Plastic Waste Management and Recycling

This assignment delves into the critical issue of plastic waste management. It examines various strategies employed to reduce plastic waste, with a particular focus on recycling methods and their effectiveness. The analysis encompasses the economic viability of plastic recycling, the challenges associated with different types of plastic materials, and the environmental implications of both plastic production and disposal. Furthermore, the assignment explores the concept of a circular economy in relation to plastic waste, highlighting innovative approaches that aim to minimize waste generation and maximize resource utilization.

Running head: BUSINESS PLAN
Business Plan
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
Author note

1BUSINESS PLAN
Executive Summary
This particular business plan is based on the company plastic recyclers Australia which
reprocesses the scrap plastic materials into useful goods and products. The plan has begun with
the background of the scenario and it has taken into consideration the market analysis in terms of
industry and competition. The company believes in the mission of leading the population to a
sustainable future and they are very particular about it. In the course of this plan the primary
target market has been focused on along with the 4 Ps of marketing mix. Moreover the financial
plan has been attached along with the critical risk analysis.

2BUSINESS PLAN
Table of Contents
Background......................................................................................................................................3
Mission............................................................................................................................................3
Product offering...............................................................................................................................4
Market analysis................................................................................................................................4
a) Industry analysis...................................................................................................................5
b) Competition..........................................................................................................................6
Primary Target market.....................................................................................................................7
Marketing.........................................................................................................................................8
a) Product..................................................................................................................................9
b) Pricing.................................................................................................................................10
c) Distribution.........................................................................................................................10
d) Promotion...........................................................................................................................11
Financial plan.................................................................................................................................12
Critical risks...................................................................................................................................12
Bibliography..................................................................................................................................13
Appendix........................................................................................................................................16

3BUSINESS PLAN
Background
The business plan is based on recycling plastics by the popular company Plastic
Recyclers Australia PTY Ltd. This company has a sole system of making use of their service
with the implementation of state of the art technology. Through this business plan it will be a
great opportunity to reuse and recycle of most forms of plastic which otherwise would have been
dumped in the garbage. The idea of recycling plastic is not new and it has been implemented by
many companies in their activities. But with the new concept and technology used by plastic
retailers in Australia it will be an extraordinary step in the history of mankind and environment
(Jayasinghe & and Baillie, 2017).
The company has an internal system of sorting, mixing and developing the different
forms of plastic in order to create a large variety of environment friendly and sustainable quality
products. The specialty of these products is that they are manufactured in Australia itself and
have a warranty of 25 years. Such outstanding actions of this company make them different than
their competitors in the market. All kinds of plastic products are available in this company
ranging from solid recycled plastic or composite product. Recently the company has upgraded
their system with the introduction of Ultralast to paint the products as per requisite
(Chidambarampadmavathy et al., 2016).
Mission
Plastic Recyclers Australia was established in the year 1999 with the mission of finding a
commercial solution to the dumping of public waste and use those to create a recycled product

4BUSINESS PLAN
which otherwise would have polluted the environment. It is a private company that has several
stakeholders with the common form of interest in securing and preserving environment.
Product offering
Plastic Recyclers Australia excels in selling solid recycled plastics and composite
products which are brought directly from the factory to the customers. The company is unique in
comparison to other similar companies in market because all of their products are non- toxic and
they do not even leak. The products that this particular company offers are absolutely amazing
and they can be considered as safe substitute to CCA treated pine. Even the company takes pride
in creating 100% solid and recycled plastic products due to the tough appearance on the outer
side. Due to the strong and sturdy outer side it does not form a scratch like the soft and combined
inner side (Schmidt, 2016).
Because of the unique quality of product offered by the plastic recyclers such as bollards
and garden edging they are different from other companies in the same sector. The consumers
have the opportunity to buy products directly from them at the price of the factory which is very
reasonable. Therefore the plastic recyclers company has the most appropriate solution for any
projects pertaining to bollards, garden edging, retaining walls, posts, car park wheel stops and
stakes. It will be helpful for the customers to use these products as they are fire- proof, non-
toxic, fade and also resistant to scratches with a guarantee of 25 years for all products (Kalatzi et
al., 2015).

