Growth Opportunities in the US Single-Stream Recycling Material Recovery Facility (MRF) Equipment Market, Forecast to 2022

The US single-stream recycling material recovery facility (MRF) equipment market is in the midst of dramatic change. With the introduction of China’s National Sword policy, MRFs in the United States can no longer export the vast amount of recycling material the country produces each year. As a result, there is a technology-and-capabilities gap between advanced foreign facilities that would traditionally process our recycling bales and the domestic facilities that have not been designed to deliver a similar level of processing. This situation represents a boon to equipment and service providers, but a strong challenge to MRFs is that they have to determine when to invest and in what technologies for their specific plants. Some MRFs have taken a progressive stance and opted to invest in near-term upgrades, while others are adopting a wait-and-see approach should the final market landscape change further.

MRFs face a number of key challenges which include high levels of residential recycling contamination and film and plastic bag inclusion, balancing lower efficiency manual labor with high-cost processing equipment, and technology investments made redundant by the sudden change in processing requirements. On balance of various market drivers and restraints, however, there is inevitable investment ahead for MRFs. The conventional approach of relying on foreign processing is unlikely to recover and MRFs need to begin onshoring the activity. This provides opportunity for equipment manufacturers which seek to position themselves at the right time and with the right products to assist customers. Success, however, will depend on a number of factors including strategic business development teams that build strong customer relationships, being able to deliver a prescriptive service as a consultant to MRF operators, and advanced equipment that will deliver efficiency and optimization in coordination with legacy technologies.

This research services investigates the US single-stream MRF equipment market, which is segmented into three main revenue categories: conveyance, separation, and compaction. With an evaluation of the growth environment, and market revenue and forecast, the study further delivers visioning scenarios and a growth pipeline, which identifies opportunities in vision and strategy and in brand and demand. The leading stakeholders in the market, including key equipment manufacturers, regulators, and customers have contributed to this research. Data and primary research input have been aggregated and analyzed to determine key market opportunities over the forecast period (2018 to 2022). Construction and demolition activities are not included in this research service.

Author: Seth Cutler