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Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 10:50:32


Post by: Drakheart


Not sure on the logistics of getting this to work, but if it is a sustainable practice I'm all for it:

https://chng.it/Pg8LmGspv6



Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 11:05:22


Post by: Mad Doc Grotsnik


Thing is….I put mine in my recycling bin, which is collected for me.

However, I’m not sure the plastic can be recycled into new miniatures? I don’t one way or the other, but there’s something in the back of my head that the recycling process results in a lower grade plastic?



Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 11:09:48


Post by: H.B.M.C.


Yeah I just recycle mine myself.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 11:10:21


Post by: Ahtman


I throw them at ducks in the pond. I'm sure it will work itself out.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 11:14:11


Post by: Mad Doc Grotsnik


Central recycling just doesn’t make financial sense for GW, or environmental sense overall.

Getting the sprues back involves transportation, and in the U.K. that most likely means by road.

Not only would GW need to do free postage, footing the bill themselves, but they also have to pay for commercial waste.

Us mooks have our bins collected, funded by our Council Tax.

It’s a noble ideal, but just not necessary nor practical.

I’d imagine things will of course vary country to country though.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 11:21:13


Post by: Clockpunk


I've had empty sprues deliberately left on top of my plastic recyling bin after collection from my council... simply refused to take them.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 11:24:21


Post by: lord_blackfang


Again?


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 11:30:22


Post by: warboss


GW could recycle them as the next Barnes and Noble boxed game with a low priced easy to assemble starter force of spruecrons.



Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 11:31:07


Post by: Mentlegen324


The logistics of it - packaging, transporting etc - to get it back to GW would probably outweigh the "benefits" of doing it in the first place, ESPECIALLY when you're asking for them to be sent to them worldwide

They don't have the capacity or infrastructure to handle it. They set up some recycling stuff as mentioned in their latest report but there's from what I've read elsewhere the type of plastic used complicates things and it certainly isn't as simple as "just recycle them to make more sprues" as the petition implies.

I feel like the whole idea hasn't had any thought put into it beyond "recycling is meant to be good!".


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 11:35:02


Post by: Huron black heart


I'd sooner GW stop making physical codex's and rule books. Save the planet that way instead.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 11:37:29


Post by: jullevi


I have a plastic recycling bin at my apartment complex but I am not putting any sprues in it because I know they will not be recycled. I believe it varies by country but around here plastic recycling only accepts plastic packaging material, not all kinds of plastic.

Personally I believe that sprues could technically be recycled but it's more complicated process than it's worth.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 11:47:31


Post by: MaleficentRuler


 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
Central recycling just doesn’t make financial sense for GW, or environmental sense overall.

Getting the sprues back involves transportation, and in the U.K. that most likely means by road.

Not only would GW need to do free postage, footing the bill themselves, but they also have to pay for commercial waste.

Us mooks have our bins collected, funded by our Council Tax.

It’s a noble ideal, but just not necessary nor practical.

I’d imagine things will of course vary country to country though.


I spoke to some of the GW staff the last time I was at Warhammer Fest in person, and they said they have looked at this issue multiple times and its exactly as you said, the logistics just don't make sense, they even looked at sprue collection bins in store and it was just not financial or environmental sense, especially in the UK where they can just be put in the recycling bin.



Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 11:57:41


Post by: Orlanth


I signed this, it looks like a good idea, but might not be.
Signing the petition brings the suggestion to the attention to GW. Who will look at this with an entirely different lens.
Will this result in a resource saving?

It may well do, if enough sprue is collected to be worth shipping, it may pay for them to recycle.

My motive to signing and approving this petition is because I have a fairly low opinion of GW corporate, they can be rather hidebound and blinkered. Dakka is no stranger to this sentiment.
Petitions of this kind are dangerous, GW will know not to piss off the climate woke and will need to reply carefully. This likely means they will have to think through a response at a reasonably high level.

As a design studio GW thinks outside the box, as a corporation they do the opposite. I think this petition will be useful if it clears out some cobwebs and gets the board to actually think before packing up at lunchtime and spending four days a week on the golf course.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 11:59:49


Post by: Rolsheen


High Impact Polystyrene (HIPS) can be ground up and reused to make new products but it's a difficult process and not all recycle centres can do it, that's why some local councils refuse to except sprues.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 12:03:58


Post by: Orlanth


There is another dynamic to this.

Lots of people above commented on placing their plastic in the recycling box.

But what happens next?

The council dutifully collects and recycles?