5BUSINESS PLAN
Market analysis
The major part of a business plan constitutes of the market analysis. In this particular
field two factors are determined, one expertise in the particular market and two, attractiveness of
that particular market from the economic point of view. A market analysis consists of both
qualitative and quantitative assessment of the market. This refers to the consideration of both
volume and value of the market size along with the purchasing behavior of the customers and
their segments, the competition involved in the market and also the economic environment with
respect to barriers to entry and the regulation (Anh et al., 2017).
Generally, for a business plan 6 factors are considered which are target market,
demographics and segmentation, market need, competition, regulation and barriers to entry. The
review of any recycling industry throws light on the fact that the specific industry has become
efficient and profitable than ever before. Due to the increase in the price of petroleum, plastic
recycling is of great value as it saves and conserves the natural environment and also helps in
decreasing the production costs. There is a great variety in the range of products which are
utilized in the form of recycled pulp from the post- consumer paper and cardboard. For the
plastic recyclers Australia two factors will be taken into consideration in terms of market
analysis and these are industry analysis and competition (McGain et al., 2015).
a) Industry analysis
A recycling plastic business such as plastic recyclers Australia includes a huge base of scrap
suppliers, shipping provisions, recycling plant and the buyers of the end product. The particular
company alongside other plastic recycling company desires to maintain a direct procurement
relation with the bigger suppliers in the market. It can be found out from the analysis that any

6BUSINESS PLAN
recycling plastic business such as plastic recyclers Australia need to have an incessant
availability of scrap plastic (Schmidt, 2014).
It can be affirmed from the industry analysis of the plastic recyclers in Australia that a macro
plastic recycling business cannot depend on the solo recycling plastic bags along with the
recycling plastic bottles in order to create a gain in the business. An overview of the industry of
the plastic recyclers has addressed the probable energy savings for the plastic recycling industry.
If the plastic recyclers Australia are able to assure a continuous large supply of the plastic scrap
where the buyers will provide a market price that is above the average (Sheriff et al., 2017).
Following are the points that can be taken into consideration-
 There is a necessity to be in contact with a number of plastic scrap buyers in order to get
hold of a pound and a ton of estimated scrap plastic.
 Provides an opportunity to act as the medium for those who have a comparatively small
recycling plastic supply business.
 Moreover, if a recycling campaign can be started in the local offices and educational
institutions then the recycling industry can be increased (Mohammed et al., 2017).
b) Competition
Plastics and the polymer products play a major role in contributing towards the total waste
generation of Australia. This is because they are incorporated in a different kind of materials in
all the plastic industries all over the world (Bajracharya et al., 2016). There are 7 categories of
plastics on the basis of the composition of materials used along with a number and the symbol as
given below-

7BUSINESS PLAN
Fig: codes for identifying plastic
Source: (Zaman, 2014)
Direct outflow of the reprocessed plastics is generally in the form of smooth flakes which
can be further reshaped in to the finished products. The finished products that are obtained in
such a way will fall into the same category as the input plastic but that might not always serve
the original purpose of the materials those are collected. The types of plastic are categorized as
the physical composition of the products in order to provide a better level of evaluation in the
market. The reason behind doing this is that there is more practicality in grouping the recycled
products from a broader point of view. But the truth is that the various types of the recycled
plastics actually serve the same purpose (Turner & Filella, 2017).
The dominating markets for the recycled plastic materials are explained below-
 Products- food and beverage containers; packaging film
 Competing products- virgin food packaging and film
 Clients- manufactures, packagers, intermediaries and suppliers of the plastic products
 Degree of competition- the special tools and equipments for the reprocessing of plastics
is not much of capital intensive but the relationship with the suppliers who are involved
in feed stock and end markets are very critical (Yaghoubi et al., 2016).

8BUSINESS PLAN
Primary Target market
For the plastic recyclers Australia there are 4 types of target audiences with whom they
need to communicate. The 4 groups are given below-
 Householders- they are the primary focus of communications
 Internal groups- the staff of the local government offices, other senior officers and the
elected members
 External groups- they do not come under the primary group such as the media,
community people, and other local authorities
 Partners and advocates- they are the groups of probable partners who help in
communicating the messages and these include the schools and community groups
(Kubicki et al., 2015)
All these groups mentioned above are important for the plastic recyclers and the waste
management program. It is important to identify the contribution of all of these groups in the
reduction and recycling of waste materials. In this way it will be determined whether the
communication needs programs will be achieved or not (Auxilio et al., 2017).
If all the householders are considered as the primary target market in this case then it is
important to collect information from them for describing the community. The necessary part is
that the community is made up of different sub-groups. With primary research on the waste
behavior the segments of recycling behavior can be identified on the basis of the factors that
motivate and influence the people in their waste behavior. The research will be useful if the
advantages and disadvantages of participation can be identified. For instance, there is rare chance

