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Brickworks Marketplace Development Case Study - Posted on 17 September 2015

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Background

Adelaide based Badge Construction was contracted by Woolworths to deliver the new $80 million Brickworks Marketplace Development.

Work began in 2013, after more than two years of planning, with Badge Construction engaging more than 80 local subcontractors during the course of the 19,500 square metre project. This build included a Woolworths supermarket, Big W, Dan Murphy’s, as well as more than 41 speciality shops and 700 car parks.

Adelaide Resource Recovery, along with Holcim Australia was awarded the contract to supply the backfill required to prepare the site for the build.

The Work

As the site had previously been used to manufacture bricks, a large area of the site was a clay pit and needed to be back filled quickly, as the build for the new development could not get underway until this was done.

This was a large job, which required over 300,000 tonnes of backfill. Consequently, both companies delivered material every day for a 3 month period, during winter.

ARR provided approximately 165,000 tonnes of rubble for this project alone. In the early stages of this job, in excess of 5000 tonnes were delivered to the site per day by ARR, which, to put this in perspective, required the allocation of 30 trucks per day, to this one project.

While both ARR and Holcim Australia provided aggregate material for the backfill, as all of ARR’s rubble is recycled, that is, crushed from concrete and Holcim Australia’s is from a quarry, which is virgin rock based, the actual products that were delivered from each company were quite different in the way they behaved.

To balance the difference in these materials, the site was divided into quadrants. This ensured that when delivered to the site, the materials were stacked on a rotational basis, so that the anticipated difference in long term properties between the two materials was reduced or minimised.

The reasoning behind this delivery rotation was simple. When concrete is crushed in the recycling process, it re-releases a certain amount of cement, which will then reactivate and provide a firm base. Quarry material however does not have the same adhesive properties to bind it together.

Accordingly, when using recycled material as backfill it will provide a harder base than a base built using quarry materials.

Normally either recycled or quarry aggregate is used as backfill on a project, not both. We believe this to be the first time in Australia that a project of this size has been undertaken where recycled materials and quarry materials were used side by side.

As this project was undertaken in winter, it was confirmed that the solidity of the two rubbles was different when it rained. The quarry material retained moisture and therefore was susceptible to greater heave, whereas the recycled rubble, if compacted prior to being affected by rain, remained solid after compaction.

Patawalonga Sediment Management Case Study - Posted on 13 July 2015

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Time: March - June 2015

Brief:
Removal and disposal of sediment from the sediment basins of the Patawalonga Lake System.

Background:
The sediment basins of the Patawalonga Lake System captures sediment from the storm-water flow. Accumulated sediment has previously been removed from Basin A in 2008 and early 2014. The sediment removal and disposal program in 2014 has been of an experimental nature to ensure the appropriate method is used and cost is reduced in the longer term. The aim of the program in 2015 was to remove and dispose the remainder of sediment from Basin A and then as much sediment as time and budget would allow from Basin B.

Scope of Work:
Dredging, dewatering and disposal. Dredging was undertaken using a small dredge, de-watering was by geotextile tubes to produce sediment that is spadeable and could then be transported via regular road trucks for re-use.

Uniqueness:
This is the first time sediment has been removed and dewatered via geotextile tubes from Basin B and only the second time that that geotextile tubes have been used for dewatering of sediment from Basin A. The current project is the third time that sediment has been removed from the Patawalonga. The initial sediment management works at the Patawalonga in 2008 highlighted the difficulties in handling and disposal of the sediment due to its characteristics, i.e. the material does not fully 'drain' under gravity and can take years to dry.

Recycling
The sediment was then transported to ARR and was classified as ILC (Intermediate landfill cover). This was then used as engineered capping to provide a protective barrier to the old landfill that ARR resides upon.

ARR builds new market with waste plastic exports - Posted on 19 Aug 2010

SA-based recycling specialist Adelaide Resource Recovery (ARR) is experiencing strong overseas demand after exporting more than 500 tonnes of waste plastic to China since late last year.

The pioneering company, which operates from Adelaide's Wingfield Recycling Centre, is receiving regular inquiries from businesses in Hong Kong and China that are keen to buy SA's waste plastic.

