The company that uses plastic waste to repair and lay roads which reduces carbon emissions showing strong growth
Roadfill® Ltd, one of the companies located at The EpiCentre in Haverhill, that uses recycled plastic products to repair and re-lay roads in an environmentally friendly way, is short-listed for two regional business awards:
Roadfill® is short-listed for the Innovation Award category at the Suffolk Business Awards – sponsored by the University of Suffolk.
Roadfill® Christie Raptaki (founder of the company) The Green/Environmental Award at the Bury Free Press West Suffolk Business Awards – sponsored by the Bury Free Press.
Chris Fallon, Sales Manager at Roadfill® said: “It is an honour to be shortlisted for these awards. We are currently on a bit of a roll with award gongs reflecting the innovative products we are developing at The EpiCentre’s laboratories to help reduce carbon emissions.”
The company recently won the SME UK Enterprise Award for the most innovative use of recycled plastics in the South-East of England and was chosen as the most sustainable road product company in 2022 at the Global 100 Awards. Amongst other accolades it is a finalist in the Highways UK Excellence awards and was recently featured in The Times newspaper as one of the most promising companies to look out for in the East of England.
Andrew Bell, Centre Manager at The EpiCentre says: “We are delighted that one of the centre’s companies is being recognised for the vital steps it is taking in reducing carbon emissions. It is a reflection of the young and innovative companies that are now located in The EpiCentre and taking advantage of our facilities and business support services,” he adds.
The company has been working for four years on the use of waste plastic products for road laying and repair. It has now gained industry acceptance after the Government changed the rules in August 2021 on what can and cannot be used in asphalt to reduce carbon emissions and has received the requisite regulatory certificates.
After concrete, tarmacadam is one of the most energy hungry construction materials. Bitumen, a fossil fuel, that is a main ingredient of tarmac, is normally heated to very high degrees but with plastic waste elements added to the mix it can be produced at a much lower temperature thereby reducing carbon emissions.
Fallon adds: “Not only are we reducing the amount of bitumen required in the mix but we are also tackling plastic waste which is a blight throughout the globe. We are in a unique position; we have got something that the bigger road construction companies haven’t got and now want.”
Roadfill® is working with the recycling companies across the UK and Europe and with local authorities to take away their waste plastics. Also, it is selling its plastic waste products under license in South Korea, Australia, Sweden and the US state of Florida.
Roadfill® staff numbers at The EpiCentre are growing rapidly having doubled to 10 staff in the last six months and expected to rise to 15 before the year end, while turnover that was virtually zero a year ago is forecast to reach £2.5m by the middle of 2023.
To visit the Roadfill website – click here
To find out more about office space at the EpiCentre – click here
To find out more about business support at the EpiCentre – click here