9BUSINESS PLAN
of a green dust bin being used by people living in highly dense areas of housing (Worm et al.,
2017).
Marketing
Plastics have always played an important role in the in the consumer and industrial
products and thereby bringing in outstanding challenges to the initiatives of recycling. Whenever
the plastics are sorted, immediately they are marketed to the different processors that make use
of the waste plastic into different kind of products. There are some plastics which can be
processed easily in comparison to the others leading to huge differences both in marketability
and the market price of each and every form of the scrap plastic. In most of the cases the waste
plastics are sold to those processors who excel in manufacturing the intermediate product which
can be further sold to another company and in this way the processed and reprocessed plastic can
be further used to create the finished product. The plastic is ultimately changed into a wide range
of products such as bottles or the fabrics in the t- shirts (Hedayati et al., 2014).
a) Product
Plastic Recyclers Australia has always been successful in selling solid recycled plastics and
composite products which are bought by the customers directly from the factory. The company is
exceptional in comparison to other same kind of companies in market because their products are
non- toxic and free from leakage. The products offered by this company are totally and they can
be considered as safe substitute to CCA treated pine. Even the company boasts of creating 100%
solid and recycled plastic products due to the strong and sturdy external appearance and because
of this fact it does not form a scratch like the soft and combined inner side (Bajracharya et al.,
2015).

10BUSINESS PLAN
Due to their special quality of product offered by the plastic recyclers such as bollards and
garden edging they are different from other companies of the similar industry. The consumers
have the opportunity to buy products directly from them at the price of the factory which is very
reasonable. That is the reason why the plastic recyclers company has the most appropriate
solution for any projects related to bollards, garden edging, retaining walls, posts, car park wheel
stops and stakes. It will also be of great help to the customers to use these products as they are
fire- proof, non- toxic, fade and also resistant to scratches with a guarantee of 25 years for all
products.
b) Pricing
For sustainable products price has always come as an issue and thus restricted the product’s
acceptance and growth in the market. The recycled products of plastic are more costly because
the reprocessed ingredients might cost more than the original resources. The high price is also
dependent on the cost of manufacturing and transportation. For instance, if the price of
transportation is high in exchange of a lower polluting renewable energy fuel then the price point
will be high. A price gap is thus created among the traditional products and the sustainable
products which are commonly known as the green pricing gap. In this way the products become
out of reach for those people who want to use the eco- friendly products but cannot afford to do
so. If the recycled and the reprocessed products are competitive with regard to price, product,
place and promotion then sustainability will be able to give that product a competitive edge
(Arulrajah et al., 2017).
c) Distribution
Distribution of the products will be such that it can be purchased from there and also
distributed to the location. For the recycled plastic products the place can either be a physical

11BUSINESS PLAN
store or internet for serving the purpose of e- commerce or rather, an e-tailer. There are certain
retailers with physical store outlets who stress on sustainability and therefore practicing more to
get hold of it. Moreover the consumers are also cautious about the environment and the emission
of poisonous materials. With the increase in the trend of practicing sustainability the retailers are
also getting associated more with the local community in comparison to the national and
international companies.
d) Promotion
Through the use of promotional tools the company keeps the people aware about the product
and markets them. It is the psychology of the human beings to keep the image of brand of a
product or service intact in their mind. In most of the cases the strong and positive brands should
have such a brand image that will create an affirmative impact on the people as well as on the
environment. For the recycled plastic products advertising, personal selling, public relations,
mobile marketing, social media, consumer and trade promotion and digital marketing are the key
promotional tools that can be used for propagating the sustainable products (Barraclough et al.,
2017).

12BUSINESS PLAN
Fig: Outdoor advertising
Source: As created by the author
Financial plan
Financial plan is the activity to identify the method in which a business will be able to
afford and attain the strategic goals and objectives of the company. In general the company
creates the financial plan as soon as the vision and the objectives are set for the company. it
consists of the important financial statements For the particular company plastic recyclers the
financial plan has been attached in the appendix part.

13BUSINESS PLAN
Critical risks
The risk analysis in the business plan focus on the fact that the probable risks are
calculated and the preventive measures are being taken care of beforehand. Below is the critical
risks given in the plastic recycling industry with special focus on plastic recyclers Australia.
Chances of occurrence Risk factor
Repetitive stress injuries High High
Traffic accidents Medium Medium
Noise Low low
Exposure High High
Electrical accidents Medium High

