IFAT fuels record interest in UNTHA waste shredders

Industrial shredding specialist UNTHA has returned from the international trade show IFAT, having attracted record interest in its globally-renowned waste and recycling shredders.

The Austrian-headquartered team travelled to Munich for the bi-annual event, excited to demonstrate their shredders to some of Europe’s most established waste management organisations. But footfall to the stand surpassed all expectations, with visitors from as far afield as Japan eager to see the much-talked-about shredders.

Almost 100 delegates from more than 15 countries participated in one of the six 3-hour round-trips to nearby waste specialist Breitsamer Entsorgung, for example, to see the XR in action. This UNTHA client was demonstrating the revolutionary mobile version of the machine.

Capable of handling an array of bulky waste materials, the pioneering electric-drive XR mobil-e attracted particular attention for its ability to shred commercial and industrial (C&I) waste, and waste wood, with ease.

Commenting on the busy visits, UNTHA’s product manager Christoph Lahnsteiner said: “The shredder has already been extensively trialled across Europe, to prove its flexibility when shredding multiple wastes to produce alternative fuels. Yet IFAT was the first time the mobile machine was demonstrated to the general public.

“We hoped it would prove popular but I don’t think anybody could have anticipated this.”

Delegates had the opportunity to speak to both the operating client and UNTHA’s team of shredding specialists as the mobil-e showcased its high throughputs, low noise and foreign object protection. Ease of maintenance, low operating costs and energy efficiency were also topics of much discussion. And the sessions must have proven of interest, because UNTHA’s demo machine is now booked out until almost the end of the year and a second demo machine is being supplied for trials in the UK.

Christoph continued: “The biggest players in the international waste business are now talking to UNTHA, with detailed requests for support on specific projects. In all honesty, we couldn’t have said this a few years ago. Despite its close proximity, Germany was a difficult market for us, for example, and the emerging nature of the Asian-Pacific waste industry meant we were lesser known there. But we welcomed worldwide visitors to our stand this year, which indicates the truly global nature of our brand in 2016.”

And delegates weren’t just at IFAT to talk. An XR Ripper was sold to a complex plant in Germany for instance, and negotiations for two other projects in continental Europe reached their final stages, indicating the focused nature of the show’s attendees.

IFAT 2016 also marked the industry’s first look at the all-new, high-performance QR shredder for plastic recycling. Following two years of extensive research and development, this latest innovation is perfect for production waste, plastic lump, drums, post-consumer waste, film, mixed rigid plastics and more. With a maintenance free pusher technology and resilient drive, the QR represents a new era of high uptime single shaft shredding.

Thomas Schmid, UNTHA’s head of marketing and communications explains: “We have long manufactured plastic shredders that have been installed by clients large and small. However, we don’t rest on our laurels. We’re always looking for ways to drive down customer costs, boost operational performance and streamline maintenance. With the QR we’ve done just that.”

UNTHA’s most established four shaft shredder – the RS series – proved a tried and tested solution for IFAT delegates with tougher recycling applications to discuss.

Thomas adds: “Whatever the shredding scenario, it is our aim to deliver a proven, profitable shredder that can satisfy even the most complex requirements. Thanks to our new UNTHA Lifetime Support packages, we can deliver after sales services that clients can rely on for years to come too.”

UNTHA now has a busy six months ahead, to follow up on the 200 project enquiries received at the event.

Technical director Christian Lanner added: “I have exhibited at IFAT more times than I can remember, but I would certainly say this was the best one yet. Our new look stand was visually very striking, which created a talking point in itself. But the XR shredder stole the show by far.”