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/aug/17/plastic-recycling-myth-what-really-happens-your-rubbish





Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 12:23:25


Post by: Jadenim


Yeah, our local council explicitly says “no hard plastics (toys, etc.)”, so mine just go in the bin

After I’ve clipped off useful bits


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 12:27:44


Post by: Wha-Mu-077


This is going to achieve literally nothing


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 13:01:56


Post by: MoD_Legion


Another one of these? Also, did anybody actually do the math on this? Recycling is largely one of the biggest scams there is, as the price/energy use of just making something new vastly outweighs the cost of trying to recycle (if it is even possible, specifically for plastics this is a large issue). I'm sure the idea is well intended but I'm not sure if it actually helps.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 14:40:01


Post by: alphaecho


 Ahtman wrote:
I throw them at ducks in the pond. I'm sure it will work itself out.


Wait a couple of million years and it may become oil again.

Some people just don't have the patience though.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 14:59:04


Post by: Keel


MoD_Legion wrote:
Another one of these? Also, did anybody actually do the math on this? Recycling is largely one of the biggest scams there is, as the price/energy use of just making something new vastly outweighs the cost of trying to recycle (if it is even possible, specifically for plastics this is a large issue). I'm sure the idea is well intended but I'm not sure if it actually helps.


Sweden just uses plastic that isn't economically viable to recycle as fuel for district heating etc (energy recycling is the euphemism of choice). Not the greatest use, but at least it doesn't leak micro plastics from a landfill or similar.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 15:51:19


Post by: GreenScorpion


Recycling of metals or glass is quite energy efficient (aluminum for example is way cheaper to recycle than to chemically separate from its mineral form bauxite), but for plastics many of the traditional recycling methods don't work or aren't cost efficient to perform (chemical separation is often very expensive). In many cases the method for "recycling" is actually reuse, by doing new products with the same material but in a different form.
One example of this plastic reuse disguised as recycling is the creation of threads from plastic products and then create t-shirts and other pieces of clothing, which obviously only works with a subset of the materials we define as plastics.
Placing your sprues for recycling or in the garbage should be basically the same in most countries and reuse of the sprues would be a more adequate way to deal with environmental impact.

One thing that would help the environment, however, would be a transition of materials on GW side like Lego is apparently trying to do, by replacing the lego blocks plastic for a greener plastic that is going to be supposedly biodegradable (they are still in research phase), which obviously might raise some concerns in endurance of the pieces and the ageing of the material.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 16:19:20


Post by: tauist


Signed.

I dunno just how feasible this would actually be to pull off IRL but the planet is drowning in plastic waste already. Anything to lessen the waste is good methinks.

GW should also start announcing the carbon footprint of their products (whats the manufactoring print, whats the distribution print etc).


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 16:31:58


Post by: TheGoodGerman


Keel wrote:
MoD_Legion wrote:
Another one of these? Also, did anybody actually do the math on this? Recycling is largely one of the biggest scams there is, as the price/energy use of just making something new vastly outweighs the cost of trying to recycle (if it is even possible, specifically for plastics this is a large issue). I'm sure the idea is well intended but I'm not sure if it actually helps.


Sweden just uses plastic that isn't economically viable to recycle as fuel for district heating etc (energy recycling is the euphemism of choice). Not the greatest use, but at least it doesn't leak micro plastics from a landfill or similar.

As long as there are power plants running on oil as well, I don’t have any issues with running them on oil that has been used as a plastic bag or as a GW sprue first. I guess that’s happening with most of our 'recycling' plastics nowadays.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 17:08:39


Post by: Jadenim


Lego should be the least concerned about recycling (at least when it comes to the actual bricks), hardly anyone will ever throw bricks away, they just gets passed down / passed on.

In actual fact for that product, having a resilient, long-lasting plastic is probably the most environmentally friendly, as it can be re-used forever, without the energy cost of replacing it.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 17:13:12


Post by: Azreal13


 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
Thing is….I put mine in my recycling bin, which is collected for me.


Doesn't mean it's recycled, much of the sorting is done once the collection is back at the plant, and if it's not a plastic that plant can recycle, even if it's a material that can theoretically be recycled somewhere, best case scenario is that it ends up in landfill with extra carbon miles on it, worst case is it contaminates something that could otherwise been recycled quite easily and takes that with it. Admittedly that's not so likely with plastics, but it's possible.

In the UK not all recycling is equal in all areas, and anything apart from very common materials needs to be double checked before it's disposed of.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 17:23:17


Post by: GreenScorpion


 Jadenim wrote:
Lego should be the least concerned about recycling (at least when it comes to the actual bricks), hardly anyone will ever throw bricks away, they just gets passed down / passed on.

