Established for over 30 years
Recycling 5,000 tonnes a year
Recovering over 99% of materials
Fully certified and complaint service
At our facility in Southend, we segregate and then process a variety of WEEE and metal-bearing products.
Specialising in complex electronic waste streams — from small consumer devices to large-scale critical infrastructure — Altech has developed advanced systems to recover the valuable resources embedded in WEEE. Our processing lines incorporate cutting-edge technology, including near-infrared (NIR) and AI-powered optical sorting in order to recycle previous generations of technology.
From these materials, we produce high-quality recycled commodities ready to be shipped to end users across the UK and Europe.
Typical materials produced:
Aluminium
Cast, Shredded, Granulated
Copper and Copper Concentrates
Shredded, Granulated
Brass, Zinc and Lead
and other Non-ferrous Metals
Ferrous Metals
Iron, Steel, Stainless Steel, Nickel Alloys
Circuit Boards
Containing Gold, Silver, Palladium, Platinum, Copper
Mixed Shredded Plastics
ABS, PC, POPs Fraction
Speciality Metals
Tungsten, Titanium, Tin/Lead, Silver-plated Metals)
Intelligent sorting
Upon arrival, all materials are assessed and categorised according to their physical composition (e.g. ferrous, non-ferrous, or plastic-based), material value (e.g. high-grade PCBs vs. low-grade), and hazardous characteristics, including the presence of persistent organic pollutants (POPs).
Targeted removal of hazardous components
Equipment containing hazardous elements—such as batteries, LCD screens, or capacitors with PCBs—is screened and subject to careful manual dismantling. Hazardous components are isolated for compliant disposal or treatment, while the remaining assemblies are redirected through our automated processing systems.
Automated shredding and precision separation
The majority of WEEE is processed through Altech’s automated shredding and separation systems. Material is reduced to a homogeneous particle size (typically <30mm, often as small as 15mm) and sorted into clean fractions using an advanced array of equipment including the latest in AI-powered optical sorting.
Clean, high-value output streams
Altech’s process achieves near-total material separation, generating high-purity outputs including:
- Aluminium and aluminium alloys
- Copper granules and concentrates
- Steel and stainless steel ferrous fractions
- Zinc and brass concentrates
- Mixed plastic polymers containing POPs
- Printed circuit boards (PCBs) in various grades
