Source One Plastics GmbH, a joint venture between 23 Oaks Investments and LyondellBasell, is expanding its service portfolio to include the optical sorting of rigid plastics for mechanical recycling. To this end, it brought two sorting machines from Meyer Deutschland GmbH into operation on 1 July 2025. The flake sorters are designed to sort 15,000 tons of processed post-consumer waste annually by color and polymer type. With this move, Source One Plastics is responding to the growing demand for plastic recyclates across Europe.
After about one year of regular operation of the dry mechanical sorting and recycling plant, Source One Plastics is opening a flake sorting area for contract sorting at the Eicklingen site. 'More and more companies aim to use recyclates in their plastics production,' says Kai Hoyer, Managing Director of Source One Plastics. ‘We support this sustainable goal and are creating capacities to make recycled monofractions available.’
Optical technology and AI: precise determination of material properties
In its new flake sorter area, Source One Plastics processes heterogeneous post-consumer plastics using state-of-the-art camera technology. The sorting of rigid plastics is preceded by a shredding and cutting process. Ferrous metals are removed from the polymer particles, which are then fed to the flake sorters of the ‘CG Max’ and ‘CI8’ models in a size of ten millimetres. Optical differentiation according to colour and polymer composition is achieved using near-infrared signals and spectral or In-Ga-As cameras. They determine the size, colour, shape and density of the flakes. The target material is then ejected using air pressure. This allows the post-consumer plastics to be separated by type in multiple passes. The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) ensures continuous optimisation of the sorting results and therefore constant refinement of the products.
Meyer Deutschland: optical sorting solutions from the 23 Oaks portfolio
With the flake sorters from Meyer Deutschland, Source One Plastics operates sorting solutions from the 23 Oaks family. Kai Hoyer founded Meyer Deutschland GmbH in fall 2024 as a joint venture involving 23 Oaks Investments and Meyer Europe s.r.o., and began operations as managing partner in Eicklingen on 1 May 2025. In addition to contract sorting services, Source One Plastics processes the by-products of its own agglomeration into new high-quality products using the modern flake sorter. The ultimate goal is to return as much plastic as possible to the circular economy.
After about one year of regular operation of the dry mechanical sorting and recycling plant, Source One Plastics is opening a flake sorting area for contract sorting at the Eicklingen site. 'More and more companies aim to use recyclates in their plastics production,' says Kai Hoyer, Managing Director of Source One Plastics. ‘We support this sustainable goal and are creating capacities to make recycled monofractions available.’
Optical technology and AI: precise determination of material properties
In its new flake sorter area, Source One Plastics processes heterogeneous post-consumer plastics using state-of-the-art camera technology. The sorting of rigid plastics is preceded by a shredding and cutting process. Ferrous metals are removed from the polymer particles, which are then fed to the flake sorters of the ‘CG Max’ and ‘CI8’ models in a size of ten millimetres. Optical differentiation according to colour and polymer composition is achieved using near-infrared signals and spectral or In-Ga-As cameras. They determine the size, colour, shape and density of the flakes. The target material is then ejected using air pressure. This allows the post-consumer plastics to be separated by type in multiple passes. The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) ensures continuous optimisation of the sorting results and therefore constant refinement of the products.
Meyer Deutschland: optical sorting solutions from the 23 Oaks portfolio
With the flake sorters from Meyer Deutschland, Source One Plastics operates sorting solutions from the 23 Oaks family. Kai Hoyer founded Meyer Deutschland GmbH in fall 2024 as a joint venture involving 23 Oaks Investments and Meyer Europe s.r.o., and began operations as managing partner in Eicklingen on 1 May 2025. In addition to contract sorting services, Source One Plastics processes the by-products of its own agglomeration into new high-quality products using the modern flake sorter. The ultimate goal is to return as much plastic as possible to the circular economy.
