Recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) producer Phoenix Technologies is planning to expand its operations to enable upstream production integration.
The expansion will see approximately $18m in investment.
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Work under the expansion includes installation of a proprietary new wash line, which will become operational by the year end. It will facilitate the company to self-manufacture clean flake, which it uses as in feed material to create rPET.
The rPET is used to create next-generation packaging for applications such as beverages, food, personal care and household cleaners.
Phoenix Technologies president Bob Deardurff said: "Combining the total supply chain, from bale to final pellet, and its processes, will allow us to optimise both the wash and flake processing components in ways that we could not do when clean flake was coming from external sources.
"The new wash line also will enable Phoenix to fine-tune critical manufacturing variables so that we can better deliver processing and performance attributes of value to our customers."
To be installed in a leased 66,000ft² facility located in close proximity to Phoenix’ existing 90,000ft² manufacturing plant, the wash line will be capable of producing 50 million pounds of clean flake every year.
Phoenix employs patented technology to pelletise and crystallise recycled, post consumer PET for reuse in consumer packaging applications.
The advanced processes and quality assurance standards have enabled the company to develop rPET that can be blended with virgin resin for similar performance.
Additionally, Phoenix uses less energy per pound to manufacture rPET compared to virgin PET, resulting in reduced environmental footprint.
