Service Waste Triples Alternative Fuel Production with New Untha

The family-owned Texan organization originally took delivery of the

first UNTHA XR shedder to be commissioned in the USA, almost a

decade ago. Over the years, the machine has processed an average

of 480 tons of commercial, industrial, and pallet waste per week,

transforming this locally collected residual material into an

alternative fuel for the cement industry.

But fast forward to 2024 and with customer demand continuing to

rise, Service Waste sought to supercharge its shredding capabilities

once again.

A new, larger 24-ton XR shredder therefore made the 5,500-mile

journey from UNTHA America’s manufacturing headquarters in

Austria. Following a 1-week installation and testing period, the

electric-driven machine is now fully operational.

The versatile machine with a 9’8” aperture, can comfortably handle

a range of difficult, bulkier input materials, with the shredder

currently configured to produce a 2?” particle size. In-built

resistance to foreign objects such as rogue metal content, protects

the machine from damage and ensures this material can be

extracted with ease. The result is a high-quality, homogenous, and

‘on-specification’ fraction, which acts as a Refuse Derived Fuel

(RDF) for cement kilns.

Commenting on Service Waste’s investment to support continued

expansion, the firm’s General Manager, Robert Dunlap said: “We’ve

worked hard to build the reputation of our multi-generation, familyrun

company, which has seen demand rise over the years. But the

sustainability buzz is growing – especially when it comes to energy

recovery – which means we need to further bolster our capacity.

“The existing XR was already processing more than double the

volume of waste we’d first forecast, back in 2014, which saw us

halve our landfill costs. But wear and tear is inevitable with such a

workhorse. With the new, bigger XR, we’ve tripled our throughput,

while reducing manpower requirements by ?%.”

The flexibility of the industrial shredder means that Service Waste

can process even more material streams in the future, if they wish,

with the ability to achieve different alternative fuel specifications to

suit varied off-taker requirements.

“When we made the decision to invest in a new machine, returning

to UNTHA was a ‘no brainer’,” continued Robert. “Our criteria

revolved around shredder durability, throughputs, uptime

performance, operator safety, energy efficiency, and ease of

maintenance. The XR ticks all the boxes – a testament to its strength

and reliability.”

Service Waste maintains the UNTHA XR using internal resources,

but relies on UNTHA America for continued spare and wear parts.

The incumbent UNTHA XR shredder has been shipped to another

facility in the Southeastern region of the United States, for

refurbishment and reuse.