In actual fact for that product, having a resilient, long-lasting plastic is probably the most environmentally friendly, as it can be re-used forever, without the energy cost of replacing it.


I think the justification for Lego's research was mostly the use of oil to produce it rather than the impact of the blocks after production. From what I saw in the news the difficulty was finding a non-oil based plastic that had similar physical properties, as Lego wanted to keep the same resistance, endurance and compatibility, but without requiring oil based plastics.
My previous reply was mostly in that direction, reducing the impact from the production point of view and not expect companies to recycle things from all over the world, with transportation adding a lot of cost to the environment with very little gain.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/28 17:30:50


Post by: drbored


Ah, this whole thing again.

This idea comes around every once in a while, but the fact of the matter remains: the cost of shipping sprue material through a bespoke 'gw recycling distribution system' is cost prohibitive.

Especially when, if you truly care, you can put your sprues in your own recycling bin.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 00:32:23


Post by: insaniak


drbored wrote:

Especially when, if you truly care, you can put your sprues in your own recycling bin.

As was mentioned up the thread, this is not actually the case in many areas. Plastic recycling is often limited to certain types of plastics, and HIPS is not commonly one of them.


But, yeah, centralised recycling doesn't really seem viable or cost effective. I've been keeping an eye on the various filament extruder systems out there, waiting for one of them to come down in price to something affordable, at which point I plan on recycling old sprue into priting filament.



Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 01:22:43


Post by: flaherty


drbored wrote:
Ah, this whole thing again.

This idea comes around every once in a while, but the fact of the matter remains: the cost of shipping sprue material through a bespoke 'gw recycling distribution system' is cost prohibitive.

Especially when, if you truly care, you can put your sprues in your own recycling bin.


Not only is it cost prohibitive, I'd wager it's not even that environmentally friendly.

There have been academic studies that look at the trade-offs between ceramic mugs and disposable paper cups. If you care about solid waste, the ceramic mug is better. If you're concerned about the carbon footprint, ceramics are worse because of the energy needed to run a dishwasher or even heat water for hand washing. Likewise, when you look at paper grocery bags vs. plastic, the plastic creates more landfill, but the paper bags have a much higher "embodied energy" score – the measure of all the energy required to produce it.

In the States, we have a lot of space to bury waste so the bigger concern is keeping carbon out of the air.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 01:28:24


Post by: Azreal13


That very much reads like somebody with a vested interest commissioned studies looking at very specific criteria that they hoped would support an argument they want to make.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 03:00:36


Post by: Genoside07


Actually, it would depend on how bad Games Workshop wanted to do it. There are machines called "munchies" or something like that, they grind up different forms of clean plastic and form it back into usable plastic pellets. That could reduce space and make it ready for reuse, that in turn could be used in the current injection molding as "filler" most companies have a layer that is a percentage of nonvalue material that doesn't change the structure that much.
But again, GW will want to deal with the logistics and the cost of transporting it back to the manufacturing location, versus just buying virgin material.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 03:08:36


Post by: derpherp


 Genoside07 wrote:
Actually, it would depend on how bad Games Workshop wanted to do it. There are machines called "munchies" or something like that, they grind up different forms of clean plastic and form it back into usable plastic pellets. That could reduce space and make it ready for reuse, that in turn could be used in the current injection molding as "filler" most companies have a layer that is a percentage of nonvalue material that doesn't change the structure that much.
But again, GW will want to deal with the logistics and the cost of transporting it back to the manufacturing location, versus just buying virgin material.

It's not just cost and trouble, the fuel burnt and environmental damage to transport it all the way back to the UK from across the planet like that easily outweighs any environmental benefit.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 06:10:08


Post by: Dolnikan


Aside from the trouble of transportation and gathering, another that I haven't seen mentioned yet is contamination. When you gather used sprues from random people you have no clue what they've done with it and what kinds of other stuff might be in there. If you then want to use it for pretty detailed stuff you really don't want random pieces of gunk in there that can damage the machines or make the new sprues of a lower quality.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 06:49:58


Post by: AllSeeingSkink


 Huron black heart wrote:
I'd sooner GW stop making physical codex's and rule books. Save the planet that way instead.


Would that actually make a significant difference? Trees grow back, and the books would be biodegradable (not including any plastics used in covers and whatnot). Then for people like me who don't own a tablet, I imagine the environmental harm of buying a new tablet every few years would outweigh the handful of books I'd buy.

I feel like my Dad gets more trees worth of junkmail and newspapers in a week than I'd go through in a year of wargaming books.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 07:12:28


Post by: Souleater


Are folks considering buying fewer models in the first place? Where possible buying secondhand?

