Case Study: Shorts Recycling

Ascot, Berkshire

Shorts Recycling operate a composting facility in Berkshire which processes over 10,000 tonnes per annum of green waste, generating products for the horticultural and agricultural industries. With many years’ experience in composting, Shorts were among the pioneers of commercial compost production in the UK.

The site in Berkshire operates an open-air turned windrow system whereby windrows are turned by loading shovel. Prior to installation of CMS2010 the turning cycle was dictated by space requirements on the site; rows were turned 9-10 times over a ten week period prior to being screened.

The introduction of CMS2010 has produced a detailed picture of exactly what is going on within the windrows.

As a direct result of data collected, a few small but significant changes have been made: the windrow size is now smaller and the grind a little coarser.

According to Shorts themselves, there have been several key benefits:

• the average amount of turns has fallen to 4.7 over a ten week period
• odour released during windrow turning has fallen considerably, which has meant that the use of an expensive atomiser chemical has been reduced by more than 50%
• loading shovels are doing fewer hours which saves money on fuel
• man hours are also fewer, allowing staff to concentrate on screening products and keeping quality up on incoming waste
• staff have a better understanding of the composting process.