EnviroGlas

EnviroGLAS



EnviroGLAS tabletop in their office building lobby

Today we met with EnviroGLAS founder, Tim Whaley, and enjoyed a presentation provided by him and Esteban Diaz.  Tim describes EnviroGLAS as a "boutique" player in the hardsurface manufacturing industry.  Whaley has a background in Terrazzo and has applied his knowledge to this new type of material for use as counter tops, floors and shower surrounds.

Tim Whaley, Founder welcomes UTA graduate students

EnviroGLAS is a combination of glass and/or procelain and epoxy resin.  The high cost of the resin and short working (pot) life have made it difficult for other businesses to compete against EnviroGLAS.  Whaley has also filed for a product patent to protect his design and further exclude competition.

Terrazzo is made up of large aggregate, crushed marble or granite; small aggregate, sand; and a binder, typically portland cement.  In the EnviroGLAS product these are replaced by crush, washed and tubled glass for the large aggregate, smaller bits of this same glass replace the sand and the portland cement is replaced with a no-V.O.C. polymer-based epoxy resin which is dense, structurally strong and has high adhesion qualities.

The sources for their glass is a highly guarded company secret.  Originally their crush glass came from the Plano landfill.  Now it is sourced through glass recyclers who, tumble, sanitize, sort and bag the product that they use.  For EnviroGLAS to be able to turn out a consistent high quality product they have strict size, shape and density requirements their suppliers must meet.

Tim Whaley explains characteristics of EnviroGLAS products

They produce polished slabs (EnviroSLAB) in a standard 7' x 8' panel in various thicknesses to meet their customer's needs.  The fabrication process consists of dry mixing the aggregates and then adding the dry ingredients to the resin.  The combined materials are then poured and troweled into a wooden frame that has been treated with a release agent so the resin does not stick to it.  Once the slab has set up it goes through a multi-step process of grinding and polishing.  The slabs are sold to outside vendors that fabricate and install the finished countertops or shower surrounds.  It can be worked just like a natural stone material.  Because it has an 80% glass content it is resistent to scratches and heat and carries a Class A fire rating.

EnviroGLAS product sample display

EnviroGLAS has an expected lifespan of 75 years and is guaranteed by the manufacturer for the life of the building.  It has a higher density and hardness than marble and is easily repaired on-site, extending it's potential lifespan even longer.  EnviroGLAS costs about the same as high-end natural granite but has a lower cost of maintenance and ownership which makes it a less expensive product to use over it's installed life.

EnviroGLAS also produces EnviroMODE, a similar product that uses recycled porcelain from tubs, sinks and toilets.  The porcelain is a pre-consumer waste that is obtained as rejects from bath fixture manufacturer's quality control efforts.

EnviroSCAPE is a landscaping alternative to mulch and can be provided in a wide range of colors.  It does not absorb water, is resistent to being blown or washed away in storms and has been tumbled to reduce possible injury from sharp edges.

EnviroGLAS captures waste streams of materials from several sources and keeps them from ending up in the landfill while providing a high end, durable and beautiful product.  A classic example of using one processes' waste as feed stock for a different product.

For more information about EnviroGLAS: http://www.enviroglasproducts.com/

eRecycler at Christ United Methodist Church - Plano, TX

There’s something unique going on in the parking lot of Christ United Methodist Church in Plano, TX.  Vehicles pull up in cues, workers remove unwanted electronics from back seats and truck beds, electronics are counted or weighed and fork-lifts load pallets of shrink wrapped computer monitors into a semi-tractor trailer.  People in green shirts try to avoid the hot Saturday morning summer sun while doing their job.  It’s all a part of electronic waste or “e-waste” collection program by the company eRecycler, LLC.  Consumers pay a fee to have eRecycler properly dispose of their old unwanted electronics.  TV’s cost $10 dollars regardless of type or size.  The fee for computer monitors is $5.  Other electronics are taken back at a cost of 10 cents per pound.   They will even take microwave ovens as long as they are clean. 

Americans discard an estimated 400 million pieces of e-waste annually.  The EPA estimates that 82% of all US consumer electronic waste goes either to domestic landfills or incinerators.  The other 18% are documented as recycled.  50-80% of the e-waste documented as recycled is really being exported and dumped in developing nations by "sham recyclers", or sent to U.S. prison systems.  In countries such as China, India and Nigeria, exported e-waste is dumped, burned, and processed under very crude conditions that result in toxic exposure to workers and communities.  Electronics contain heavy metals such as mercury and lead.  The average television contains 4-8 pounds of lead.  The fee that eRecycler charges goes to remediate these heavy metals from the electronics they collect so they don’t wind up back in the environment potentially poisoning ground water.  The plastics and other components of electronics contain brominated fire retardants (BFR) which are suspected to have negative health effects to humans and animals.

ERecyclers are a zero landfill company.  What this means is that the electronics that eRecycler collects are disassembled into their basic components.  Parts that can be reused are sent to vendors, other parts are sent to smelters in the U.S. unlike unscrupulous e-waste recyclers that export e-waste to China, India or developing countries where they are burned in open air fires that pollute the atmosphere and poison the people that work in, or live near them.

If you have a computer you need to dispose of eRecycler canv securly dispose of them to ensure any resident data on your hard-drive is wiped clean or rendered inaccessable.  They offer certified physical destruction of hard drives, floppy disks, CDs, and tapes. They also have shredders that will insure your information is safe and completely unrecoverable. Small lots of drives can be destroyed while you wait in most cases.