I don’t know how typical I am but I have a ‘pile of shame’ (which took resources to create), more armies than I can realistically play in a typical month. I prefer building kits from new.

Part of my reasoning to reduce the pile, own fewer armies and buy secondhand where possible was financial but there was an element of environmental concern, too.

To borrow from an environment scientist who’s name escapes me, if the sink is overflowing the first thing to do is turn down the tap.

I completely agree that as a species we need to do more to recycle but pointing at GW ignores our part in this, which if we are concerned about the fate of our species, we need to address.

So perhaps GW could look at the potential loss of revenue from reduced sales versus the cost of recycling? I don’t know how that could be worked out or what the outcome would be.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 07:25:21


Post by: Albertorius


 flaherty wrote:
Not only is it cost prohibitive, I'd wager it's not even that environmentally friendly.

Just take into account how much gas you'd need to ship all the sprues back.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 07:27:26


Post by: MoD_Legion


Keel wrote:
MoD_Legion wrote:
Another one of these? Also, did anybody actually do the math on this? Recycling is largely one of the biggest scams there is, as the price/energy use of just making something new vastly outweighs the cost of trying to recycle (if it is even possible, specifically for plastics this is a large issue). I'm sure the idea is well intended but I'm not sure if it actually helps.


Sweden just uses plastic that isn't economically viable to recycle as fuel for district heating etc (energy recycling is the euphemism of choice). Not the greatest use, but at least it doesn't leak micro plastics from a landfill or similar.

What most people don't realize, is that burning plastics returns you almost 100% of the energy that went into them/they contain (not sure which exactly). It very efficient from an energy standpoint, not sure about the any pollutants that result from it though, but I'm sure the most toxic elements of those get burned up/can be filtered out.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 07:28:02


Post by: ced1106


Go buy metal miniatures, then. Metal doesn't have the sprues that plastics have, and metal, at the manufacturer level, is reused to make miniatures.

I get it that we can be more efficient with natural resources, but that doesn't mean it's someone else's responsibility. If the environment is that important to you, make some sacrifices *on your own*. Recreational travel shouldn't be too hard, especially since we have a worldwide energy crisis. Reduce single-use plastic, as well as take-out food. Buy fewer luxury items, and that includes paint, miniatures, etc. Haven't you also have a backlog of games on your computer and in your closet, anyway?


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 07:33:06


Post by: Tabletop_Magpie


Why only Games Workshop? Do Mantic, Perry, Warlord etc get a free pass?

It reminds me of someone on Twitter a while ago (Femi, for anyone that hovers around UK political twitter) and he wanted Just Eat to start collecting takeaway packaging to recycle. How could you even start to implement that without huge resourcing and logistical nightmares?



Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 07:52:49


Post by: Mad Doc Grotsnik


I mean, surely the onus here is on local councils to expand or at least co-operate with one another on recycling.

For instance, I live on the Kent Coast. So far as I know, pretty much everything can be recycled. The bordering counties are East Sussex, Essex and Greater London. Given specialist recycling requires specific investment, why not organise it so each County has one specialism, and move the stuff to that county.

Yes it’s going to add logistics and fuel to the mix, but surely the pay off that a greater percentage of goods can be recycled would be beneficial?


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 08:04:11


Post by: Sarouan


Problem is more about recycling centers. It's obvious GW isn't one and if they looked on the matter before, chances are they were looking for those who would actually accept this kind of plastic. Worldwide.

I think the real matter is that these centers simply refuse this kind of plastic, because it's not profitable. So when you add up the logistics to gather these unused sprues back, if it is to eventually be thrown in the bin or worse, sent to a poor country to rot in an open area...better to let the customer decide if he throws it in the bin or use it for his own modelism projects.

They make good rubbles on my base, personnally.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 09:01:02


Post by: Drakheart


When I posted the original link, which I saw on Bolter & Chainsword I just thought it was a good idea, but obviously none of us really know the logistics, finanancial and environmental implications of a scheme like this.

Personally anything that would avoid sprues ending up in land fill would be good, I know my local council does not recycle them and have experimented with different uses for my pile of sprues from the ubiquitous 'sprue goo' to melting them down in the oven in high temperature moulds (made some nice fridge magnets with a star wars cookie mould). Even bought some high temperature silicon to make moulds for miniature bases using this method, but with mixed results.





Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 13:25:02


Post by: pogey


 Genoside07 wrote:
Actually, it would depend on how bad Games Workshop wanted to do it. There are machines called "munchies" or something like that, they grind up different forms of clean plastic and form it back into usable plastic pellets. That could reduce space and make it ready for reuse, that in turn could be used in the current injection molding as "filler" most companies have a layer that is a percentage of nonvalue material that doesn't change the structure that much.
But again, GW will want to deal with the logistics and the cost of transporting it back to the manufacturing location, versus just buying virgin material.


