Glass waste destined for landfill finds new use on oil rigs

DURING its usual business of spraying surfaces with industrial abrasives, local company Abraclean took a shine to Abrablast, a glass material from the United Kingdom. But finding the price point prickly, it decided to make its own version – and established Singapore’s first glass recycling facility to do so.

This was part of efforts to diversify and expand the company’s offerings, chairman Gurmit Singh and director Lau Kee Siong told The Business Times. Incorporated in 2017, Abraclean prepares industrial metal surfaces via abrasive blasting and coating.

Located in Tuas, Abraclean’s 2,000 square metre (sq m) glass recycling facility sits within its existing 16,000 sq m blasting yard. In a process licensed from the UK company, the facility cleans, crushes and sieves glass waste until it is fine enough to be used in blasting.