National Container Group (NCG; www.ncg-europe.com), the reconditioning subsidiary of German intermediate bulk container (IBC) manufacturer Mauser (Brühl; www.mausergroup.com) has expanded its reconditioning activities in Brazil by opening a new factory building near its existing “NCG Tankpool” facility in Taubaté. The new plant, dubbed “Tankpool Repel”, will allow Mauser BCG to recycle HDPE industrial packaging, turning it into post-consumer resin and eventually into new packaging solutions. The facility is scheduled for start-up at the beginning of Q4 2011, after trial runs commenced on 5 September.

The group says the equipment was relocated from NCG’s operations in Barra do Pirai / Brazil, and will be updated with a more advanced technology. The new plant is said to be capable of recycling all types of used industrial packaging made of HDPE, with the resultant pelletized and recycled resin set to be reused by Mauser’s Brazilian production sites to produce jerrycans, IBC accessories and plastic drums, among others.

Commenting on the investment, Peter Schaefer, global head of NCG, said: “With the expansion of our reconditioning services in Brazil, we are once more able to close the circle of sustainable packaging solutions by giving materials new life.”