This would probably be the way to do it. The pelletised sprues would be pretty easy to ship back, but could also just be used as high grade recycled plastic which has quite a lot of value and sold to another industry in the area. The most impurities would probably just come from people spray painting their minis on sprue. Which would be fairly trivial.

Ultimately, most recycling costs more than just making it new. The plastic used at GW is just like other plastic and it is in small volumes compared to other industries that implement return to manufacture programs.

Other options include making plant plastics which Lego is trying to do. Or clipping miniatures off the sprues themselves like plenty of other manufacturers, thereby keeping the sprues at the factory


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 13:44:11


Post by: Huron black heart


AllSeeingSkink wrote:
 Huron black heart wrote:
I'd sooner GW stop making physical codex's and rule books. Save the planet that way instead.


Would that actually make a significant difference? Trees grow back, and the books would be biodegradable (not including any plastics used in covers and whatnot). Then for people like me who don't own a tablet, I imagine the environmental harm of buying a new tablet every few years would outweigh the handful of books I'd buy.

I feel like my Dad gets more trees worth of junkmail and newspapers in a week than I'd go through in a year of wargaming books.


I won't pretend to know all the ins and outs but with the cost of creating, transporting, storing, physically selling books would it not be more environmentally better to just download it?>
Admittedly I'm not a fan of GW's current business practice with their rule books and codexs so I'm not entirely unbiased on this matter.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 13:53:52


Post by: AllSeeingSkink


 Huron black heart wrote:
AllSeeingSkink wrote:
 Huron black heart wrote:
I'd sooner GW stop making physical codex's and rule books. Save the planet that way instead.


Would that actually make a significant difference? Trees grow back, and the books would be biodegradable (not including any plastics used in covers and whatnot). Then for people like me who don't own a tablet, I imagine the environmental harm of buying a new tablet every few years would outweigh the handful of books I'd buy.

I feel like my Dad gets more trees worth of junkmail and newspapers in a week than I'd go through in a year of wargaming books.


I won't pretend to know all the ins and outs but with the cost of creating, transporting, storing, physically selling books would it not be more environmentally better to just download it?>
Admittedly I'm not a fan of GW's current business practice with their rule books and codexs so I'm not entirely unbiased on this matter.


I'm not really sure to be honest, lol. I imagine if you buy a huge amount of books then yeah digital would become better, but I consider that a tablet probably only lasts a few years and has rare metals, plastics, things that don't biodegrade.

Even if it does become greener to use digital, would it be a measurable effect? I really don't know. I feel like a few weeks worth of newspapers or a couple of timber fence posts would probably make many years worth of books. The transport issue you mention is a good one, but perhaps the better option is moving to renewable energy sources for transportation.

Admittedly when I read your post initially I just thought "I hate ebooks" But then it got me thinking about the process more and how much harm it's doing in a practical sense.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 14:04:25


Post by: Tygre


 Huron black heart wrote:
AllSeeingSkink wrote:
 Huron black heart wrote:
I'd sooner GW stop making physical codex's and rule books. Save the planet that way instead.


Would that actually make a significant difference? Trees grow back, and the books would be biodegradable (not including any plastics used in covers and whatnot). Then for people like me who don't own a tablet, I imagine the environmental harm of buying a new tablet every few years would outweigh the handful of books I'd buy.

I feel like my Dad gets more trees worth of junkmail and newspapers in a week than I'd go through in a year of wargaming books.


I won't pretend to know all the ins and outs but with the cost of creating, transporting, storing, physically selling books would it not be more environmentally better to just download it?>
Admittedly I'm not a fan of GW's current business practice with their rule books and codexs so I'm not entirely unbiased on this matter.


The problem with just downloading it (downloading should be an option though) is that do I have to drag my desktop down to the FLGS or do I struggle with a tiny phone screen. Do I have to buy a tablet which will likely need to be replaced every few years. All these electronic devices require lots more resources to create, transport, and store. If GW would let the books be printed locally even less resources would be needed.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 14:09:49


Post by: oni


Deleted.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 14:12:27


Post by: Malika2


Perhaps recycling in the traditional sense might not be that effective, but for GW it might be worth considering other means:

1) Design the sprues in such a way that they are useful bits for miniatures / terrain. I remember a company (not sure if it was Pig Iron Productions) who designed sprues for the miniatures that looked like little terrain bits. The amount of waste thus is minimised.

