Shredding firm ploughs £250,000 investment into UK test centre

Industrial shredding specialist UNTHA UK has boldly kick-started its new financial year, with a £250,000 investment in its North Yorkshire test centre.

The team has refurbished its on-site trials facility and procured four new demonstration machines, allowing organisations from across the country to see what the shredders are really capable of, and test them with their own materials.

20 stock shredders — the RS30, RS40, RS60, RS100, LRK1400, PS1300 and S25 models — are also available for immediate dispatch on a rolling stock basis, as the UK’s environmental progress shows no sign of slowing. In addition to enquiries from waste contractors, recycling specialists and energy firms, UNTHA UK has also experienced rising demand from manufacturers, engineering companies, retailers, and other producers of waste who have previously passed their materials onto a third party to be managed. However, now realising the circular — and economic — value of the ‘waste’, they are seeking to bring their processes in-house.

More than 2,000 product lines of consignment parts are also now available for immediate dispatch, from UNTHA UK’s Boroughbridge HQ.

The £250,000-figure investment comes in response to the market’s desire for greater flexibility, says UNTHA UK’s managing director, Marcus Brew.

“While we read dozens of daily headlines about the economic squeeze, we must remember that environmental pressures are mounting too,” he explained. “As a society, we’re producing more waste than ever before, yet our climate change conscience is also getting stronger. Our industry is therefore working hard to transform ‘waste’ materials into valuable resources that can be reused, recycled, and utilised for energy recovery. We’re pushing new boundaries — with the help of engineering innovations — and that whets people’s appetite as to what more could be done.

“People come to our test centre, wondering — is this really possible? When they see that it is, they don’t want to wait for their shredding technology to be manufactured. They’re hungry to act now. This is challenging when it comes to bespoke machinery. However, some of our models are highly configurable, therefore having a number of those in stock, means we can react faster to customers’ needs.”

UNTHA UK’s investment in spare and wear parts means customers can also keep their assets in perfect working order, with minimal operational disruption.

“Everything revolves around us delivering the highest standard of service to our customers,” Marcus continued. “Because that’s what enhances their throughputs, flexibility and margins.”

A passionate advocate of processing ‘waste’ for reuse, recycling, and energy recovery, UNTHA UK – part of the global UNTHA shredding brand – achieved a 38% revenue uplift in 2022. Turnover exceeded £16m — the firm’s highest-performing year to date — as the team continued to expand, and an equivalent target of £20m has now been set 2023.

Having recently achieved ISO9001, 14001, and 45001 re-certification – for quality, environmental standards, and health and safety respectively – UNTHA UK was also listed as a leading light (top 10) in the Digital Enterprise Top 100 rankings, last year.

Marcus concluded: “It’s taken years of effort to get us to the point where we can rely on the processes, technology, and automation we’ve implemented, to scale at pace, and adapt to market changes with agility.

“That’s why we set bold growth targets for this year, but it’s the people in the team who have delivered on those. We don’t recruit for the sake of it, but now, as we push ahead with our 2023 plans, we know the additional colleagues we’ll welcome into the team will ensure our ongoing success.”

UNTHA UK’s current vacancy is for a parts and maintenance administrator.

There are more than 13,000 UNTHA shredders installed over six continents worldwide, with over 500in operation in the UK. There are currently 27 people in the UNTHA UK team.