ARR is a South Australian company committed to the comprehensive recycling of construction and demolition materials into valuable resources.

During the past nine months, ARR has exported more than 22 containers, each holding 21 tonnes of cleaned and baled waste plastic, which would normally be sent to landfill. Extracted from the mixed waste stream that comes into ARR's 20-hectare Wingfield sorting facility, plastic waste ranges from soft plastics such as carry bags to hard plastics such as the strapping used to bind construction materials.

ARR sales and marketing manager Hugh Hocking said most of the inquiries were coming from businesses in Hong Kong or China. "In the past nine months, we've shipped more than 500 tonnes of waste plastic overseas," he said.

"Once our customers receive it, they 'pelletise' the plastic, so that it comes out looking like granules. For them, it's a replacement for virgin raw plastic.

"Our waste plastic is used in a range of new products ranging from manufacturing automotive components to construction materials such as flooring strapping and buckets.

"For ARR, the beauty of this new business is that this waste plastic would normally go to landfill, which would cost us money. With some plastics selling for up to $500 a tonne, this way it actually earns us income and it's doing the right thing for the environment."

As well as providing a full-time job for the baler operator, ARR's waste plastic export operation has created demand for additional labour on the sorting line, where plastics are extracted from the general waste stream received at the ARR Wingfield operation.

Mr. Hocking said ARR exported all the plastic it could get hold of. "It's definitely in demand," he said.

"As the price of oil goes up, so does the price of raw material plastics: Demand has grown as companies have begun to realise they can make new products from recycled plastics. We now regularly have people calling us to ask if they can buy our plastic."

ARR monster crusher to supply 'green' boom - Posted on 7 Mar 2008

SA recycling pioneer ARR has deployed a 68-tonne mobile concrete crusher to meet massive demand for 'green' building products from SA's defence and transport infrastructure boom.

The $2.2 million Nordberg Impact Crusher –Adelaide's largest mobile crusher – will turn waste concrete, previously dumped as landfill, into "recycled rubble", which is used for the foundations in major infrastructure projects. Recycled rubble is a high quality "green" alternative to virgin rock quarried from the Adelaide Hills.

ARR (Adelaide Resource Recovery) has purchased the massive machine to quadruple its capacity. Recycled rubble is in strong demand from construction companies for use in building foundations and to create well-compacted bases for new roads and bridges.

ARR marketing manager Hugh Hocking said the "monster crusher" was necessary for ARR to meet demand for its recycled rubble product. "To date, we've been unable to supply the high level of demand from defence work in Port Adelaide and major transport infrastructure projects," he said. "This new crusher will give us four times the crushing capacity, so we'll be able to crush 700-800 tonnes an hour.

"The beauty is that recycled rubble uses waste concrete previously dumped as landfill to create an affordable construction product which replaces virgin rock quarried from the Adelaide Hills. So it both reduces waste products and relieves the pressure on our natural environment."

ARR is a South Australian company committed to the comprehensive recycling of construction & demolition materials into valuable resources. ARR operates a 20-hectare resource recovery facility at the Adelaide City Council's Wingfield Eco Resource Management centre.

Since January 2005, ARR has invested more than $10 million dollars in plant and equipment, creating dozens of jobs, at its resource recovery operation. ARR recycles bitumen, concrete and mixed construction & demolition waste.

After its comprehensive resource recovery process, ARR sells Recycled Rubble, aggregates and a range of graded sands to building and engineering operations throughout SA.

As well as playing an important role in our State's burgeoning recycling sector, in a very real sense, ARR is helping to build the future for South Australia.

SA leads Australia turning waste into wealth - Posted on 19 Jun 2006

SA is leading the nation in establishing a world-class recycling industry that can transform waste products into valuable economic products, reports ARR sales and marketing manager Hugh Hocking.

Mr. Hocking said the fiercely competitive recycling sector in SA was driving innovation that was setting international standards, based on presentations at a major conference in Adelaide last week.

"SA is achieving an important balance between progressive public sector policies and engaging the entrepreneurial energy of the private sector," he said.

