Australian recycling start-up wins global award

A new Australian recycling company, Relivit, has won a major international business award, further boosting its credentials and propelling it into a new phase of growth in the local market. On 18 May in Boston, USA, the company was awarded the Licensing Executives Society International (LESI) Global Award, which recognises the team whose business plan best deals with intellectual property rights and their development and use in the global business environment.

Founded by a graduate team of entrepreneurs from Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne, Relivit is licensing and commercialising technology for the full recycling of absorbent hygiene product (AHP) waste - disposable nappies, feminine hygiene products and adult continence aids. The company will open its first plant in western Sydney in mid-2013, to process 25,000 tonnes each year of AHP waste and divert 90% of the waste material from landfill.

Relivit Managing Director Gareth Williamson said the award acknowledged the company’s role in addressing the escalating cost of waste disposal coupled with environmental benefits.

“Currently, half a million tonnes a year of AHP waste is buried in Australian landfill sites, where the valuable resources are lost to the supply chain. The cost of landfill disposal in Sydney is expected to increase by 50% in the next five years, which contributes to Relivit being able to deliver a viable solution,” Williamson said.

Relivit is leveraging its IP by partnering with large corporates to create channels to access target markets. Commercial waste management providers will deliver AHP waste collected from female washrooms, aged care facilities, childcare centres, hospitals and healthcare facilities.

At the plant, Relivit will use the licensed technology to sterilise the waste and specialised equipment will separate the fibre and plastics and prepare them for resale. High-quality wood fibre will be recycled as cardboard and plastics will be sold for re-use in construction materials.

Relivit’s service will help its customers combat rising waste disposal costs and also reduce direct carbon emissions by more than 50%. There are plans for more than 10 plants across Australia, New Zealand and Asia.