Komptech

Established in 1966, Benedict Group is a family owned and operated company that has grown from a small haulage contractor into one of the largest producers and resellers of quarried, recycled and landscape products in New South Wales. Benedict is still growing today, consistently meeting greater Sydney’s needs for civil, construction, landscaping and recycled products, while fast becoming an industry leader in recycling and resource recovery.

According to Brett Jarvis, Benedict Group Operations Manager, the company takes pride in its high rates of resource recovery, production and supply, and delivery of quality quarried and recycled materials to the community through innovative and environmentally responsible solutions. Benedict’s products have been utilised in some of Sydney’s major projects, such as the Baragaroo Development, West Connex M4 widening, M2 upgrade, North Connex and Sydney Olympic Park.

While the company has traditionally been involved in quarrying and C&D recycling, recycling timber has increased in recent years. Recycled timber received at Benedict recycling facilities is processed and recycled into landscaping materials, with some 65,000 cubic metres of recycled timber transformed into landscape mulches every year.

To provide its high-quality products and services, Benedict is committed to utilising the best available processing technologies. As such, the company owns and operates a Komptech Crambo shredder, purchased through Australia’s exclusive Komptech distributor CEA. Komptech CEA is a leading technology supplier of machinery and systems for the mechanical and mechanical-biological treatment of solid waste and the treatment of biomass as a renewable energy source. The Komptech product range includes over 30 different types of machines that cover all key process steps in modern waste handling – shredding, separation and biological treatment. Komptech CEA, which is part of the CFC Group of Companies, is committed to providing innovative technology and solutions that ensure maximum customer benefit. All products and services meet the highest levels of precision and quality to withstand the demands and rigour of daily use, while providing customers with the advantages they are looking for, and have come to depend on.

Benedict’s Crambo shredder operates at its Menangle facility south of Sydney, where it is used to facilitate the recycling of timber pallets into mulch. “We purchased the Crambo new in 2010 and it’s been a wonderful machine,” Jarvis says. “It hasn’t had an easy life. It has had a lot thrown at it, but it has endured incredibly well. It’s a well-built, good, strong, reliable machine.”

Komptech Crambo dual-shaft shredders are designed for shredding all types of wood and green waste. The machines feature two slow-running drums with shredding tools to minimise fine particle and noise and dust emissions. The design of the Crambo enables easy adjustment of the output particle size, with operators able to exchange the screen basket to suit specifications. When shredding wood waste, the Crambo’s wear-resistant surface hardened teeth provide a high-level of resistance to contraries.

In addition to the Crambo, Benedict operates a Komptech Terminator – a slow, single-shaft shredder for all types of waste. Robust teeth on the shredding drum and the opposing counter comb give coarse pre-crushing to a defined shredding size. Jarvis explains that the Terminator runs at Benedict’s Chipping Norton Recycling Centre, where it is used for C&D waste shredding. The shredder’s continuous cutting gap adjustment allows precise setting of the particle size for subsequent process steps. Additionally, the hydraulic drive with load-dependent speed control ensures maximum utilisation of the engine output, which is critical when managing heavy duty C&D. Jarvis says the decision to purchase the Terminator was based on his experience with the Crambo, and the high level of support offered by Komptech CEA’s National Sales Manager Craig Cosgrove. “I’ve been working with Craig for years, and no matter what the issue is, he’s just a phone call away. He really cares about his customers,” Jarvis says.

This article was originally published in the February 2021 edition of Waste Management Review click here