DCW Polymers raises over £3,000 for local charities through popular Recycle & Raise scheme

News / By Emily Almond / 25/09/2023

DCW Polymers, the South West’s only specialist plastics recycling and reprocessing plant, has raised £3,101.68 for local charities by recycling plastic tubs and bottle tops donated by the general public.

The funds, which have been split equally between Dartmoor Zoological Society and Life Chance Trust, were raised through DCW Polymers’ Recycle & Raise initiative. The appeal asked the general public to donate plastic tubs and bottle tops for recycling which DCW Polymers has shredded into granules.

The granules have been used in the manufacturing of DCW’s recycled plastic furniture range which has raised £1,550.84 each for Dartmoor Zoo and Life Chance Trust.

An incredible 158 businesses, schools and organisations across the South West volunteered as collection points for the tubs, bottle tops and takeaway containers, with a total of 1,643kg of tubs and 487kg of bottle tops donated in a bid to support the charities.

Hosted by DCW Polymers annually since 2019, the Recycle & Raise appeal has raised over £13,000 for charitable causes.

Simon Almond, Managing Director of DCW, said: “This might have been our fourth year of running our Recycle & Raise campaign, but the enthusiasm from the public never fails to make us smile. It’s fantastic that so many are willing to do what they can to help year after year. What better way to recycle plastics than by donating them to DCW and raising vital funds for local charities.

“These are two charities that do incredible work in the local community. Dartmoor Zoo are specialists in education and conservation of animals, while also supporting local people. The team at Life Chance Trust in Newton Abbot are working hard to help young people who have experienced trauma with mentoring and life skills training.

“I’d like to thank everyone who has donated to the scheme and the businesses who volunteered to act as drop-off points as without you, we couldn’t have raised these funds. Recycle & Raise will be back towards the end of 2023, and we hope to raise even more funds next year.”

Thanks to the enthusiasm of the public and the success of the appeal, DCW Polymers is now collecting plastic tubs and bottle tops all year round. The plastic donated throughout the year will be weighed and totalled in February 2024 along with the donations from the annual scheme.

Clean plastic tubs and bottle tops can be taken to the Recycle & Raise drop-off point outside Princesshay’s Bee Hive Information Centre, The Hive, located in Bampfylde Lane in Exeter. In addition, clean plastic tubs and bottle tops can be taken to DCW Polymers in Exeter.

For those who cannot easily access the permanent drop-off points, the Recycle & Raise seasonal appeal for plastic tubs and bottle tops will return in October 2023 and will run until February 2024. DCW Polymers encourages businesses from across Devon, Cornwall, and Somerset to sign-up, creating plenty of accessible drop-off points across the region. If your business would like to sign up as a drop-off point to help raise funds for DCW Polymers’ chosen charities, please email [email protected]

Recycle & Raise® is back

News / By DCW Polymers / 14/10/2022

Spooky season marks the return of confectionary tubs to the supermarkets, ready for shoppers to stock up on their favourite sweet treats. Now, leading South West waste plastics recycling and reprocessing plant, DCW Polymers, is asking us to donate the empty plastic tubs to raise vital funds for charity.

Marking its fourth year, Recycle & Raise® is hosted by Exeter-based DCW Polymers in an effort to keep plastic tubs away from landfill whilst raising money for good causes. The Zero to Landfill firm is once again asking the general public to donate plastic tubs for recycling to raise funds for Dartmoor Zoological Society and new for 2022, Life Chance Trust.

Last year, the campaign by the South West’s specialist plastic recycler raised over £5,500. Since its launch in 2019, Recycle & Raise has raised over £11,000 for charity with DCW Polymers collecting the equivalent of 135,000 tubs.

It’s not just sweets and chocolates tubs DCW Polymers is asking for either. Ice cream, biscuit and cracker tubs, milk bottle tops and takeaway containers can all be recycled as part of the Recycle & Raise campaign. The materials with a number five PP symbol on the container that are donated to Recycle & Raise will be sent to the DCW Polymers’ recycling plant in Exeter, where they will be shredded into granules. The granules will then be used in manufacturing DCW Polymers’ recycled plastic furniture range, where 100% of the profits will be donated to Dartmoor Zoological Society and Life Chance Trust. All plastic donations collected will be split 50/50 between the two charities.

