That takes a lot of bottle
Sep 26 2007 by Tony Henderson, The Journal
AN inventive new Tyneside company has grand designs on a mass of plastic waste – much of which ends up in landfill sites.
Codha Design has been set up by Richard Liddle and employs a special process which turns milk containers and other plastic packaging into stylish products.
Based at the Design Works in Felling, Gateshead, Richard’s company is now selling its lines in London and the United States, and will be sending its first consignment to Denmark in the next few weeks.
After gaining a design degree, Richard took an MA in design at Northumbria University, then a Master of Philosophy course for two years which involved research into how design could provide an answer to recycling and transforming plastic rubbish.
He also took a business course at Durham University before establishing his company.
The result is a process in which the plastic waste is shredded and heated to produce a spaghetti-like molten material which is worked while hot and turned into products such as furniture.
And people will be given the chance to join in when Richard sets up temporary shop with Codha colleagues Ben Calland from Cramlington and Robbie Maughan of Whitley Bay at the former fire station in Pilgrim street, Newcastle, from October 20-28.
People are being asked to bring their washed plastic waste containers, which will be processed on the spot into products such as Codha’s RD (Roughly Drawn) chair.
The event is part of a festival which will mark the end of the year-long Dott 07 (Design of the times 2007) programme.
The RD chair costs £275 in London but, depending on the amount of waste brought in by the public, around one in four of the chairs will be given away. Schools are also collecting plastic waste for the project and will receive free products.
The plastic must be HDPE (high density polyurethane), the type used for milk cartons, and which will have a number 2 stamped on the container.
Richard, originally from Spennymoor in County Durham and who now lives in Heaton, Newcastle, said: “Instead of industrial recycling which involves transporting material across the country, I wanted to investigate small scale processes which would transform used material.
“Our process results in 100% recycled functional items which help tackle the UK’s recycling and waste problems, and which themselves can be recycled again and again.”
Because energy has already been used to make the containers, it means that Richard’s process saves power compared with making virgin plastic, and also uses no bondings or fixings.
“HDPE makes up half of the packaging waste in the UK. Waste plastic is seen as having no use but we hope the fire station event will show people that is can be endlessly re-used,” said Richard.
The event will also be used to launch Codha’s new lighting products range.
The company has just taken out a worldwide patent on a lighting system which seeks to tackle the limitations of wired systems by using a LED-lit glass panel that can be moved around a building.
