WRAP Quality Protocol
What is WRAP?
WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme) helps individuals, businesses and the public sector to reduce waste and recycle more, making better use of resources and helping to tackle climate change.
WRAP publish the Quality protocol that allows Tarmac as a recycled aggregate manufacturer to document systems and prove the conversion of waste into product against a material specification for example: Type 1 sub-base in line with the Specification for Highway Works 800 series.
Tarmac as a recycled aggregates producer has a responsibility to handle waste in line with Waste Regulations, to demonstrate recovery and to operate to a Quality Management Scheme complying with the WRAP aggregates Quality Protocol.
How does the process work?
There are three main sections of the process loop, firstly materials are sourced and the waste acceptance criteria applied. It should be noted that only inert waste is allowed to be recycled, hazardous materials are rejected.
In addition there are three identifiers ensure the Environment Agency will be satisfied that the waste has ceased to be waste and has been converted to product:
1. No risk to human health or the environment from use of the material
2. Has it been fully recovered in line with an established standard?
3. Does the material have certainty of use?
Once the waste has been accepted it is weighed and categorised and allocated to a stockpile under production control; systems with the feed stocks separated by type.
The materials are then fed into the crushing /screening process and foreign materials such as metal or wood removed, the screened materials are then transferred to product stockpiles prior to dispatch.
The final element of the process is a robust and planned testing regime to confirm compliance to the product specification. The testing regime for recycled aggregates is identical to that of primary aggregates.
This is done through a quality management system defining:
- Waste acceptance systems
- Defined production process
- Defines products
- Products management system (e.g. labelled stockpiles, no contaminations, segregation, etc)
- Sampling and testing plan
- Records of test results
- Detailed delivery tickets
To ensure consistency of products to the WRAP quality Protocol all producers must:
- Control production in a standard manner
- Test materials with standard methods
- Report results in a standard format
This ensures customers can compare one producer's output against another to determine an aggregate's suitability for purpose as defined in a Specification
A specification defines the performance characteristics required by a customer to ensure an aggregate is suitable for an engineering application e.g.
- Specified Grading: ability to compact/drain
- Specified Particle strength: resistance to abrasion/degradation relative to intended application
- Specified Resistance to freezing and thawing: to prevent movement and deterioration through temperature change
- Producers provide their standard data to demonstrate compliance to the needs of a Specification
The WRAP Quality Protocol gives the following benefits
For the User/purchaser;
- Certainty of using a product, not a waste
- Quality system to ensure it meets standards and specifications
- Good quality aggregate at competitive price
- Good for environmental credentials
For Tarmac as a recycled aggregate producer;
- Structured quality control regime, in line with standards and required by specifications
- No more regulatory controls on product (= recovered waste)
- Competitive with virgin aggregates
Non Quality Protocol compliant aggregates are likely to be waste and may contain hazardous waste such as asbestos.
Tarmac's recycling operations use a "Quality Management System" conforming to the requirements of both the WRAP Quality Protocol and BS EN ISO 9000:2008 that also incorporates all the requirements of the Quality Protocol and Factory Production Control required by BS EN 13285.
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