Dartmoor Zoo is set in 33-acres of beautiful woodland just outside of Plymouth and undertakes vital conservation work to protect a variety of species. Life Chance Trust is an award-winning organisation based in Newton Abbot that provides young people who have experienced trauma with mentoring and life skills training to help them on the pathway to employment.

More drop-off locations will be available over the next few weeks, but recyclers can start taking their empty tubs and bottle tops from November to the DCW Polymers Enviro Hub in Exeter, EX2 8NU, or the DCW Data Destruction centre in Plymouth, PL21 9UH. The Recycle & Raise drop-off point outside Princesshay’s Bee Hive Information Centre, The Hive, located in Bampfylde Lane in Exeter, is open all year for clean plastic tubs and bottle tops. You can find your nearest drop-off location by viewing the interactive map at https://www.dcw.co.uk/about/recycle-raise/. If your business, school or organisation would like to get involved, please email [email protected].

DCW Polymers Business Support Manager, Emily Almond, said: “Sweet tubs appear on the shelves earlier and earlier each year, which is why we have launched Recycle & Raise even earlier. We want to recycle as many plastic tubs as possible, whilst raising vital funds for charity.

“We are so proud to have raised over £11,000 since we launched Recycle & Raise and hope that with the support from the public, we can raise even more this year. By manufacturing the plastic granules into our recycled plastic furniture range, we can donate ten times the amount per tub than if we just sold the granules to the manufacturing industry. Please spread the word and save us your clean, empty tubs and tops and help us Recycle plastic and Raise money for charity.”

Empty and clean donations need to be taken to drop-off locations by Wednesday 15^th February 2023. If your business, school or organisation would like to become a drop-off point, please email [email protected].

DCW Polymers raises over £5,500 for local charities through popular Recycle & Raise scheme

News / By DCW Polymers / 25/04/2022

DCW Polymers, the South West’s only specialist plastics recycling and reprocessing plant, has raised £5,736.28 for local charities by recycling plastic tubs and bottle tops donated by the general public, an initiative known as Recycle & Raise.

The funds, which have been split equally between Dartmoor Zoological Park and mental health charity Mind, were raised through DCW Polymers’ Recycle & Raise initiative. The appeal asked the general public to donate plastic tubs and bottle tops for recycling which DCW Polymers has shredded into granules.

The granules have been used in manufacturing DCW Polymers’ recycled plastic furniture range which has raised approximately 8p per tub recycled for Dartmoor Zoo and Mind.

Over 85 businesses, schools and organisations across the South West volunteered as collection points for the tubs, bottle tops and takeaway containers, with the general public donating 1,925kg of tubs and 673kg of bottle tops in a bid to support the charities. The weight of the tubs equates to 64,166 tubs recycled through this year’s Recycle and Raise campaign.

Hosted by DCW Polymers annually since 2019, the Recycle & Raise appeal has raised over £11,000 for charitable causes.

DCW Polymers Managing Director, Simon Almond, said: “The enthusiasm from the public to help us raise as much money as we can for these charities this year has been incredible. So much so that we have experienced our most successful fundraising year yet, raising over £5,500 for Dartmoor Zoo and Mind.

“These are two charities that I am personally very passionate about. As a trustee of Dartmoor Zoo, I’m invested in the incredible conservation work the team do, and Mind is a charity that we were keen to support in light of the toll the pandemic has had on mental health and wellbeing.

“I’d like to thank everyone who has donated to the scheme as without you, we couldn’t have raised these vital funds for charity. Since 2019, we’ve smashed each of our targets every year and as the initiative grows, we hope to raise even more funds during next year’s campaign which will kick-off in October 2022.”

Thanks to the enthusiasm of the public and the success of the appeal, DCW Polymers is now collecting plastic tubs and bottle tops all year round. The funds raised from this will also go towards the annual Recycle & Raise scheme, giving DCW Polymers and the general public the opportunity to support local charities either side of Recycle & Raise season.

For those who cannot easily access the permanent drop-off points, the Recycle & Raise seasonal appeal for plastic tubs and bottle tops will return in November 2022 and will run until February 2023. DCW Polymers encourages businesses from across Devon and Cornwall to sign-up, creating plenty of accessible drop-off points across the region. If your business would like to sign up as a drop off point to help raise funds for DCW Polymers’ chosen charities, please email [email protected].

