This roundup of announcements at WasteExpo includes news from Republic Services, the National Waste & Recycling Association, the Solid Waste Association of North America, Machinex, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. and CP Group.

Republic and The Mirage Hotel & Casino Unveil New Recycling Exhibit

Republic Services and The Mirage Hotel & Casino unveiled a new recycling exhibit inside the Sustainability Discovery Center at Siegfried & Roy's Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat. The exhibit is part of an ongoing commitment made by Republic and MGM Resorts International to increase awareness of sustainability throughout Southern Nevada and among roughly 42 million tourists who visit annually.

"MGM Resorts International and Republic have partnered to increase awareness of the positive impacts of recycling, and the important role each individual can play," said Cindy Ortega, senior vice president and chief sustainability officer of MGM Resorts International. "The Mirage Sustainability Discovery Center serves as a valuable educational resource for the Las Vegas community and the hundreds of guests who visit the Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat each day."

The Sustainability Discovery Center features diverse interactive displays that engage and educate visitors on consequential topics ranging from wildlife preservation to water conservation, as well as addressing the increasingly serious effects of ocean pollution. Republic's new recycling exhibit informs visitors of all ages about the recycling process, and provides practical tips on ways to become a better recycler in everyday life.

"Any effort that we can make to encourage sustainable behavior is a worthy one," said Tim Oudman, market vice president of Republic Services. "We are extremely proud to team up with MGM Resorts on this educational exhibit. We believe it will be a valued resource in our community, and it will leave a lasting impression for visitors from around the world about the model for sustainability leadership that is emerging in Southern Nevada."

In December 2015, Republic opened the largest and smartest residential recycling facility in North America, which is based in the City of North Las Vegas. The Southern Nevada Recycling Center is capable of processing two million pounds of recyclable material per day, or 70 tons per hour. The facility is also home to an interactive Learning Center that offers visitors a rare, 360-degree view of the recycling process in an observation deck that sits above live operations.

MGM Resorts offers a unique and active recycling program that enables guests to recycle food, cardboard, plastic, glass, metal, and a range of other materials without needing to sort materials in separate bins. By recycling behind the scenes at most properties, including The Mirage Hotel & Casino, MGM Resorts has achieved an average recycling rate of over 42 percent, diverting more than 50,000 tons of material in 2015.

About Siegfried & Roy's Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat at the Mirage

The Secret Garden is home to white lions, white tigers, and black and spotted leopards. Through the Secret Garden, Siegfried and Roy seek to increase public awareness of the plight of all endangered animals and to foster dialogue about the world's rarest breeds. The Dolphin Habitat serves as home for a family of bottlenose dolphins. These delightful dolphins charm visitors daily with their playful and adventurous antics. Although guests enjoy watching the mammals as they frolic in the water, the facility's primary purpose is for research and educational programs. A complete curriculum has been prepared with the Clark County School District to educate elementary through university students on the wonder of marine mammals.

NYC Waste and Recycling Associations and Companies Unite to Move the Needle on Industry Safety

The National Waste & Recycling Association (NWRA) announced the launch of a first of its kind symposium on industry safety taking place on Thursday, June 16^th at 100 Church Street in New York.

The program, which was developed by NWRA and the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA), will run from 8:30 am until 1pm, and features a continental breakfast sponsored by SWANA’s New York State Chapter and a lunch session sponsored by Action Environmental Group.

The symposium will offer four informative sessions touching on timely issues in the waste and recycling industry:

Panels at each session will feature safety experts both from inside the industry as well as from other fields that have successfully overcome safety challenges in similar environments. Experts from Coca Cola, AT&T, Fresh Direct, DCAS/Vision Zero, Lytx Drive Cam, Concorde, SWANA, NWRA and others will lead thought-provoking dialogue aimed on educating participants on how to make waste and recycling collection safer. Councilman Antonio Reynoso is scheduled to provide remarks during the luncheon portion of the event.

NWRA has made safety its top priority, a pledge shared by its member companies. This symposium will provide participating companies with the tools, guidance and support necessary to move the needle on safety incidents.

“NWRA, its members and partners in this symposium, are committed to safety. This is one of multiple efforts NWRA is leading to move the needle on safety in our industry for our workers and the communities we serve," said NWRA President and CEO Sharon H. Kneiss.

This symposium comes on the heels of the highly successful NWRA Stand Down series that brought together more than 65 percent of the industry for two weeks (one in January and the second in May) of education, discussion and resource sharing to reduce backing and heat related incidents.

NWRA encourages companies and partners in the waste and recycling industry to register for this free symposium and thereby contribute toward a Safer, Smarter, Stronger waste & recycling industry.

“SWANA is excited to partner with NWRA to improve safety awareness among New York City carters and their drivers. It will take joint efforts such as this one to reduce accidents and injuries involving waste collection vehicles and get the industry off the list of ten most dangerous occupations,” said David Biderman, SWANA Executive Director

This event is sponsored in part by Action Environmental Group, an active member of the NWRA New York City Chapter dedicated to improving industry safety. “Action is pleased to join in any effort that promotes awareness and improves safety in the industry,” said Action Environmental Group CEO Ronald Bergamini. “We strongly maintain that that ideas to improve safety are not proprietary. The public demands nothing less.”

Additional details about the symposium can be found at: https://wasterecycling.org/our-work/safety.

As the designated Secretariat for ANSI Standards for the waste and recycling industry for more than fifty years, NWRA also coordinates the ongoing development of new and revised standards for both equipment and protective gear.

Machinex Expands Its Baler Range with the II Ram Baler Series

The Machinex Group is introducing its II Ram high capacity baler series to the American market at Waste Expo tradeshow. The Machinex team will be exhibiting at the 2016 Waste Expo, taking place at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, at Booth #2636 from June 7th-9th.

