2011 Resources Recycling Industry Exhibition
It’s the first day of the 2011 Resources Recycling Industry Exhibition. I woke up early, hopped onto the subway line 1, exited the Caobao Road (exit door 1), made a left, and walked about 5 minutes to the Shanghai Everbright Exhibition Center (East Hall). After a painless registration process which requires a business card showing you’re in the recycling industry, I was in with a yellow registration tag dangling around my neck.
It’s 9:30 AM and most of the exhibitionists were still setting up their booths. At the entrance, the exhibitors were greeting visitors with a smile and passing out company brochures. They were eager to make the most of their exhibition fees.
All in all, while I didn’t see anything super innovative, I had a wonderful time chatting with some of the companies which ranged from plastic scrap suppliers/buyers to plastic recycling machinery technicians (pelletizers, washing lines, shredders/crushers/granulators, etc…). There were also companies in the rubber recycling industry sharing their developments.
As I’m in the market for a LDPE washing/pelletizing line, I spent most of my time speaking with the technicians at the recycling machinery booths, which were mostly from the Zhangjiagang/Jiangsu area. The companies offered fully automated lines run by conveyor belts with prices between 100K-200K USD. While you would think a machine of this value would at least offer a 5-10 year warranty, the standard warranty is only 1 year. What does that tell you about quality? After the one year period, repair costs will be charged “at cost”.
I also met several suppliers/buyers of plastic scrap that I had wonderful conversations with. Again, while I didn’t learn or see anything innovation, it’s always a pleasure meeting new friends in the plastic recycling industry.