‘Shop and drop’ to recycle and raise funds for charity

News / By DCW Polymers / 10/02/2022

Visitors to Exeter city centre can now recycle plastic bottle tops and tubs at a brand-new drop-off point in Princesshay Shopping Centre and help contribute to a more circular economy.

Leading South West plastics recycling and reprocessing plant, DCW Polymers, has partnered with the popular shopping destination to run its Recycle & Raise scheme all year round. The plastic recycling scheme which asks the public to donate plastic tubs and bottle tops to raise funds for Dartmoor Zoo and mental health charity mind, was previously operated by DCW Polymers only over the festive period.

Now, shoppers can take their plastic tubs and bottle tops throughout the year to the new Recycle & Raise drop-off point stationed outside Princesshay’s Bee Hive Information Centre, The Hive. Located in Bampfylde Lane between Superdry and Chandos Deli, donations can be placed in the Recycle & Raise collection bin 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The most popular items donated are plastic confectionary tubs, but keen recyclers can also donate ice cream, biscuit and cracker tubs, milk bottle tops and takeaway containers. The materials with a number five or PP symbol on the container that are donated to Recycle & Raise will be sent to the DCW Polymers recycling plant in Exeter where they will be shredded into granules. The granules will then be used in manufacturing DCW Polymers’ recycled plastic furniture range, which will raise approximately 8p per tub recycled for Dartmoor Zoo and Mind.

Trevor Gomm, Operations Manager at Princesshay, said: “We are really pleased to partner with DCW Polymers on the Recycle and Raise project in the Centre.”

Last year, the campaign raised over £4,000 for Dartmoor Zoo and Mind. Since its launch in 2019, Recycle & Raise has raised over £5,200 for charity with DCW Polymers collecting the equivalent of 65,000 tubs.

DCW Polymers Business Support Manager, Emily Almond, said: “We’re delighted to welcome Princesshay Shopping Centre on board as our latest Recycle & Raise partner. With 13.4 million people visiting Princesshay every year, we hope the new drop-off point will be inundated with donations, ensuring that we can raise vital funds for charity all year round and not just over the festive period.

“As a Zero to Landfill company with a passion for creating a more sustainable environment, we like to partner with like-minded businesses. It feels like a natural fit for us to collect Recycle & Raise donations from The Hive which was built in 2012 as part of Princesshay’s ongoing commitment to sustainability. So, please bring your clean, empty tubs and tops with you next time you head into the city centre and help us Recycle plastic and Raise money for charity.”

Donations can also be taken to temporary Recycle and Raise drop-off locations across Devon until Monday 28^th February 2022. Visit www.dcw.co.uk/about/recycle-raise to locate your nearest drop-off point.

DCW Polymers embraces circular economy with the launch of recycled plastic furniture range

Latest News / By DCW Polymers / 09/06/2021

We are delighted to announce the launch of our outdoor furniture range made entirely from waste plastic collected from businesses across the region.

DCW Polymers has invested over £25,000 in a new plastic reprocessing line to become the only company in the South West to process waste plastics it collects into recycled furniture. The new equipment, based at the specialist plastic reprocessing plant in Exeter melts the shredded waste plastic and moulds it into posts and planks which are then used to make weatherproof furniture and garden products such as picnic benches, tables, chairs, fence posts and decking.

A sustainable alternative to timber, the plastic furniture and products are maintenance free will not rot, splinter or corrode and will not require painting or creosoting. The innovative furniture and products are made using 100% plastic waste collected from South West businesses such as buckets, tubs, crates, DVD cases, bottle tops, and even kayaks and old wheelie bins.

DCW Polymers is the only specialist plastics recycling and reprocessing plant south of Bridgwater, recycling commercial waste plastic from businesses across Devon, Cornwall and Somerset. This new piece of kit now sits alongside the £280,000 state-of-the-art shredding line which DCW Polymers purchased in 2020. This converts bulky waste plastics into plastic granules which get sold back into the manufacturing industry. With 100% recycled furniture now part of its offering, DCW Polymers is leading the way to a more circular economy in the South West.

The recycled furniture and garden products are available for both businesses and individuals to purchase directly from DCW Polymers. The range includes four different styles: the Torbay, a low contemporary bench; the Plymouth, a traditional style picnic table; the Teign, a bench and dining table set; the Exeter, a large deluxe bench and table; along with fence posts and decking.