14BUSINESS PLAN
Bibliography
Anh, H.Q. et al., 2017. 5. Polybrominated diphenyl ethers in plastic products, indoor dust,
sediment and fish from informal e-waste recycling sites in Vietnam: a comprehensive assessment
of contamination, accumulation pattern, emissions, and human exposure. Environmental
geochemistry and health, 39(4), pp.935- 954.
Anon., n.d. Plastic Recyclers Australia. [Online] Available at: http://plasticrecyclers.com.au/
[Accessed 23 January 2018].
Arulrajah, A., Yaghoubi, E., Wong, Y.C. & Horpibulsuk, S., 2017. Recycled plastic granules and
demolition wastes as construction materials: Resilient moduli and strength characteristics..
Construction and Building Materials, 147, pp.639- 647.
Auxilio, A.R. et al., 2017. An experimental study on thermo-catalytic pyrolysis of plastic waste
using a continuous pyrolyser. Waste Management.
Bajracharya, R.M., Manalo, A.C., Karunasena, W. & Lau, K.T., 2015. Behaviour of new
building products from recycled-mixed plastic wastes. In Proceedings of the 12th Composites
Australia and CRC ACS 2015 Composites Conference. .
Bajracharya, R.M., Manalo, A.C., Karunasena, W. & Lau, K.T., 2016. Characterisation of
recycled mixed plastic solid wastes: Coupon and full-scale investigation.. Waste Management,
48, pp.72- 80.

15BUSINESS PLAN
Barraclough, K.A., Gleeson, A., Holt, S.G. & Agar, J.W., 2017. The Green Dialysis Survey:
Establishing a Baseline for Environmental Sustainability across Dialysis Facilities in Victoria,
Australia. Nephrology..
Chidambarampadmavathy, K., Karthikeyan, O.P. & Heimann, K., 2016. Sustainable bio-plastic
production through landfill methane recycling.. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews.
Hedayati, M., Iyer-Raniga, U. & Crossin, E., 2014. A greenhouse gas assessment of a stadium in
Australia.. Building Research & Information, 42(5), pp.602- 615.
Jayasinghe, R. & and Baillie, C., 2017. The University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA,
Australia.. Green Composites: Waste and Nature-based Materials for a Sustainable Future,
p.149.
Kalatzi, I.K., Nikellis, A.E., Menegaki, A.N. & Tsagarakis, K.P., 2015. The preferred bin colour
for recycling plastic bottles: evidence from a student's sample. Progress in Industrial Ecology,
an International Journal, 9(3), pp.256-68.
Kubicki, M.A., McGain, F., O'Shea, C.J. & Bates, S., 2015. Auditing an intensive care unit
recycling program. Critical Care and Resuscitation, 17(2), p.135.
McGain, F. et al., 2015. Auditing operating room recycling: a management case report. A&A
Case Reports.
Mohammed, M.I. et al., 2017. A low carbon footprint approach to the reconstitution of plastics
into 3D-printer filament for enhanced waste reduction.. KnE Engineering, 2(2), pp.234-41.
Schmidt, A.T., 2014. Time to stem the never-ending tide of non-recyclable plastic film. Waste+
Water Management Australia, 41(2), p.4.

16BUSINESS PLAN
Schmidt, A.T., 2016. Drowning in a sea of non-recyclable plastic film.. Waste+ Water
Management Australia, 42(6), p.2.
Sheriff, K.M., Subramanian, N., Rahman, S. & Jayaram, J., 2017. Integrated optimization model
and methodology for plastics recycling: Indian empirical evidence.. Journal of Cleaner
Production, 153, pp.707- 717.
Turner, A. & Filella, M., 2017. Bromine in plastic consumer products–Evidence for the
widespread recycling of electronic waste. Science of The Total Environment, 601, pp.374- 379.
Worm, B. et al., 2017. Plastic as a persistent marine pollutant. Annual Review of Environment
and Resources, 42, pp.1- 26.
Yaghoubi, E., Arulrajah, A., Wong, Y.C. & Horpibulsuk, S., 2016. Stiffness Properties of
Recycled Concrete Aggregate with Polyethylene Plastic Granules in Unbound Pavement
Applications. Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering, 29(4), p.04016271.
Zaman, A.U., 2014. Measuring waste management performance using the ‘Zero Waste Index’:
the case of Adelaide, Australia.. Journal of cleaner production, 66, pp.407- 419.

17BUSINESS PLAN
Appendix
Particulars Amount Residual
Value
Non-Current Assets:
Property,Plant & Equipment 15000 4500
Furniture & Fittings 2000 300
Motor Vehicle 3000 1200
Preliminary Expenses:
Business Registration 1000
License Fees 10000
Deposit for Electricity 20000 20000
Deposit for Telephone & Internet 5000 5000
Recruitment Cost 19750
Share Issuance Cost 3500
Bond Issuance Cost 20000
Other Miscellaneous Expenses 750
TOTAL START UP COST 100000