COSLA
EXCELLENCE
AWARDS
2010
2010 APPLICATION FORM
Please refer to the ‘2010 Guidance for Applicants’ before completing this application
form.
The deadline for submission of entries is 5pm on 2 October 2009. Submission
arrangements are detailed at the end of this application form.
The application form is split over five sections to reflect the assessment criteria, and to
facilitate the leeting process. It is up to you to decide the content and length of each
section, but your application must not exceed three pages in total (excluding the
cover pages).
CATEGORY TITLE Promoting Sustainability
Project Name Material Reclamation Facility
Lead Organisation Glasgow City Council
Department/ Team Land and Environmental Services
Participant or Partner
Names
Award coordinator
Contact details
1. Ian Telford
2. Rolf Matthews
3. Scott Armstrong
4. Alex Colquhoun
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Tracey Cunningham
Tracey.cunningham@glasgow.gov.uk - 0141 287 3625
Can we publish an anonymised version of this application form on our website?
NO
EXECUTIVE
SUMMARY
In one short paragraph please describe this project and what it has achieved.
We will use this in any future publicity material.
Glasgow City Councils Materials Reclamation Facility (MRF) at Polmadie is responsible for processing newspapers,
magazines, paper, cans (food and drink) and plastic bottles that have been collected via collection schemes from
households (single households and flats) and from public recycling points. This material is separated through a
process of mechanical and manual separation and is sent to reprocessors to be made into other products. The plant
aims to promote sustainable development; environmentally, by diverting waste from landfill, financially, by creating
an income stream from sale of recyclate, reducing landfill tax and avoidance of private sector gate fees and socially,
through the provision of jobs and education. In 2008-09, the MRF contributed to Glasgow achieving a 20% recycling
rate.
PLANNING
· a clear rationale, defined processes and focus on stakeholder needs
· contributes to organisation’s goals, community plan and SOA, and national policy context
In 1998, the Council distributed boxes to 5,000 households for the collection newspaper and magazines (and
subsequently cans and plastic bottles) for recycling. At the time a private sector MRF was not available locally to
process this material and would prove costly to transport further afield, therefore, investigations were initiated to
determine whether Glasgow should construct its own facility. Several private sector plants were visited in Leicester,
Peterborough, London, Bedford and Farnborough by waste managers and the Director of Cleansing to assess the
range of potential options available and at the same time, finance from a City Challenge Fund was available to
support the costs of constructing a MRF. A project team was assembled which included waste managers, transfer
station manager, director of cleansing, recycling officer and financial officers to co-ordinate procurement, design and
build a plant on time and within budget which reported to the Environment Protection Committee. Consultations
were undertaken with the Scottish Environment Protection Agency to ensure the appropriate waste regulatory
controls would be in place and with the council planning department.
The objective was to provide the council with a facility to increase the recycling rate year on year with the aim of
supporting the councils recycling collection crews, provide a quality raw material to the reprocessing industry (the
revised Waste Framework Directive which was published in December 2008 makes specific note that collections of
recyclate should meet ‘quality standards for the relevant recycling sectors’), provide jobs and reduce waste going to
landfill. Latterly, the aim was to utilise the facility as an educational tool for visitors.
Within the Single Outcome Agreement (SOA), a 21% recycling and composting target was agreed for 2008-09, 23%
for 2009-10 and 31% for 2010-11.
The plant contributes to the Scottish Government National Outcome 14; ‘reduce the local and global environmental
impact of our consumption and production’ which links into the local outcome in the Single Outcome Agreement;
‘improve Glasgow’s physical environment and infrastructure’. These are measured through relevant indicators;
tonnage of municipal waste and organic waste diverted from landfill and proportion of municipal waste recycled.
The plant in turn supports the council key objectives; ‘improving the efficiency and effectiveness of our service’ by
reducing carbon emissions by recycling rather than landfilling the waste, ‘increase access to lifelong learning’ by
providing employment opportunities via the Glasgow North Scheme which provides individuals who have been
unemployed for long periods of time an opportunity to get back to work, ‘making Glasgow a cleaner, safer city’ by
reducing our effect on the local environment by providing a facility within the city for recyclate to be segregated prior
to onward transportation to reprocessors.
DELIVERING
· implemented in all relevant areas and across all the required stakeholders
· carried out in a structured and logical way , using robust and sustainable methods
With the support of Directors from Cleansing and Land, contracts were tendered and awarded to ensure the Council
obtained best value. The plant was designed to take recyclate collected at the kerbside and brought back to a
central facility for separation rather than segregation at the kerbside due to the large percentage of tenements and
flats within the city.
The construction of the plant was overseen by the project team and started in October 1998 at Polmadie Transfer
Station and a sustainable approach was taken as a decision was made to construct the MRF within one of the
buildings that previously used to be an incineration waste treatment facility. This negated the need to construct new
infrastructure and use up additional land space at the Polmadie facility. In addition, the hoppers from the old
incineration plant (where waste was deposited before being fed into the incinerator) were retained and used for the
same purpose of feeding materials into the MRF. The decision to house the MRF within an existing building
provided its own problem in that the plant would have to be designed to fit within existing infrastructure. Through
COSLA EXCELLENCE AWARDS 2010
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collaboration with the design team, manufacturers and council officers an appropriate design was
conceived to incorporate the plant.
