Compactors

IQS Newsroom Articles on Compactors

Compactors

Compactors specialize in compressing waste materials in order to reduce waste material size for more efficient transportation. Although very similar to balers, a compactor's primary function is to reduce waste management cost by compacting non-recyclable materials for disposal. This differs from the primary function of a baler, which is to compact and bind, or "bale" recyclable materials into bales which are more space efficient and less costly to transport. Also, compactors tend to be smaller units and to form more compact bundles than balers. Compactors can come in many styles, such as stationary, self-contained, vertical or horizontal as well as material or industry-specific such as industrial compactors, commercial compactors and drum crushers. Compactors are used by diverse industries including retail, residential, marine, food waste processing, industrial manufacturing, aerospace and medical. Just a few of the many materials that compactors can process include textiles, food products, drums, rubber, metals, plastic and fibrous materials.

Compactors are composed of three main components: a large metal chamber, an electric motor and a hydraulic or pneumatic press. The compactor can be manually or automatically loaded through an input area that leads to the large metal chamber where the material is pounded, smashed or squeezed into a compact size by the press. The compaction of the material is powered through the electric motor. Once the compaction process is initiated, the motor slowly lowers the press by rotating either a belt-and-pulley system or a set of reduction gears. The press is then lowered into the waste materials contained and powered to exert an intense force on the waste materials, which results in compression to the desired size. When the pressure from the press reaches its programmed set point, the motor will reverse and raise the press back to its original position. Different types of compactors contain the compacted waste materials in different manners. For example, commercial compactors typically use bins or bags to store the newly compressed materials, while industrial trash compactors generally produce bales from the compressed waste materials.

As recycling becomes more central to industrial and manufacturing processes, compactors will continue to play a role in the process as well. For high waste-producing industries, such as plastic manufacturing and grocery stores, the choice of compacting waste materials for recycling is a matter of cost economy. Waste must be disposed of whether it is recycled or not, but using compactors to reduce waste bulk cuts down on carbon emissions, and recycling used materials for profit or for material recuperation provides an ROI on waste which would not have existed otherwise. There are many other advantages to using industrial compactors for either waste transportation or recycling purposes. Compactors help to eliminate odor and vermin problems, reduce the frequency of waste removal, eliminate spillage and leaks from overflowing waste containers and improve facility housekeeping to create a more hygienic environment. However, there are a few drawbacks to compactors such as the mixing of trash types and high initial investments.