2) Make the sprues useful in other ways. I think I saw a company on Instagram design something that would allow you to turn your sprues into frames for buildings (terrain). Need to look it up. Whilst many skilled modellers can already do this on their own, having some extra parts to help out never hurt anyone. Not saying this is the only possibility, but it's one way of thinking outside of the box when approaching this topic.

3) Collect sprue at the GW shops. Whilst you wouldn't cover all the online sales and sales done through 3rd party vendors, you would reach a big chunk of your audience.

4) Transition to different materials. This is more something for the long term. R&D into types of bioplastics or whatever that is more recyclable or less damaging to the environment when unleashed upon it. GW being the biggest party in the market, could look into developing this if they'd want to.



Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 14:15:03


Post by: oni


"Easy to Build" mono-pose models without optional bitz = GW being environmentally responsible.



Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 14:50:51


Post by: NAVARRO


 oni wrote:
"Easy to Build" mono-pose models without optional bitz = GW being environmentally responsible.



Dont understand the logic here. Care to expand on that?


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 15:06:00


Post by: TalonZahn


Someone watched a Goobertown video....


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 16:39:41


Post by: Azreal13


Albertorius wrote:
 flaherty wrote:
Not only is it cost prohibitive, I'd wager it's not even that environmentally friendly.

Just take into account how much gas you'd need to ship all the sprues back.


This is a point people have made several times, but the obvious solution is to partner with local recycling processors in country. The plastic need not return to GW, nor does it need to make them any money, just being seen to "care" could have immense value for them.


Tabletop_Magpie wrote:Why only Games Workshop? Do Mantic, Perry, Warlord etc get a free pass?

It reminds me of someone on Twitter a while ago (Femi, for anyone that hovers around UK political twitter) and he wanted Just Eat to start collecting takeaway packaging to recycle. How could you even start to implement that without huge resourcing and logistical nightmares?



No, nobody gets a free pass, but the burden of being the most visible and successful brand in the sector is that you have more eyes on you, will be expected to take the lead on topics such as this and, frankly, GW probably make more plastic waste in sprue form than the rest of the wargaming market combined, likely by orders of magnitude.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 16:55:01


Post by: oni


 NAVARRO wrote:
 oni wrote:
"Easy to Build" mono-pose models without optional bitz = GW being environmentally responsible.



Dont understand the logic here. Care to expand on that?


Being facetious; suggesting that the lack of additional/optional plastic bitz normally found multi-part kits equates to less plastic waste.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 17:59:34


Post by: OrlandotheTechnicoloured


In the UK we're crying out for some sort of standardisation in household recycling as it's a complete mess

having a single message on what can and can't be recycled is so important as folk are easily confused

but at present it's probably not viable for HIPS sprues (especially as they're often clipped into smaller bits which won't have the necessary markings to prove what they are and what recycling stream they should go into)

although GW stores probably could recycle the sprues that are processed in store and return it to their factory for reprocessing, but it's probably not environmentally beneficial to do so when you consider the extra road miles etc


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/29 21:14:00


Post by: angryboy2k


 flaherty wrote:

Not only is it cost prohibitive, I'd wager it's not even that environmentally friendly.


You're right, it's not. The best ways to deal with plastic waste like sprues are probably local: incineration for energy generation or monomerization (seems this tech is still in its infancy).

 flaherty wrote:

There have been academic studies that look at the trade-offs between ceramic mugs and disposable paper cups. If you care about solid waste, the ceramic mug is better. If you're concerned about the carbon footprint, ceramics are worse because of the energy needed to run a dishwasher or even heat water for hand washing. Likewise, when you look at paper grocery bags vs. plastic, the plastic creates more landfill, but the paper bags have a much higher "embodied energy" score – the measure of all the energy required to produce it.


These studies always feel deliberately one-dimensional. The paper bags use more energy than plastic bags, sure, but the paper bags Trader Joe's gives me (that get reused quite a few more times than most plastic bags) don't end up blown into the ocean to choke sea turtles to death. The argument against plastic bags isn't a carbon one.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/30 01:09:17


Post by: Ghaz


 Azreal13 wrote:
This is a point people have made several times, but the obvious solution is to partner with local recycling processors in country.

Not really feasible in the US where it would be hundreds (if not thousands) of recycling processors that GW would have to partner with. A better solution would be to educate their consumer base as to how to recycle their leftover plastic as you could partner with any number of processors and it would be meaningless if the consumers just throw them in the trash.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/30 02:49:43


Post by: Azreal13


That's the same thing.



Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/30 15:57:21


Post by: AllSeeingSkink


 OrlandotheTechnicoloured wrote:
In the UK we're crying out for some sort of standardisation in household recycling as it's a complete mess

having a single message on what can and can't be recycled is so important as folk are easily confused

but at present it's probably not viable for HIPS sprues (especially as they're often clipped into smaller bits which won't have the necessary markings to prove what they are and what recycling stream they should go into)

although GW stores probably could recycle the sprues that are processed in store and return it to their factory for reprocessing, but it's probably not environmentally beneficial to do so when you consider the extra road miles etc


Yeah, if I read through the recycling guidelines for my area here in Oz, I'm not even sure they will recycle HIPS if I toss it in the recycling bin, especially if it's in loose bits of sprue with no identification of what sort of plastic it is.

Lots of people throw stuff in their recycling that the guidelines specifically and clearly say won't be recycled (maybe theoretically possible to recycle, but they won't go to the effort of sorting it), but some stuff is very vague as to whether it will be recycled. So clearly people don't even know what they should be doing.

One of the funnier ones, at work (and I work in a super-progressive place where sustainability is a big emphasis) in the shared office there was 2 signs up on or near the recycling bin explaining what could be recycled, and they contradicted each other, lol.





Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/07/30 19:17:14


Post by: Whirlwind


 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
Thing is….I put mine in my recycling bin, which is collected for me.

However, I’m not sure the plastic can be recycled into new miniatures? I don’t one way or the other, but there’s something in the back of my head that the recycling process results in a lower grade plastic?



In the UK, you shouldn't put plastic sprues in the recycling bin. You are just contaminating the other recyclables. Generally the largely recycled material is HDPE and PET (plastic trays (excluding black ones), tubs and plastic drink and milk bottles). Some will recycle LDPE (which is film and bubble wrap). These are generally marked as 1, 2 and 4 in a recyclable symbol. Any other plastic will generally be disposed of. Some Councils might try some additional types but it's difficult because there is no consistent product process out there, so there are
many slight variations that can't be easily mixed.

Some businesses also do take back of other plastics because the populace took action and started posting back packaging to them (Walker's Crisps is a good example here). So posting sprues back to GW might help because it forces them to take action.

However please don't put sprues in the recycling bin!


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/01 02:04:31


Post by: Grot 6


 Drakheart wrote:
Not sure on the logistics of getting this to work, but if it is a sustainable practice I'm all for it:

https://chng.it/Pg8LmGspv6



Unsustainable. Sorry, but the climate shills are way off base on this one. They should go back to worrying about cow farts, instead of stepping into areas that they don't even understand. If they want to "Change" something, they should go elsewhere.

You want to "Recycle" your sprues? Do what I do, and make more terrain out of them. Sprues are important for our own environment. I don't need some do gooder goober who doesn't even game getting in on our hobby fun. They already suck the life out of everything they touch.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
As to add you constructive uses, and how to do more then just stir up yet another fake outrage.

Sprue Use 1. Gap filling slurry.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BH8xp0BJwQo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNwzLOHM4Es

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1T8LZ0Li8h0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-kclbMIzxQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8E64rsyuTo8

- WARNING-

USE GLOVES, and OPEN Air/ get a fan!!!

Sprue Use 2. Terrain
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FvRCT5S2BCg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6L4dN_uyv8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMYx3jUFLS4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmDkYUO9-TQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnFaVoDJ_9Y

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewQFnkymZdo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06WEzB6cA6E

Patients is a virtue, Frugality is a side hustle.

Sprue Use 3. Cobblestone
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TGCEAVqbns

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tYEM_oGnU0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xb-bm-y5duY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ONdnDzarly4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SW3y1PcNB_E

Long and winding road to getting rid of sprues instead of throwing them at your friends.

Sprue Use 4. Recycled at home.

Look what this guy did.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1O-MSfI73SY

Or this guy...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szuweHbU9mw

Or THIS guy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfJyjKu1u7Y


Sprues are what comes with the model. You paid for that stuff. You should use every part of the model, and packaging, for the prices they charge. NOTHING should be going to waste, or you are doing it wrong.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/01 11:35:45


Post by: Dries_Lee


The logistics of returning sprues to GW wouldn't be an issue if GW clipped the models from them in-factory.

GW would save money through lowering the weight of shipments and needing less virgin plastic.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/01 12:03:27


Post by: Shuma-Gorath


I thought we use spare sprue for scenery, piles of rubble and sprue cabins?


