A New Partnership: NexTrex Commercial Recycling

Ghent is thrilled to announce our new commercial recycling partnership with Trex! Trex produces a wood alternative composite decking material, made of 95% recycled plastic and sawdust. Their commitment to keeping their high-quality material made a high percentage of recycled materials means they need help from other companies to track down thin plastics they can recycle.

The Process

Many of our raw materials used to make our whiteboards, glassboards, and other visual communications products come wrapped in a soft plastic film. Up until now, we have had to discard this material once it was used, leading to a higher percentage of waste than we would like.

Trex's NexTrex Commercial Recycling program, which is among the largest plastic recycling initiatives in North America, allows us to send them our used plastic, which they can use to make their decking. After Trex purchases sawdust and plastic film, they thoroughly clean it and grind it into granules before they are heated and combined. This mixture is mixed to a soft consistency and then formed into wood-like boards. The boards are finally cooled and cut to the correct size before they are inspected and shipped out.

We complete the cycle by purchasing it back to use on our outdoor collaboration unit, Preserve. Preserve, as a product, reclaims the outdoor space for meetings, using the outdoors to boost morale and productivity. We are proud to use Trex decking slats on our Preserve units, not only due to their incredible strength and durability, but also because of the eco-friendly element they add to the product.

Getting Involved

It is not just our plastic film from our production process, though. Many people may not be aware, but many lightweight plastics, like grocery or produce bags, are unable to be recycled by most curbside recycling companies as they can get caught in machines that sort other recyclables.

Ghent employees can bring in plastics from home for the program. Employees can bring in different thin plastics, like grocery bags, newspaper sleeves, and other disposable bags, which are able to be repurposed by Trex, providing a way to recycle these items that otherwise might make their way to a landfill.

Sustainability

Trex was "built on sustainability," and they have the stats to prove it. Through programs like this, Trex can repurpose over 300 million pounds of plastic waste a year. In addition, Trex won the Green Builder Sustainable Brand Leader Award for the 13th consecutive year this past year.

We can relate to their strong commitment to recycling. One of our 6 core values as a company is Preserving the Environment, and one of the primary ways we work towards this is by recycling. Each year, we recycle:

• 31.5 tons of cardboard
• 15 tons of steel
• 13.8 tons of aluminum
• 2.9 tons of plastic bottles
• 4.2 tons of paper
• 1.4 tons of plastic sheeting

Ghent is excited and honored to be partnering with another brand who takes sustainability seriously.

Wrap Up

By repurposing materials like plastic film and encouraging employee involvement in recycling initiatives, we are making significant strides towards reducing waste and protecting our earth. Together, we are demonstrating that sustainability is not just a goal but a shared responsibility that can be achieved through collaboration and innovation.