Era Announces Results Of First Phase Of Recycling Research Project

The EPDM Roofing Association (ERA) has announced the completion of the first phase of its project to research the possible recycling of EPDM single-ply roofing materials. In the project, conducted jointly by Firestone Building Products Company and Carlisle SynTec Inc., results indicate that it is logistically viable to remove EPDM from a roof and create a product from the recycled membrane.

By the end of 2007, nearly one million feet of EPDM will have been located, removed, transported, ground and re-used. The material was removed from roofs with loose-laid membranes covered by ballast or mechanically-fastened systems. Recycled material from both Firestone and Carlisle has been used to make walkway pads for new or existing roofs.

“This project has generated the type of positive results we were seeking when we initiated it,” said Mike DuCharme, director of product marketing for Carlisle SynTec, and chairman of ERA’s board of directors. “While there is still work to be done, we believe that we have developed a viable system for removing and reusing much of the EPDM membrane that will be ready for replacement in the coming years.”
The next phase of the project will focus on expanding the geographic range from which material will be gathered, adding other grinders, determining the amount of material that will be available on an ongoing basis and creating a likely cost structure.

“Given the widespread use of EPDM over the past 40 years, we recognize that a significant amount of membrane could end up in a recycling pipeline,” said Jim Jannasch, EPDM product manager for Firestone Building Products Company and a member of ERA’s Technical Committee. “We therefore need to determine what steps need to be taken to make sure the recycling effort fits the economic and logistic standards of contractors and building owners.”

In order to more swiftly offer this recycling benefit throughout the country, ERA requests that companies that are grinders or those that would have a use for rubber that has been ground to contact ERA offices at (301) 654-5090 or