Simon Almond, DCW Polymers Managing Director, hopes the new garden range will actively reduce the burden that plastic waste has on the environment.

Simon commented: “We truly believe that achieving a circular economy is the way forward when it comes to tackling plastic waste in the South West. We continually strive to find ways in which we can feed waste plastic granules back into the manufacturing industry, reducing the need for virgin plastic products to be made. After months of trials and ironing out the kinks, we’re delighted to launch the DCW Polymers’ 100% recycled garden range.

“Not only does this process save valuable energy and keeps plastic waste away from our ecosystem, it creates sustainable, long-lasting furniture and products which unlike its wood alternative, will not rot, splinter, or corrode. This will reduce the need for businesses that provide outdoor seating for customers or employees to keep replacing their outdoor furniture or decking areas.”

DCW Polymers will launch the recycled garden range at Toby’s Garden Festival at Powderham Castle on Friday 11^th and Saturday 12^th June 2021.

Gardening expert, TV presenter and author, Toby Buckland said: “The innovative work of DCW Polymers to recycle waste plastic is fantastic and just what the South West needs. Sustainable living is a growing priority and their pioneering effort to turn waste destined for landfill into useful and beautiful decking and furniture is brilliant. Hats off to Simon and the DCW Polymers team!”

For more information about our recycled furniture range, please click here.

Recycle & Raise fundraising announcement!

News / By DCW Polymers / 04/06/2021

Recycle & Raise 2020/21 fundraising success!

Having raised over £1,200 for Dartmoor Zoo in our first year of Recycle & Raise, we weren’t sure what to expect when lockdown 3.0 was announced in the middle of the 2020/21 collection…

However, our worries and fears can be forgotten, as we are so pleased and proud to announce that the 2020/21 collection has raised… *drumroll please*

£4,096.60!

This is a wonderful donation, being split 50/50 between Dartmoor Zoological Park and Mind! This money will make a huge difference for both charities.

Thank you to each and every one of the 100+ businesses, schools and organisations who have accepted donations on our behalf throughout November 2020 through to March 2021. From the amazing people who have had mountains of tubs stacked in their garages (and front rooms!), to the people who saved their tubs and donated in the wind & rain of winter, to those of you who shared the adverts with your friends – THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH! We really couldn’t do it without you.

When we had this brainwave back in 2019, seeing stacks of tubs in the supermarkets and wondering if we could do something amazing with the plastic, we never expected to be here 18 months later having raised over £5,300 to date and counting!

We’re so pleased to let you know that Recycle & Raise is back – this time all year round! You can now donate your plastic bottle tops to any DCW Polymers depot throughout the year! You can find out more here: Recycle & Raise is back – all year round!

Of course, from the end of 2021, you will be able to donate your empty plastic tubs to a huge variety of drop-off points across the South West through our amazing collection partners. From November to February, over 100 local businesses join forces to accept your donations! Keep an eye out at the end of the year to see where you can take your confectionery tubs! If you’d like to sign up as a collection partner, just email [email protected]

Since 2019, Recycle & Raise has been running with the aim of recycling huge quantities of plastic and raise money for charity!

What happens to the tubs now?

Even more excitingly for this year, we are pleased to say that the PP and HDPE plastic from the tubs and bottle tops will go directly into our Polymers manufacturing centre, where we will use the plastic to make our NEW Recycled Plastic Furniture! We’re so proud that plastic collected in the South West will now be made into benches sold in the South West. Who knows – you may end up sitting on a bench made with tubs you once ate sweets from!

Recycle & Raise 2020/21 Charities

Dartmoor Zoological Park

Dartmoor Zoological Park is a unique zoo set in 33 acres of beautiful parkland on the outskirts of Plymouth. The Zoo’s CEO Benjamin Mee wrote a book about buying the zoo called We Bought A Zoo, which was later became the subject of a major Hollywood film starring Matt Damon and Scarlett Johannson! The Zoo registered as a charity in 2014 which has strengthened it’s future and opened up new and exciting opportunities. DCW Polymers has worked closely with Dartmoor Zoo since our MD became a trustee of the charity, and we partnered with them for our 2019 Recycle & Raise campaign! With the Covid-19 restrictions affecting visitor numbers this year, Dartmoor Zoo need our help!

