“It is quite amazing to see how much value can be generated from simple sludge, if an effort is made,” said Brandix Group Director A. J. Johnpillai. “The processes developed by Brandix's environmental engineers can be a model for many industries that have to dispose of solid waste.”
“The Green Apple award is a fitting tribute to the passion and commitment of the Brandix environment team which is continuously looking for ways to recycle or convert waste into by products,” said Hilary Nath, Head of Environment Management and Research at Brandix, disclosing that further research and development is underway to produce paper and roofing sheets as an alternative to asbestos from sludge.
Already, the conversion of sludge and canteen waste into bricks, bio gas and organic fertiliser has generated savings of Rs 7.4 million a year for Brandix Finishing, and enabled the company to qualify for ISO 14001:2004 Environment Management System certification, he disclosed.
These processes have in their initial stage accounted for 65 per cent of the 32 tons of sludge produced by the company per month, and will in their final stage result in zero disposal of sludge.
The Green Apple Environment Award was accepted on behalf of Brandix Finishing by Francis Surtees, Commercial Manager. Previous award winners include Jaguar Cars of the UK at national level.
The awards recognise environmental innovations and best practices such as energy and resources conservation, recycling, by-products development and ecological conservation. The Green Organisation looks for measurable benefit, sustainability, innovation, partnerships and commitment.