The plant was completed on time, within budget and in November 1999 was opened by the Convener of the Land
Committee, Cllr Watson and was attended by the Minister for Transport and the Environment of the time, Sarah
Boyack. It was Scotland’s first local authority operated MRF and is currently the largest local authority owned facility
in the country.
The plant provides a site for the Council recycling collection crews to deliver collected recyclate to a facility within the
city and currently offers employment to 14 staff although options are being considered to introduce additional
materials from the household collections and increase throughput which would require an additional shift which
would create further employment opportunities. The plant also provides for staff development and three members of
staff have achieved Waste Management Industry Training Achievement Board (WAMITAB) accreditation and
various other health and safety training has also been undertaken.
In January 2009 a Community Action Team was created to provide additional resources for increasing education
and awareness on recycling, especially for schools, within Glasgow and was given training within the plant to make
them aware of the recycling process which is conveyed to pupils on visits to educational establishments. Officers
from this team have returned for subsequent visits to take photographs and video footage for school presentations.
IMPROVING +
EVALUATING
· evidence of leading practice and innovation being achieved
· appropriate measurement and learning, and how this has led to continuous improvement
Glasgow was the first local authority in Scotland to construct and operate their own MRF. As the council has
expanded its recycling collection service (currently, approximately 230,000 households receive a service, compared
to an initial 5,000 in 1998), the MRF has had to adjust also. In 2005 a major upgrade was undertaken to install new
equipment, and improve throughput to process the additional recyclate from expanding collection schemes. At this
time apparatus called a V-Screen (used to separate 2 dimensional materials (paper) from 3 dimensional materials
(plastic bottles/cans) was installed which was best practice and the first piece of equipment of its kind to be fitted to
any MRF plant in Scotland. The Scottish Government recognised the importance of the MRF and funding for the refit was financed through the governments Strategic Waste Fund.
As staff have become more experienced they have been able to identify issues with aspects of performance on
certain equipment and through their own innovation, discussions with manufacturers, other MRF’s and in
consultation and approval of the Waste Disposal Manager, staff on site have made several modifications to improve
throughput within the plant as they have learned how to get the best from the current equipment. These have
included:






Modification to conveyer belt arrangement to produce a ‘closed loop’ system whereby waste that has been
processed through the plant but has not been captured via the mechanical/manual sorting can be returned
to the start of the process to increase efficiency.
Feeds to the hopper (where mixed recyclate is loaded prior to manual/mechanical separation) and the size
and shape of the hopper have been modified to reduce the number of blockages that occur.
Following design improvements the V-Screen was overhauled and retrofitted with new shafts and discs.
MSS Sapphire Unit (separates paper and plastic bottles/cans): The operating software was upgraded.
Eddy Current (removes aluminium cans): serviced and overhauled with new drum fitted.
Bottle Piercers: Original piercer was upgraded and an additional unit fitted into the plastics cabin to improve
productivity levels and make baling of plastic bottles easier.
Visits were made to MRF’s in Norwich and Liverpool in December 2008 which were designed and constructed by
the same companies that were involved with the Glasgow MRF to compare and contrast operating, maintenance
and management issues to evaluate potential improvements. In August 2009 the companies involved in the original
design and manufacture (PPS Recovery Systems Ltd, Ken Mills Engineering and CP Manufacturing) of the plant
were on site to evaluate potential changes to the plant configuration to accept additional materials, improve
productivity, throughput and efficiency. Representatives from these companies commended the staff within the MRF
on the good levels of maintenance that has been undertaken in the plant compared to other MRF’s they have
constructed. In addition, the Waste Resources Action Programme (WRAP) is undertaking another study to assess
where improvements can be made to the plant (due to report October 2009).
COSLA EXCELLENCE AWARDS 2010
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Measurement of performance is provided internally via figures (as noted in planning) submitted quarterly for
reporting via the Measures for Improved Performance report that goes to the Council Management Team and in the
Single Outcome Agreement that is reported annually. Externally, recycling figures are reported quarterly to the
Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) via the Waste Data Flow system and the results are available on
SEPA’s website. In addition, performance of the plant is monitored through feedback from our reprocessing
partners and tonnage provided. These organisations require a high quality feedstock to reprocess recyclate into
new products and there is good communication between both parties to ensure this is maintained.
Other local authorities have visited the Glasgow MRF to gain an understanding of the level of treatment available for
processing recyclate collected from households before deciding on their own processing method. Renfrewshire,
South Lanarkshire and Falkirk local authorities have also used the MRF to bring in their recyclate. Additional visitors
include; local councillors, Scottish government officials, university students, community groups and overseas visitors
from Poland, Spain, South Africa, Czech Republic as they assess MRF’s with a view to installation in their country.
· a convincing mix of customer perception and internal performance measures
· clear line of sight to the delivery of the Single Outcome Agreement
· a full range of relevant results showing improvement over time
RESULTS +
IMPACT
Results from the last 4 years are noted below. For comparison, the initial recycling rate in 1998-99 was 2.2%.
