Moock Environmental Solutions Ltd has revealed that it has been named a Made in Scotland award finalist.
The company, based in Cumbernauld, recycles printing toner cartridges which would otherwise go into landfill or incineration. They have developed a circular process, which, due to its “unique world-wide nature”, has generated international interest from other companies.
In 2018 they won a Scottish Knowledge Exchange Award for the reuse of recovered toner powder from the cartridges, which was achieved by converting the insoluble toner powder into water soluble colourful pigments. Another recent toner powder-based discovery was the waterproofing effect it has in concrete; this is currently being tested in collaboration with Dundee University. If successful, this could potentially change the construction industry as we know it, explains Moock.
In order to advance their circular processes, the company has developed a complete system to reuse the plastics from toner cartridges. Up to now these plastics were impossible to recycle due to their complex nature consisting of more than 10 different polymers. However, the company was able to develop a way of washing the mixed plastics free of toner powder, which it says is unique to Moock Environmental Solutions Ltd. The clean plastic produced can now be re-used by another Scottish company, BPI (part of RPC) in their composite furniture.
The combination of both methods results in the reuse of all the materials in printer toner cartridges and avoids tonnes of plastic, metals and toner powder going into landfill.
As a result of all their hard work they have now been named as a finalist in this year’s Made in Scotland Awards, taking place on 9 May 2019 at the Science Centre.
Graeme Clowe, Moock’s Sales & Marketing Director said, “It’s great to be a finalist in the Remade in Scotland award, plastics are a huge problem for society, the toner cartridge plastic is part of that, we would like to bring attention to this growing problem. The team here are working at diverting what was once considered a waste product destined for landfill to be recycled and reused into something else.”
