Transport firm Freightways has made a $2.7 million investment into New Zealand operated packaging waste upcycling company SaveBOARD.
The cash has enabled SaveBOARD to open a plant in Te Rapa which became fully operational at the end of last year.
It is now converting up to 4000 tonnes of waste per year into approximately 200,000 construction boards as an innovative solution to the building supplies industry.
It converts materials like Tetra Pak and fast food cartons, which were previously not recyclable, into building board that performs similarly to plywood, oriented strand board and particleboard and can be used indoors and out.
Freightways chief executive Mark Troughear says the investment is helping meet sustainability targets with transport and construction combined accounting for nearly 30% of greenhouse gas emissions in New Zealand.
“One of Freightways’ core principles is to take ownership and solve problems through action. We’re in the business of getting things done now, rather than relying on suppliers and customers to come up with solutions.
“Through the Australian arm of our companies Shred-X and Med-X, we already divert over 98% of our collected waste from landfill.
“SaveBOARD provided an exciting proposition in that it offered both a reliable and clean method of disposal for hard to recycle waste – things we already collect and shred through our business units like Tetra Pak cartons and fast food packaging – and delivered a viable finished product that is much needed in the New Zealand building industry,” Troughear says.
Spearheaded by Paul Charteris, SaveBOARD uses patented technology to convert waste that previously could not be recycled in New Zealand including fibre and poly-coated packaging like coffee cups, carton board and soft plastic waste into world-class products.
Freightways gave initial backing to the company in 2020 with a $1.1 million loan. This was converted into a 22% shareholding in November 2021 after significant interest was generated in the venture.
“The technology has seen incredible uptake offshore from leaders wanting to demonstrate green solutions to building. For example, Tesla opted to use SaveBOARD for the membrane substrate of its 200,000 square-metre roof of the Gigafactory One, which has saved 2000 tonnes of waste from landfill,” Charteris says.
“Locally we have phenomenal interest in our first run, and we need less than 1% of the market here to reach our initial capacity,” he says.
Freightways also encouraged SaveBOARD to add a wash/dry line to its production facility, a crucial element missing from many recycling facilities resulting in recyclable – but contaminated – materials heading to landfill. The wash/dry line is now operational after receiving funding from Callaghan Innovation.
The Government has a widely circulated goal of reaching Carbon Zero by 2050 and cutting emissions by half before 2030.
Many in the delivery business have promised 100% recyclable packaging by 2025.
The company has backed its initial commitment to SaveBOARD with an additional $1.6m to help establish the business model in Australia, and the New South Wales Government has subsequently provided AU$1.74m in funding for the business.
“With both the transport and construction sectors being large contributors to carbon emissions, we wanted to invest in a solution that would make an impact to both,” Troughear says.
“We saw the huge potential of SaveBOARD early on and, with our name behind it, many other investors have followed suit.
“Investing in SaveBOARD made sense for Freightways as the perfect complement to our current collection and destruction service offering, creating a circular economy for those collections from right now – not by 2025, or by 2050.”