Compounder ‘Walks the Walk’ on Sustainability

As retailers, brand owners and OEMs continue to push for more sustainable products, processors and compounders are making changes in their operations to make sure their products are up to snuff.

One such company is Techmer PM, a compounder that earlier this year received a Zero Waste to Landfill Certificate for its compounding operation in Dalton, Georgia. At that 45,000 ft² facility, Techmer PM formulates PP, polyester, nylon, PLA and other materials primarily for the synthetic fibers market.

In reality, the Georgia plant is one of three of the company’s facilities that has been zero waste to landfill for more than two years. But the certificate, issued by Intertek, a leading Total Quality Assurance provider to industries worldwide, “demonstrates our leadership and proactive approach to environmental stewardship,” says Kaan Serpersu, Techmer PM’s product development and sustainability manager.

He adds: “This achievement aligns with Techmer PM’s broader sustainability goals, which include reducing energy consumption, reducing water consumption, and establishing waste-to-energy programs.” Techmer PM plants in Wichita, Kansas, and Batavia, Illinois, also operate zero waste to landfill.

Comprehensive Waste Management System

The certification confirms that Techmer PM has successfully implemented and maintained a comprehensive waste management system — ensuring at least 99% of waste generated within the organization is efficiently diverted from landfills and redirected toward sustainable alternatives such as recycling, reusing and energy recovery.

The company’s sustainability efforts encompass all aspects of its operations, from manufacturing processes to administrative functions. With a focus on minimizing waste generation, Techmer PM has implemented innovative recycling initiatives, resource optimization strategies and employee engagement programs to foster a culture of sustainability.

Notes Serpersu, “Among the many things we’ve done to earn this certificate was getting agreements from our waste vendors that if they were picking scrap materials for us for recycling that they were truly going either to recyclers or for waste to energy. When we have our pallets picked up, we issue bills of lading so that we know how much waste is being picked up and how much of each waste stream is going where.”

“Our Zero Waste to Landfill Certificate shows we're walking the walk while at the same time implementing policies that are part of our strategic pillar and our values.”

States Steve Loney, Techmer PM’s director of marketing, “We’ve worked with Intertek on other certifications, like for our ISO 9001 certification, but we specifically sought the Zero Waste to Landfill as a way to demonstrate that Techmer is all about ‘we do what we say we do, and we can prove it.’” Because Techmer PM runs a lot of color concentrates, any off-spec product isn’t particularly appealing to recyclers because of the presence of pigment. These products are either reintroduced into the process or diverted to a waste-to-energy provider.

But, adds Serpersu, “there are a lot of other practices that we’ve implemented beyond the scope of producing polymers that earned us this certification, little things that you might otherwise not think about. For example, any rags we use for cleaning our facility are sent to our cleaning service and returned, not discarded in the trash. We go through a lot of rags. Plus, a lot of the additives we used come in bags, and those bags can’t be necessarily recycled, so finding an alternative solution for this, like waste to energy, is part of this process. Even the organic waste we generate gets collected by our site manager and repurposed as compost for his chickens.”

The company plans on earning Zero Waste to Landfill Certification at its other plants as well. Notes Serpersu, “Sustainability is one of our four pillars, and one of our guiding principles is being an environmental steward in industry, and we’re working at expanding this certification to our other five sites.

Adds Loney, “One thing that we pride ourselves on is that we are the liaison between the brand owners, the processors and the designers. And part of that is helping them achieve their sustainability goals. Our Zero Waste to Landfill Certificate shows we're walking the walk, while at the same time implementing policies that are part of our strategic pillar and our values.”

Shortly after earning the Intertek certificate, Techmer PM received a silver medal on the EcoVadis Sustainability Assessment. This recognition reaffirms Techmer PM’s sustainability, corporate social responsibility and ethical business practices.

EcoVadis is an independent rating agency that assesses companies’ environmental, social and ethical performance across various industries worldwide. The assessment covers a range of criteria, including environmental impact, labor and human rights, fair business practices and sustainable procurement. Techmer PM’s silver medal places the company among the top 25% of organizations evaluated by EcoVadis.