Machine bales springs, Richard Tsong-Taatarii, Star Tribune
PPL Industries’ Second Chance Mattress Recycling program simultaneously reduces demand on landfills while creating jobs for those who need it most. The project will create up to 30 jobs for men and women outside of the economic mainstream who disassemble mattresses including the numerous commodities to be baled and sold for reuse in other product manufacturing. This process includes the dismantling of box springs which, traditionally, cannot be compressed and end up in landfills where they float to the top as other trash decomposes.
Working in partnership with Hennepin County, the PPL facility can handle approximately 40,000 mattresses per year, a number that is expected to rise as efficiency improvements are made. Mattress components that are recycled include:
- Metal springs can be baled and the steel reused.
- Polyurethane foam can be shredded and used as insulation.
- Wood can be processed and used for fuel or mulch.
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