Mind

Mind is a mental health charity who provide advice and support to empower anyone experiencing a mental health problem. They campaign to improve services, raise awareness and promote understanding. Covid-19 restrictions have affected everyone in different ways this year, it’s still very uncertain times which is why it is so important to shine the light on mental health and provide support to those who may be struggling.

Recycle & Raise campaign for 2020 is launched!

Latest News / By DCW Polymers / 16/10/2020

DCW Polymers launches our Recycle & Raise campaign for 2020!

Last years’ Recycle & Raise campaign was hugely successful, we recycled over 15,000 tubs and reached over 250,000 people online! Having raised over £1,200 for Dartmoor Zoo last year, we have high hopes that this year will be even bigger and better!

While it has been a difficult decision as there are so many worthy charities that need support, our chosen charities for this year are Dartmoor Zoological Park and Mind – a mental health charity.

This year we can Recycle & Raise with even more materials, so please start washing and saving your containers for us!

What can we Recycle this year?

Confectionery tubs
Ice cream tubs
Cracker tubs
Milk bottle tops
Takeaway containers

Look for the number 5 or PP symbol on the container!

All materials donated to Recycle & Raise will be sent to our plastic reprocessing centre in Exeter, where we will shred the plastics and sell on to manufacturers in the UK, to use in place of virgin polymers. All profits raised will be donated to our two chosen charities, Dartmoor Zoo and Mind.

Shredded plastic containers — This is what the containers look like when they have been through the shredder!

Example of confectionery tubs that we can we recycle for the Recycle & Raise campaign

Recycle & Raise Drop Off Locations

We are looking for more partners for this years’ Recycle & Raise campaign to collect and store containers on our behalf. If you are willing to support us and collect on our behalf, please contact Emily Almond by emailing [email protected] to receive the marketing pack and be included on our list!

You can find your local drop-off point on our interactive map below! This will be updated as more collection partners join us.

Recycle & Raise 2020 Charities

Dartmoor Zoological Park

Mind

Tackling Plastic Pollution in Manufacturing

News / By DCW Polymers / 29/06/2020

There is a groundswell of opinion that says we should all be worried about where unwanted plastic ends up and the damage that it can do if it is not managed correctly. For those of us in an industry which works with plastic every day, it is therefore imperative that we try to act positively to improve the use and disposal of plastics.

Two Devon based companies have joined forces to try and do their bit to tackle this problem.

Teignmouth-based Product Design Consultancy, Hillside Design Ltd (HPDL) develop products from the first sketch concept all the way through to manufacture for a plethora of clients including large multi-national companies and individual private inventors, Director Chris Howsam and his team responsibly source all materials they specify and they ensure those materials meet the highest standards of quality.

Chris says, “It has always been a challenge to specify high quality, second use plastics because of their limited availability and the perceived risks from contamination. Many plastic users such as injection moulding companies will not risk damage to an expensive moulding press and this is a hurdle to specifying second use plastics instead of virgin plastic stock”.

The good news for Hillside is that now help is at hand thanks to Devon Contract Waste (DCW) who have invested heavily in acquiring a plastics reprocessing business, now operating as DCW Polymers, in Wrangaton. The plant is equipped with a range of shredders and granulators, turning waste plastics back into top quality granulated plastics, which go back into the manufacturing process and reduce the need for virgin plastic in the manufacturing system. DCW Polymers have recently purchased a brand new shredder and granulation line which has significantly increased their capacity, and the plant is now capable of processing over 50 tonnes of quality recycled plastics per week. Later this year the whole operation is due to relocate to DCW’s new premises in Marsh Barton, Exeter.

Simon Almond, MD of DCW Polymers commented “We were excited to acquire the plastics recycling business in 2019, and with additional investment and support we see that this will be a major part of DCW Polymers business overall. As a nation, we need to do more to proactively encourage the recycling of plastics, and we hope that we can play our part in this. We want to encourage the take up of recycled plastics by more UK manufacturers, and by working alongside Chris and the team at HPDL we hope that we can encourage more product designers and manufacturers to replace virgin polymers with high quality recycled plastics”.

Chris added, “I’m delighted about having this facility, especially as it sits quite literally on our doorstep here in Devon. HPDL and our supply partners are very conscious of the part we play in tackling the environmental costs of launching new products and now in collaboration with DCW Polymers we can all contribute more positively to reducing the burden of unwanted plastic in Devon.”