Solve your sustainability challenges
Simply let us know about the challenge you're facing and some details about the solution you need. We'll put your challenge out to Aotearoa New Zealand and collectively help to solve it.
Contact Jaz on 021 023 99576 or email jaz@sustainable.org.nz to get your challenge featured on Challenge Hub.
As fire alarm technicians, we use a huge number of cable ties per project. The offcuts of each cable tie, plus used cable ties, are currently going to landfill. Are there any examples of organisations effectively collecting cable ties and offcuts onsite? And, is there an organisation that can recycle this material? We would also be willing to look at alternative products.
We are a structural steel fabrication and erection business operating out of Ngaruawahia. We use 10-15 cable drums of welding wire every week. We’re hoping to find a reuse opportunity for the empty drums to keep them out of landfill. They are made out of polypropylene and can’t be recycled in the Waikato.
We have acrylic sheet offcuts from our R&D laser cutting process. The output is highly variable, but generally we have sheets that are 3, 4.5, 6 and 10mm thick. Sheet sizes are generally 1200 x 900mm with varying amounts cut from the sheets. We could provide a pallet load of these offcuts every six months.
We are looking to find someone to recycle briquettes made from paper dust created during the printing process. We produce about 1-2 tonnes a month. We are based in Henderson, Auckland. Any enquiries are welcome.
I collect adhesed flexible PP and PET film plastic film that I send on to a recycling partner. I am looking for an organisation that can bale the material. Ideally the organisation would also be able to store the material until there is enough volume for a bale. I will then collect the bales to send off. I am looking for connections in Auckland and Christchurch.
We send 30-50 tonnes of untreated wooden pallets and barrels to a local company for recycling each month. However, there are times when they can’t keep up with the volume. Is there another organisation in the North Island that would be able to support us in dealing with our wood waste? We are based in New Plymouth.
We have a plastic product that we used to send to a recycler but they no longer accept it. It is XLPE (cross-linked polyethylene). It would be fantastic to find another company that could recycle this into other products.
We are looking for an environmentally friendly pest control solution for the office and retail spaces we manage. Any leads?
We have developed machinery that processes production offcuts into PET pellets that can be reused for injection moulding. We're currently looking for more outlets for this pelletized material as we increase their recycling capacity, It would be great to connect with some potential businesses who’d be interested in taking this material.
Our site in Auckland receives hundreds of plastic woven strops from China each year. They are several metres long. Let us know if you have any ideas for repurposing these valuable materials, or partners who can reuse these on an ongoing basis. Note - these strops are not rated and should not be used for towing/lifting.
We have versatile fibreglass-foam composite panels currently available to customers free of charge in the following dimensions: 800mm by 1180mm, 700mm by 1800mm, 810mm by 1670mm, all 30 thick, as well as an assortment of other sizes. While we are offering this material to customers free of charge, we are looking for a longer term partnership, ideally with one partner which can upcycle these high quality fibreglass foam composite panels.
Due to the nature of our manufacturing process, we produce a lot of irregularly shaped plywood offcuts. We currently send our irregular plywood offcuts to be burned as biofuel for cement making in Whangarei. However, we are looking for a way for these to be upcycled or repurposed into an alternative product or material like particleboard.
We know this is a long shot! We're looking for a waste diversion solution for rags contaminated with white spirits and solvents. Currently they're going to landfill. Other than burning them for biofuel, are there any better options out there? We're based in Hamilton.
We're looking for a long term upcycling partner to deal with the large volume of orange PVC canvas we generate every week. The canvas is used as a temporary covering for new vehicle chassis. Currently it's being sent to landfill. This material could be used for making tote bags, tarpaulins, reusable pallet wraps or similar. We're based in Hamilton.
We're based in the Wellington region and looking for a business that can recycle our hard hats when they need to be replaced.
We are looking for someone in NZ who recycles polyester rugs. We are based in Auckland
Who can I connect with to find someone or something to do with our waste PVC cable covering in Otago?
We are looking for potential partners interested in taking our insulation offcuts (GreenStuf 100% polyester fibre) from project sites around the country. The location and volume of the offcuts will vary based on the project. We encourage our installers to designate a clean working area so the offcuts are not contaminated.
We want to find a way to divert PET strapping from landfill. We’re hoping to find a business than can recycle PET strapping and create a useful product from it. PET strapping has low mass but high volume and takes up a lot of space. PET recycling in New Zealand is designed for bottle-grade PET. It does not included coloured PET or strapping.
We are looking for sources of marble (white and light grey) and granite offcuts. We need about 20 tonnes right now to crush and reuse in our flooring product. We need a constant source so are looking for regular suppliers. We are based in Henderson, Auckland. We have one-tonne bins we can place in yards to collect your offcuts.
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