Along with introducing the baler series, Machinex will promote the wide spectrum of refined products and services resulting from more than 30 years of experience as a Sorting Technologies Expert.

Designed to meet the multi-purpose needs of recyclers, the high speed, two ram baler series maximizes density while reducing operating costs. The unique pre-fill device increases main ram cycle speed in both forward and reverse modes. This device not only allows the balers to meet and exceed the throughput of competitive equipment, but also results in a significant reduction in energy consumption. Other exclusive design features include bolt-on liners for ease of maintenance, a single-plate frame construction to provide maximum structural stability, and many other options that give operational benefits to MRF’s managers.

"We built the II ram baler series using the same distinguished features as our single ram baler series, knowing they offer unparalleled benefits to our customers. Our pre-fill valve sets us apart by offering a faster dry cycle time that exceeds up to 2.7 times the speed obtained by our competitors," says Paul Fortier, Machinex Research & Development Director.

As a turnkey system provider, Machinex understands the important features of balers and positioned their R&D Department towards focusing on the efficiency and reliability of the machine, while also following the progression and future needs of the industry. For instance, Machinex is currently developing a machine designed for the waste to energy industry that will handle RDF baling. The first machines will incorporate plastic strapping and bale wrapping as part of the RDF solution. These balers will be installed by the end of summer 2016 in the UK.

Machinex has installed several two ram balers in Canada and United Kingdom, but the first one in the United States was integrated during the summer of 2015 at Alpine Recycling in Colorado as part of the system’s major upgrade. Brent Hildebrand, VP Recycling at Alpine Recycling (Colorado) comments on the baler: "The technology in this baler is true state-of-the-art. When we were looking at two ram balers, we had three different manufacturers in mind. After traveling to have a closer look at Machinex balers and see how they are manufactured, we were sold. Now that we have been running the baler for just under a year, we feel like our decision was the right one and the baler is exceeding our expectations."

Machinex started manufacturing high capacity single ram balers in 2003 in order to offer a superior baler in terms of quality and efficiency to its customers. This offer added value to the turnkey systems and allowed Machinex to improve its self-sufficiency as a supplier, all while having a machine that aligns with the high standards of the company. It was in 2012, due to a growing customer demand for high capacity two ram balers, that Machinex installed its first two ram baler in a customer’s facility. To this day, Machinex has sold 22 single ram balers, as well as 11 two ram balers, with several more to be installed in the coming year.

Goodyear Brings Total Solution to Waste Expo

The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company is bringing its Total Solution to Waste Expo.

The Goodyear Total Solution of trusted products, a nationwide network, reliable services and fleet management tools is designed to help waste haul fleets lower their operating costs.

“The Goodyear Total Solution will be on display inside Goodyear’s Waste Expo booth (#1961),” said Evan Perrow, marketing manager, Goodyear. Highlights include:

Waste Expo attendees also will have the opportunity to learn about other Goodyear tires that are available to them.

“We realize that waste haul fleets use OTR and light truck tires from time to time,” said Perrow. “With that in mind, we’ve developed an all-encompassing program that will give waste haul fleets access to these products at attractive prices.”

In addition, attendees who visit Goodyear’s Waste Expo booth and use the company’s special Goodyear Total Solution interactive kiosk will be eligible to enter a drawing, held at a later date, to win a ride on the Goodyear blimp.

“Goodyear is the only tire company that offers its Total Solution of trusted products, a nationwide dealer network, reliable services and fleet management tools – all designed to help waste haul fleets lower their operating costs,” said Perrow. “We look forward to introducing the Goodyear Total Solution to Waste Expo attendees.”

CP Group Exhibits First-Ever “MRF Booth” at Waste Expo

CP Group of Companies is exhibiting an innovative booth made entirely of MRF equipment at Waste Expo, booth #2247, in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The booth is a two-story 1,432-sq.-ft. structure designed and built by CP Group at their manufacturing facility in San Diego. CP Group designs and manufactures material recovery facilities and recycling equipment for the waste and recycling industry.

“We are excited to showcase the first-ever tradeshow booth made entirely of material recovery facility equipment and infrastructure. It is the best way to show customers our equipment and manufacturing capabilities,” says Ashley Davis, CP Group’s Director of Sales and Marketing.

The booth, made from CP’s own platforms and handrails, will showcase the precise fit and finish of the company’s material recovery facilities, infrastructure, and screens.

“Rather than telling people about how well-built our MRFs are, we’re showing them. We are extremely pleased with the results and look forward to hosting guests on our observation deck during our CP happy hour,” says Davis.

CP will showcase a live demo unit running various patented discs: CP Cam-Disc used in the Glass Breaker Screens (chromium alloy style); the CPScreen (rubber style); and the brand new patented Helical-Disc. The disc was patented earlier this year and Waste Expo will be the first introduction to the market.

The Helical-Disc disc was created to eliminate wrapping on screens while achieving aggressive 2D/3D separation in multiple applications. The new disc will be placed in the CPScreen frame and will be used to segregate 2D from 3D material.

The booth will showcase a full-size CPScreen. The 120” wide 26 rotor CPScreen will be used to show customers the CP SyncDrive and demonstrate the important safety features of the screen: the safety access door, the folding floor, and the locking rotors among other safety features.

CP Group manufactures the only screens in the industry that use belt drives instead of chain drives. The CP SyncDrive belts are more precise with a much longer wear life than chains and sprockets. They don’t require any oilers or tightening, and are much quieter during operation.

The second-story of CP’s booth has a private office that is constructed out of the same materials as a MRF sort cabin. The modular office enclosure was generously donated by Porta King, a major supplier of sort cabins in the waste and recycling industry.