"The result is an environment in which businesses are creating wealth from efficiently recovering resources that were previously wasted in landfill. Resource recovery is a vital building block of the 21st century economy and our State is leading the way for Australia."

ARR was Gold Sponsor of the Towards Zero Waste: Achieving Practical Solutions Conference, held last week at Glenelg. More than 200 delegates from around Australia attended the conference to hear presentations by international speakers as well as local resource recovery leaders.

The conference's principal sponsor was Zero Waste SA, the State Government agency created to promote waste management practices that aim to eliminate waste or its consignment to landfill, advance the development of resource recovery and recycling.

Keynote presentations included Zero Waste SA CEO Vaughan Levitzke who outlined the importance of establishing a sustainable economic climate for recycling of waste materials. He said Environment Protection Agency figures showed that Zero Waste SA's efforts had seen metropolitan waste to landfill reduced by 9.15 per cent from 2003-04 with a reduction of 5.5 per cent in rural areas.

Mr Levitzke said Zero Waste SA's infrastructure incentives grants funding programs were stimulating industry investment in the state. These projects were increasing the beneficial use of materials that could otherwise end up in landfill. Other projects were enabling businesses to increase the capacity and quality of material used in recycling systems and re-processing infrastructure.

ARR (Adelaide Resource Recovery) is a South Australian company committed to the comprehensive recycling of construction & demolition materials into valuable resources. ARR operates a 20-hectare resource recovery facility at the Adelaide City Council's Wingfield Eco Resource Management centre.

Since January 2005, ARR has invested more than $10 million dollars in plant and equipment, creating dozens of jobs, at its resource recovery operation. ARR recycles bitumen, concrete and mixed construction & demolition waste into Recycled Rubble, aggregates and a range of graded sands that are used in building and engineering operations throughout SA.

Mr. Hocking said SA was using competition between resource recovery companies to deliver innovation while meeting the high standards set by State Government policy. "We are creating jobs and investment within SA by producing valuable products from materials that were once dumped," he said.

"While each company competes ferociously at the weighbridge, collectively we are working together to establish a sustainable economic model for resource recovery that is blazing trails internationally. ARR supports the State Government's plan through Zero Waste to double SA's recycling of construction and demolition waste by 2010.

"If you look at the big picture, we live in a world of finite resources, so it's vital for us to reduce wasteful consumption and to learn how to recycle what we do use. It's a matter of either re-use it or lose it."

Zero Waste SA's waste management strategy has set the following targets for waste reduction in South Australia by 2010:

• 75 per cent of all waste put out by householders to kerbside collection
• Double recycling of construction and demolition waste
• Increase recycling of commercial and industrial waste by 30 per cent
• All waste collected in Adelaide will be processed through a transfer station or resource recovery facility to remove recyclable materials before they end up in landfill

For more information about ARR's tailored Recycled Rubble product line, call ARR Sales Manager Warren Ainscough on 08 8244 8156

ARR sponsored 2006 SA Zero Waste conference - Posted on 19 May 2006

ARR was Gold Sponsor of South Australia's largest waste management industry conference, the 2006 NWAA Towards Zero Waste Conference.

Supporting the aims and ideals of the State Government towards zero waste, ARR is investing in ensuring the success of SA's only event dedicated entirely to Waste Management. The conference was held held May 31-June 2 last year.

The conference's Principal Sponsor was State Government agency Zero Waste SA. The agency was created to promote waste management practices that aim to eliminate waste or its consignment to landfill, advance the development of resource recovery and recycling.

ARR General Manager Matthew Size said the Towards Zero Waste Conference was much more than a "talk fest". "This conference event included an important Trade Expo as well as 'hands on' Technical Tours that highlighted SA's leadership in the industry," he said.

"ARR supports the State Government's plan through Zero Waste to double SA's recycling of construction and demolition waste by 2010. We are doing our very best to help achieve that immediate target set by the government."

For more information about ARR and its product lines, call ARR Sales Manager Warren Ainscough on 08 8244 8156 or email warren.ainscough@arr.net.au.