A specialized grinder bought with grant funding has enabled recycling partners in Missouri to recover about 250,000 pounds of plastic from large wire spools since last year – and make the granulator available to other local manufacturers.
Growth at the Hitachi Energy transformer factory in Jefferson City created a plastics problem. As the plant ramped up production of distribution transformers and added wire suppliers, some of the wire started arriving on a type of spool that was too big for the existing recycling process to handle, according to a Hitachi press release.
This spurred recycling partner J. Carter Enterprises of New Bloomfield to research a solution. Carter Enterprises collects pallets and other plastic items from local manufacturers and companies, and uses the regrind to remanufacture pallets or sends it to another partner.
The solution: a granulator that shreds the spools, creating post-industrial feedstock for making PVC pipe at another recycling facility.
In fiscal 2025, Carter Enterprises was awarded an $85,500 Missouri Market Development Program grant from the state’s Environmental Improvement and Energy Resources Authority (EIERA) toward the $143,600 Cumberland granulator. The grinder is now housed at Carter Enterprises for use by other local manufacturers.
In May 2022 Hitachi Energy announced an investment of more than $10 million to expand and modernize the plant, adding a production line for larger distribution transformers that serve renewable energy projects and advanced data centers.
The granulator project also helped the Jefferson City factory keep its zero-waste-to-landfill designation, which requires finding alternatives to landfill disposal for nearly all waste the facility generates.
“This is not just a solution that benefits Hitachi Energy,” said Russell Osborne, environmental and sustainability specialist at the company. “This is a solution that benefits the entire community. Other companies who have targets for zero-waste-to-landfill and plastic utilization can use this resource to achieve their goals and propel sustainability.”
Doug Moye, senior director of operations and factory manager at the plant, said sharing the grinder ties the facility’s expansion with local benefits.
“As we’ve grown in Jefferson City, we wanted that growth to have a positive impact on the community around us,” Moye said. “This project shows what can happen when industry, local businesses and public partners work together. We were able to solve a need for our operations while helping create a resource that other manufacturers can use.”
