Plastic pallet for beer kegs
Material |
|
recycled Heineken bottle crates (HDPE) |
Design |
|
Heineken in cooperation with Wavin-LASH |
Manufacturer |
|
Lankhorst BV, Netherlands |
Year |
|
1995/'96 |
Sustainable
category
Design phase | |
Bottle crates used by Heineken Netherlands contain the heavy metal cadmium in a concentration that exceeds the maximum level stipulated by the Dutch Cadmium Decree. In a covenant with the government, Heineken pledged to take cadmium-containing crates off the market by the year 2010. The Dutch Ministry for the Environment has allowed Heineken to recycle the crate material into keg pallets until a method for recovering the cadmium has been developed. Permission was granted in view of the fact that the pallets circulate in a closed system which is fully controlled by Heineken. Moreover, a Life Cycle Analysis performed by Heineken showed that plastic pallets are environmentally friendlier than wooden ones. In addition, cost savings are anticipated in view of the plastic pallet’s greater durability. The plastic pallet is compatible with Heineken’s currently used wooden pallet and it contains approximately 10% recycled shrink foil (LPDE) to improve impact strength. On loan from Heineken Techical Services B.V.
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