Once a fridge has spent years – perhaps decades – keeping food fresh, it can become a rich source of recycled material. At the UK’s newest fridge plant, EMR Darlaston, Scott Warden’s role is to ensure this material can re-enter the circular economy efficiently and quickly.
“The fragmented steel we produce goes to EMR’s Liverpool Alexandra Dock site before it is sent to be re-used by steelmakers around the world. Thanks to the advanced separation techniques, EMR is also able to isolate and separately collect a high purity of aluminium, copper and plastic to maximise the recycling rate of the operation.”
As Fridge Plant Manager, selling on this high-quality sustainable material is the final stage in a journey that Scott oversees, starting with the moment a fridge arrives at his site.
“When fridges come in – via retailers, local authorities and directly from consumers – they have a huge variety of materials, and a number of different grades, which we then have to separate using a range of sophisticated processes, including robotics.”
Recycling fridges comes with a number of risks, and Scott is also responsible for ensuring that EMR remains compliant with the host of regulations that ensure both his staff and the environment are safeguarded.
“Every fridge will include one of three different refrigerants – CFCs, HFCs or HCs – which help them keep food cool while they are operating. Each of these gases come with significant risks, such as depleting the ozone layer or being highly flammable, so the Environment Agency requires us to report data – either monthly or quarterly – in which we record the volume of gas present in a unit and how much we were able to capture,” says Scott.
While he is excited to be at the helm of EMR Darlaston’s fridge recycling service as it welcomes the arrival of a new facility, Scott’s career with EMR goes back eight years.
“I started as a Trainee Assistant Manager in the ferrous yard at EMR Darlaston and that meant getting my head around the different grades of iron that we trade. After operating the weighbridge for three months as cover, I was then asked if I wanted to pick a role within the business and I opted to become a Fridge Plant Manager. We had a Compliance Manager, at the time, who did the compliance returns, while I did a more operational role. When he left, I then took on all of the responsibilities of the Fridge Plant Manager role.”
With a new site now open and operational, there is one part of Scott’s role that he is happy to focus less on today, however.
“The plant, which has now been replaced, was 20 years old and dated back to the very beginning of fridge recycling in the UK, so there was a lot of maintenance and we had to work hard to avoid shutdowns. Not only is this new facility more modern, but it also has a greater capacity, meaning we can recycle more fridges and get more material back into the circular economy.”
And with the facility up and running, Scott can now spend more time focused on the future.
“Our new purpose-build site uses renewable energy, uses electric forklift trucks and LED lighting, and produces its own nitrogen, rather than requiring us to import it in. EMR is gearing up to achieve net-zero by 2040, and it’s exciting to know that our new site is at the forefront of that journey.”
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