From recycling centre to added value

EKOMAXX 800 tidies up at the Sonneberg waste management company

Lennart Stecher (ARJES sales representative), Florian Langbein (EWS technical manager) and Daniel Plösinger (EWS machine operator) seem visibly satisfied with the decision to purchase the EKOMAXX 800

Whether car, truck or agricultural tractor tyres – with the EKOMAXX 800 from ARJES, EWS can also pre-shred this cumbersome material perfectly

Around 80 % of the practical use of the EKOMAXX 800 involves the processing of class A1 to A3 waste wood

The asynchronous shredding of the ARJES paddle shafts makes it possible to process industrial waste and tyres in addition to waste wood

Entsorgungswirtschaft Sonneberg GmbH (EWS) has been a certified waste management company and a reliable partner in waste management for more than 40 years. Founded from the former Sonneberg public utility company, it was taken over by Georg Simon GmbH in the early 1990s and continued as an independent company. Today, EWS is established in southern Thuringia and northern Bavaria and offers municipal waste disposal, commercial and private container services as well as hazardous waste transport with around 35 employees at the Heubisch site.

Until now, the EWS has primarily served as a recycling centre and transfer point for various types of waste – from waste wood and scrap to commercial waste. However, the increasing demands of the market and the desire for greater efficiency led to a pioneering idea: to integrate a separate shredding plant for the numerous waste streams.

The idea was not new – Stefan Rittmann, Managing Director of Entsorgungswirtschaft Sonneberg GmbH, discovered the robust ARJES shredders at the IFAT trade fair in Munich a few years ago. Recommendations from industry colleagues and direct dialogue with satisfied customers strengthened trust in the ARJES brand. However, the decisive impetus came in 2022 with the master‘s thesis of Florian Langbein, the current Technical Director of EWS. He analysed the advantages of the ARJES shredder and set the project in motion. Florian and his team were particularly impressed by the improved disposal conditions for pre-shredded materials such as waste wood and the higher utilisation of transport capacity thanks to the reduction in volume. After intensive consultations with ARJES sales representative Lennart Stecher, the EKOMAXX 800 was chosen – a powerful, mobile solution that perfectly matched the requirements of EWS.

A practical demonstration on the EWS premises provided the final conviction. The EKOMAXX 800 proved its strengths directly on site – with the existing materials that needed to be shredded anyway. Florian Langbein was impressed by the uncomplicated set-up, the robust design and the enormous versatility of the twin-shaft shredder. The main arguments in favour of ARJES were ultimately the unbeatable price-performance ratio, the ease of operation, the mobility and the versatility of the machine.

The EKOMAXX 800 has been a permanent fixture on the company premises in Heubisch since December 2024. It mainly processes wood, waste and tyres, but the shredder is also used flexibly for smaller special jobs. The machine runs about 3 days a week – with an expected increase in spring and summer. Around 80 % of the machine‘s practical use is for processing waste wood in classes A1 to A3. Florian and his team are highly satisfied with their investment in the mobile shredding plant and plan to expand the use of the EKOMAXX 800 in the coming weeks.

EWS is currently well equipped with the EKOMAXX 800 to meet the requirements of the market. It remains to be seen what the coming years will bring – should demand increase, ARJES and personal contact Lennart Stecher will definitely remain the first port of call for further advice.