1. GREENPET
Closed cycle collection and recycling system based
on thermoelectric compression of PET bottles
Project for the Think Beyond Plastic competition
Official Contact: Lajos Simon, CEO, lajossimon@budafilter.hu
Contact: Peter Kenedi, co-owner, kenedip@t-online.hu +36 (30) 948-2343
http://english.tepet.net/ Mezőfalva, Hungary
„Waste is a valuable raw material”

2. The Problem to be Solved
The emission of PET bottles continues to grow,
which is a serious ecological risk as the efficient
collection and recycling of the plastic bottles are
still unsolved. The garbage islands on the oceans
and in the forests and fields are mainly made of
PET bottles, causing irreparable environmental
pollution.
In case of the current collection systems, the PET
bottles are contaminated and their transportation
is expensive, thus the recycling ratio is far below
the desired and possible level. However, the clean
PET bottle that is not mixed with other kinds of
waste is a valuable raw material (or it could be).

3. The Solution is: GREENPET (1)
A recycling system that is based on the compressing and isolated
collection of PET bottles
The PET bottles shall not be mixed with garbage. It can be ensured, on one hand, by
the thermo-electric PET bottle compressing device that shrinks the empty PET bottle to
1/12th of its original size, thus making the waste management convenient for the
households.
On the other hand, to increase the attractiveness of the selective collection, a return fee
shall be paid for the compressed bottles, or a deposit system shall be introduced.
The compressed bottles are then delivered to a recycling plant by inverse logistics (the
addressee pays the delivery fee), where after color sorting, grinding and washing, the
​
highest value-added products are made from them. This method reduces the CO2
emission to half compared to the conventional selective collection (considering the fact
that the compression uses some electrical energy), and the delivery cost is much lower.
The recycled products are priced very good, and the system itself can utilize a
significant portion of it: new PET bottles can be produced (thanks to the closed cycle
collection), and other good quality products can be manufactured, including the plastic
housing of the household compressing device.

4. The Solution is: GREENPET (2)
 Beyond the household devices, automated machines can be
operated in public places (shops, post offices, schools, etc.) They
can either collect the compressed bottles, and provide the customer
with a receipt against which the return fee (or deposit) can be paid, or
can make the compression itself of the bottles got empty off home.
 If a deposit system is in place, the automated machines recognize the
bottles by their shape, of by an RFID stamp embedded around the
neck of the bottle.
 With this system virtually all emitted PET bottles can be collected and
returned to recycle, with an efficient and cost saving method and
without damaging the environment.

5. How does GREENPET make money?
 The sister company of Budafilter'94 Ltd. – which is dealing with the
GREENPET underpinning research since 2002 – will manufacture
and distribute the new generation of the household compressing
devices and the automated machines. This, or another new sister
company collects the compressed PET bottles, arranges the
transportation (e.g. by inverse logistics of the Post office), pays the
return fees (or deposit) to the customers, and sells the compressed
bottles to the parent company for recycling.
 The compressing devices are to be sold to households. The
automated machines will not be commercially available, but instead a
GREENPET-based franchise system will be placed on community
spaces.

6. How does GREENPET Work?
Compressing in Collecting points:
households
- Take over the bottles
-Sell the household devices
Return
-Operate the automated
fee, or machines
Budafilter’94
Off home Deposit
Ltd.
collecting places:
Process the color
– supermarkets selected
– municipalities compressed PET
– schools bottles and sells
– post offices the recycled
– other community products
places worldwide
(Postal) inverse logistics

7. The marketing and sales strategy of
GREENPET
 Beyond the usual commercial channels, the household appliances can be sold through post offices,
municipalities and schools. It is also possible to provide the devices against a deposit to
households that agree to return 1,000 compressed bottles per year through 3 years to GREENPET.
 This Hungarian model – if successful – can be implemented in the US. The „American business"
consists of three distinct parts:
 GREENPET (or a new local sister company) would do the sales of the household devices. The
manufacturing would remain in Hungary, but if the sales volume justifies, establishment of a
new local factory is possible, too. The automated machines would also be manufactured by
Budafilter’94 Ltd., but licensing to an American manufacturer is an option, too.
 A local logistics company (or even the Post Office) would conduct the entire collection,
including the operation of the automated machines.
 One or more local plastic manufacturers would buy the compressed bottles as raw material. It
can produce similar products and uses the know-how of Budafilter'94 Ltd (housing of the
device, special filters, strapping tape, etc.) against a license fee, or can manufacture anything
else, including new PET bottles.

8. The competitors of GREENPET
Competitor is all communal waste management system, company and
technology, but they all lack the 2 key points:
The compression technology (the patent of Budafilter’94 Ltd.), that ensures
double compression ratio compared to any other known method. It means
much lower transportation cost (i.e. others carry at least twice as much air
along with the „payload”), easier handling and storage. Also, the compression
by electrical heat is permanent (keeps the compressed shape), while others,
like the „cold” mechanical compression, are not.
The closed cycle collection ensures high purity raw material (PET), which is
the basis of good quality recycled products. It can not only used by the food
industry (unlike others where PET bottles are mixed with plastics of non-food
origin or even garbage), but avoid the „pollution” of PVC, which, if present in
more than a few percentages, dramatically decreases the quality.

9. The GREENPET
team
 Budafilter’94
Ltd is going to reshape
one of its sister companies for the
Think Beyond Plastic competition.
The managing director and majority
owner of Budafilter’94 is Lajos Simon,
who is the owner of the related
patents.
 The investors include an IT specialist,
a waste management company and a
public venture capital firm.
 The strategic advisor is a professor in
the Budapest Corvinus University.

10. Financials of GREENPET
GREENPET revenue (in thUSD) 2012 2016 2019
Collection (ThermoPress Hungary Ltd.)
collected compressed bottles (tons) 150 1 300 2 500
revenue from sales of compressed bottles 45 390 750
number of household devices in use (pcs) 20 000 200 000 400 000
revenue from sales of household devices 800 8 000 16 000
number of automated machines in use (pcs) 0 400 700
break-even volume of collection (tons) 500
Recycle (Budafilter'94 Ltd.)
sales of recycled products (tons) 140 1 200 2 400
revenue from sales of recycled products 280 3 600 7 200
Investment (between the actual and the previous
period)
collection 1 000 500
recycling 2 800 700 1 000
Investments Total 2 800 1 700 1 500
owners / from profit 700 100 1 000
private investors 1 300 0 0
state subsidy 500 200 0
public venture capital 300 400 0
bank loan 0 1 000 500

11. Sustainability of GREENPET
The system itself guarantees the ecological
stability. It turns a polluting activitiy into a
profitable, self-sustaining, socially beneficial
one, and creates a 'quasi' ecosystem while
remains comfortable for the customers.

12. The current status of GREENPET
 The sister company of Budafilter’94 was able to collect 100-150 tons of compressed
PET bottles per year so far, with using previous generation, less efficient household
devices and without automated machines in public places.
 The recent commissioning of its new 1200 tons capacity recycling plant proved that the
conventionally collected, baled PET material can only be re-used at very low efficiency.
This induced a strong focus of the GREENPET concept.
 The company therefore started to develop a new, improved and less expensive
household device and the automated machines for public places, and is introducing
collecting partnerships with supermarkets, post offices, schools and municipalities in
order to provide sufficient raw material feed for its processing plant.
 Though the development of the new products is not yet 100% ready, the „Hungarian
model” is working and does not require further investment.
 If we win the First Prize, we’d use it implement the system in the US, starting with the
sales of the household devices, and continue with the other related elements (logistics,
partnerships for the collection, etc.).