Let’s talk about Corflute election signs!
Would you believe that there are around 15,000 searches for “corflute” every month? People are talking about Corflute®! It’s become a household name like how “Kleenex®” is used for tissues, and Perspex® for acrylic sheet.
Each political election, Corflute online searches go through the roof! People search; “how recyclable is Corflute”, “where to dispose of Corflute signs and placards”, “where can I recycle my Corflutes’? (yep, people describe their campaign signs as Corflutes’!) and “how can you reuse Corflute signage”. The list goes on. Just Google it!
But today it’s time to take a few steps back to consider what Corflute is and where Corflute comes from before it becomes a sign, and facts to help you make environmentally sustainable decisions when purchasing your Corflute election signs.
Is all corflute, Corflute®?
Well, no actually it’s not. There is only one genuine Corflute®, and it’s made in Australia by Victorian manufacturer, Corex. Like Kleenex is to tissues, Corflute is to ‘plastic twin-wall fluted sheet’. Everyone just calls it all Corflute!
People understand that not all cardboard is made in the same factory. Some is made locally in Australia, but a lot more is made overseas and freighted here. Cardboard is a commodity packaging material and very price sensitive due to the growing costs of raw materials, energy consumption, and freight and warehousing.
Corflute is not dissimilar; it’s just got a catchier trademarked name! Alot of ‘corflute-like’ sheet (corrugated plastic) is made all over the world. Corflute-like sheets are imported to Australia from nearby Southeast Asian countries. They are cost effective and can be of a seemingly good quality.
However, imported corflute-like material is not the most sustainable option. Consider overseas freight costs, carbon emissions, and recycling at the end of life.
The only Corflute® election signage which is guaranteed to be offered free recycling by Corex Recycling and reuse at end of life is genuine Corflute® made by Corex in Australia.
What is Genuine Corflute®?
Genuine Corflute® is an Australian made plastic sheet with endless uses. Its most common applications can be seen in signage products, bulk handling products, material protection, boxes and containers, and in horticultural applications such as tree guards.
Corflute® was first trademarked in 1970. Corflute is a twin wall profile polypropylene (PP) sheet defined by a series of ‘flutes’, hence the name ‘Cor’ from the company name ‘Corex’ and ‘flute’ from the long flute shaped profile extrusion. Corflute® is a proprietary product manufactured exclusively by Corex Australia.
Genuine Corflute® by Corex is reusable, lightweight, versatile, printable, durable, waterproof and only genuine Corflute® is recyclable through our own closed-loop recycling facility.
Everything sent back to Corex for recycling has a reuse within our product range. All Corex products contain between 10 and 50% recycled materials on average, with some products containing 100% recycled materials.
Why Corflute can become landfill.
What makes a Corflute election sign landfill (rubbish) instead of recyclable and reusable?
Every day we receive phone calls and emails about recycling Corflute election signs. We would love to be able to recycle absolutely every Corflute sign, but the sign must be ‘contaminant free’.
At Corex Recycling, we refer to a ‘contaminant’ as the presence of materials or a substance other than Corflute®.
We need your Corflute® Signs to be free of contaminants so that we can; shred, melt and make recycled pellets from it which enables us to make products for tomorrow.
Your Corflute® election sign may have no contaminants. If your graphics have been printed directly to the Corflute® and there are no eyelets, you probably have a contaminant free sign.
Election signage doesn’t need protective PVC film over the surface or eyelets to protect the holes that allow it to be secured to a fence. People tend to use these extra elements when a sign is being used for longer than 6 months.
Remember, using eyelets and PVC laminates makes recycling and reuse impossible at Corex Recycling.
Learn more about what contaminants look like and how to remove them.
Steps to make Corflute recyclable.
Steps to make Corflute® election signs that are recyclable and reusable in our circular economy. It’s quite simple to ensure your Corflute® election signs are recyclable.
- Purchase genuine Corflute® made by Corex. You can purchase directly from us or from one of our distributors or printing partners.
- Tell your distributor or printer that you want to use genuine Corflute®.
- Ask them to use the “Corex Certified” branding when they print your campaign messaging to endorse warranty on recovery.
- Proudly display message, ‘I’m Genuine Corflute® made in Australia by Corex. Return for reuse in our circular economy’.
- Don’t use metal eyelets. Ask for contaminant free “integral eyelets”.
- Don’t use PVC laminates, paper, or tapes.
- Use cable ties to attach to fences and discard when removing the sign.
- Gather contaminant free Corflute® signs into compact stockpiles.
- Fill out the online Corflute Recycling Form here Plastic Recycling Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane | Corex Recycling
- The Corex CX team will come back to you within 48 hours. If you have not heard back, please email hello@corex.com.au
Recycling of non-genuine Corflute®
Can I recycle any Corflute, even the imported ‘corflute-like’ material at Corex Recycling?
We believe that polymers can be of great benefit to society when used responsibly.
Corflute® is made from the polymer, polypropylene which can be recycled infinitely. When applied in a circular economy model, the use of polypropylene reduces strain on natural resources and creates greater supply chain efficiency. All materials we receive on site for recycling must have a reuse within Corex.
Corex is committed to recycling genuine Corflute® and PROMEG® products that have reached the end of their lives. That’s our offer to our customers and our commitment to working in a true circular economy.
When we have capacity and material requirements, we are happy to take in other PP materials even if they come from other origins. However, due to the mass imbalance in recycling of overseas purchased materials, we have had to make a change to our Corflute Recycling program which is at the heart of Corex.
Our goal has always been to help everyone with their recycling, but unfortunately, we are unable to recycle materials that we simply do not have a reuse for at Corex. Therefore, currently we are only taking back genuine Corflute®.
Follow steps in section 4 to guarantee your Corflute® is genuine and contaminant free, making it 100% recyclable at Corex Recycling at the end of the election.
Reach out to the team for more information hello@corex.com.au
In Conclusion
Now you know the facts about where Corflute comes from before it becomes a sign.
Please consider that local manufacturing extends beyond the printing and fabrication of a Corflute election sign. Make your Corflute sign from genuine Corflute® made by Corex Australia so that it can be recycled through a closed-loop recycling facility.
Get in touch with us today hello@corex.com.au
2022 Australian Federal Election – Corflute® Election Signage Recycling
Although it’s difficult to determine how much Corflute® signage was brought back specifically for election advertising in 2022, during this 12-month period, Corex Recycling received around 230-250 tonnes of Corflute from printers, and retired signs from the field.
Case Study: Monique Ryan Campaign Signage Recycling
Before the 2022 Australian Federal Election campaign, the office of Independent Member for Kooyong Monique Ryan reached out to Corex Recycling to see how we might be able to reuse their Corflute® election signs post-election.
Their team worked vigilantly to recover signage and remove contaminants before returning them to us for recycling. Their recovered material represented around 2000kg of material, which we reused at Corex Plastics to make post-consumer recycled Corflute® sheet.
Using recycled polypropylene pellets in our production of Corflute® equates to an 80% reduction in carbon emissions over that of equivalent virgin(new) product.
About Corex
Corex is a unique Australian closed loop business with polypropylene sheet extrusion, fabrication, and recycling all on one site.
Corex together with Megara, have created a specialist range of products and services including polymer engineering, industrial design, printing, and fabrication so that we can offer a one-stop-shop to marketers, campaign managers, and signage producers.
Everything that we make is made to order so that can produce things to your exact specifications.
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