Overall Recycling Rate (%)
MRF Output to reprocessors (tonnes)
Recycled/Composted (tonnes)
Waste to Landfill (tonnes)
2005-06
15.7%
9,110
56,893
304,709
2006-07
16.8%
9,633
62,141
306,884
2007-08
18.1%
10,100
65,637
297,404
2008-09
19.9%
11,321
69,032
278,321
The 21% target for 2008-09 in the SOA was not attained but planned upgrades to the plant are being assessed to
increase throughput along with other recycling initiatives to ensure the 23%, 2009-10 target is met.
From a social perspective, since 2003, 57 individuals from Glasgow North Training have been provided with a
placement in the MRF and 34 have retained full time employment with Glasgow City Council thereafter. Additionally,
through liaison with educational services within the council, schools have visited the plant as they work toward EcoSchool awards as well as promoting citizenship through rights and responsibilities. Approximately 40 schools have
visited the plant over the last 4 years which has also been supported by visits to schools by recycling staff.
The plant has been commended by our reprocessing partners, the UPM Kymmene Shotton Paper Mill where the
newspapers/magazines/paper waste is delivered for the quality of material provided. In quarter 1, 2007 the council
were recognised as the ‘best improved supplier’ and subsequent certificates have been awarded concerning the
number of deliveries received at the mill without any negative quality issues. The aluminium cans that are recovered
are delivered to the Novelis can recycling plant in Warrington and in May 2009 the Council received a certificate of
excellence in recognition of the quality of aluminium used beverage cans supplied for recycling. Other recyclate,
namely, steel cans and plastic bottles are delivered to various reprocessors dependant on who can offer best
price/tonne to the Council at the time.
Financially, details of the income generated and landfill tax savings are noted in the graph below which has been
increasing since the plant first opened.
M RF - Landfill Tax Savings + Incom e From Re cyclate
£
£1,000,000
£800,000
£600,000
£400,000
£200,000
£0
2004/05
2005/06
2006/07
2007/08
2008/09
Ye ar
COSLA EXCELLENCE AWARDS 2010
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THE COSLA CHAIR’S AWARD
This category is awarded at the discretion of the Chair and is open to submissions under any of the
seven categories. It is awarded to those submissions of exceptional standards or merit demonstrating
achievements above the limits stipulated in the assessment/judging criteria for the relevant category.
Alternatively, submissions can be considered which can demonstrate being conducted in exceptional
circumstances.
Do you wish your submission to be considered for the Chair’s Award?
YES/NO
In about 300 words, please highlight the reasons why this submission should be considered for the Chair’s Award:
Since the Materials Reclamation Facility (MRF) at Polmadie became operational in 1998, the facility has
supported Glasgow in moving from a recycling rate of 2.2% in 1998-99 to 19.9% in 2008-09.
The facility is an integral piece of infrastructure providing a service to the residents of Glasgow by enabling the
council to segregate collected newspaper, magazines, paper, cans (food and drink) and plastic bottles collected
from households. The council has recognised that performance continually needs to be improved and the plant
was upgraded in 2005, with additional amendments currently being assessed to allow extra materials to be
processed through the plant. The plant has developed since its inception from small scale to large scale as the
Council now collects recyclate from approximately 110,000 single properties and approximately 120,000
tenements/flats in addition to over 400 public recycling points which are all processed through the MRF. The
facility produces a high quality recyclate which has resulted in recognition by reprocessing partners which is a
testament to the effort that is expelled by staff within the site and a desire to achieve ongoing improvements
within the plant through modifications that the staff have made themselves.
The MRF provides the Council with a facility within the city which saves on transportation costs, carbon footprint
and gate fee’s that would be imposed if another facility in the private sector would have to be used. The plant
has also generated increasing revenue from the sale of recylate to reprocessors and savings on landfill tax
demonstrating value for money which in the current economic climate is of great importance to any local
authority.
The placements made available to the long term unemployed via the Glasgow North Scheme has shown the
social impact the MRF can offer in addition to the training opportunities provided to existing staff members and
the diversity of the plant is highlighted as it utilised as an educational tool to inform each new generation of
school children on recycling.
Next steps
 Have you answered the assessment criteria set out in the guidance?
 Is your application form 3 pages or less? (anything more, including
appendices, will be automatically rejected)
 Has your application form been authorised by an appropriate person?
 Have you indicated whether you wish the application form to be
published?
Submitting your application
Please email your application by 2 October to:
Category 1 submissions
exawards2010-1@cosla.gov.uk
Category 2 submissions
exawards2010-2@cosla.gov.uk
Category 3 submissions
exawards2010-3@cosla.gov.uk
Category 4 submissions
exawards2010-4@cosla.gov.uk
Category 5 submissions
exawards2010-5@cosla.gov.uk
Category 6 submissions
exawards2010-6@cosla.gov.uk
Category 7 submissions
exawards2010-7@cosla.gov.uk
Queries surrounding the submission of applications can be made to:
Adam Stewart (adam.stewart@cosla.gov.uk / 0131 474 9275)