Axion International, a processor of railroad ties and other structural products from recycled plastic, says its first orders for the ties from South America are on its books. The company is not as yet revealing the name of the customer nor of the exact location where the ties will be used, only that it is in a major South American city.
We've been reporting on Axion for a long time, to include the use of its recycled plastics to build a bridge at Ft. Bragg across which tanks can drive. Last year two railroad bridges were dedicated in the U.S. that the company had made from 100% recycled post-consumer and post-industrial plastics. The processor, based in New Providence, NJ, uses technology developed at the state's Rutgers University to transform recycled consumer and industrial plastics into a myriad of structural products.
Now the company has on its order books the first order from outside the U.S. "We continue to see accelerated acceptance of our products in the international markets," stated Steve Silverman, Axion's president and CEO. "By utilizing our patented material, designed from 100% recycled plastic, this railway line (in South America) is expected to alleviate the strain on landfills by diverting 81,000 pounds of plastic waste, or the equivalent of 365,000 detergent bottles, into new uses. We look forward to meeting this transit line's future needs, as well as the needs of transit authorities throughout South America."
The railway line operator is purchasing various sizes of railroad ties from Axion, ranging from 9' - 20' in length. The longer ties or "switch sets" are utilized where multiple tracks come together or split apart. The composite plastic ties will replace wooden ties.
