
