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/01 19:04:10


Post by: Irbis


MoD_Legion wrote:
Recycling is largely one of the biggest scams there is, as the price/energy use of just making something new vastly outweighs the cost of trying to recycle

Utter BS. Read less far right (actual scam BTW) drivel, cost of recycling steel/glass/aluminium is literally below 1% of energy you need to make a new thing (and that's just base substance, never mind all the additives industry adds to iron or silicon to make it into modern steel/glass). Rare earths or metals like gold and copper? The cost of making new one can be 10000% higher - and that is without even considering environmental damage wrought by discarded stuff being left to rot in dumps instead of being reused. Who told you this nonsense?

Now, in case of plastic or low quality cardboard or other dirty packaging the Swedish model (burning them in high temperature furnace to save on fossil fuels - note high temperature is needed to break down pollutants, something idiots burning them in small fireplaces producing lots of toxic smoke fail to get) might be currently the best of the bad practices, but it's not the fault of recycling - it's the fault of packaging producers who instead of having pure paper or plastic, glue them together in various ways, slap glossy coatings on top, then dump liters of paint cover, ruining their recycling quality. Once we get to mandate simple, easily recyclable packages, recycling will be the way to go.

There is a reason why people did it literally for thousands of years (literally, artifacts from recycled glass and iron in museums date back to beginnings of writing and agriculture) and it's not because they were wOkE (anyone who says this unironically deserves to be punched to shut them up and told to look up actual data, not fables peddled by deniers of climate change and vaccine smears)...

 flaherty wrote:
In the States, we have a lot of space to bury waste so the bigger concern is keeping carbon out of the air.

Sure, if you want to contaminate groundwater, soil, and every plant that grows on it. When you read about superfund sites or cancer alleys existing only because someone thought 'hey, our profits would be higher if we buried this waste instead of properly disposing of it making it the problem of next generation' you kinda sour on that gak idea. And that is without extra dose of racism on top of that garbage (namely, cities and counties placing said landfills next to land/dwellings of minorities making them disproportionately exposed to fallout and suffering from the practice)


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/01 19:58:02


Post by: insaniak


Dries_Lee wrote:
The logistics of returning sprues to GW wouldn't be an issue if GW clipped the models from them in-factory.

GW would save money through lowering the weight of shipments and needing less virgin plastic.

The cost of paying people to clip parts from sprues would vastly outweigh the savings in shipping.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/01 20:25:15


Post by: DeadliestIdiot


 insaniak wrote:
Dries_Lee wrote:
The logistics of returning sprues to GW wouldn't be an issue if GW clipped the models from them in-factory.

GW would save money through lowering the weight of shipments and needing less virgin plastic.

The cost of paying people to clip parts from sprues would vastly outweigh the savings in shipping.


You'd have a machine do it. Given the amazing things machine vision can do, you could probably set it up to clip any sprues apart you like (i.e., you wouldn't need to build a clipping machine specific to each individual sprue). There'd be a large up front cost that might not make economic sense (whatever that means in practice) in terms of upfront cost + maintenance/upgrades vs cost savings in reusing clipped materials+saved transportation weight.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/01 23:55:35


Post by: Toofast


How would that make sense? Even if you can't recycle locally, sending them back across the ocean on ships that burn used oil doesn't exactly seem like a net benefit to the environment. This idea is proposed fairly often in various places by well-meaning green types but they're missing the forest for the trees.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/02 11:27:31


Post by: Dries_Lee


Toofast wrote:
How would that make sense?


Shipping extraneous plastic to consumers around the world who then send it back doesn't make much sense, no.

Maybe people concerned about this topic should petition the UK government to raise the Plastic Packaging Tax instead. https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/plastic-packaging-tax After a brief skim, it seems to me sprues are not exempt from this tax. But £200 per metric tonne of packaging material doesn't seem to make much of an impact to me.

Seems to me most companies don't care about much except shareholder value, and won't clean up their business unless a government makes them. But that government needs to be serious about it, and not pass only token legislation.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/02 11:36:17


Post by: CthuluIsSpy


DeadliestIdiot wrote:
 insaniak wrote:
Dries_Lee wrote:
The logistics of returning sprues to GW wouldn't be an issue if GW clipped the models from them in-factory.

GW would save money through lowering the weight of shipments and needing less virgin plastic.

The cost of paying people to clip parts from sprues would vastly outweigh the savings in shipping.


You'd have a machine do it. Given the amazing things machine vision can do, you could probably set it up to clip any sprues apart you like (i.e., you wouldn't need to build a clipping machine specific to each individual sprue). There'd be a large up front cost that might not make economic sense (whatever that means in practice) in terms of upfront cost + maintenance/upgrades vs cost savings in reusing clipped materials+saved transportation weight.

You would first have to build and design a clipping machine, and configure it in such a way that it's precise enough to not butcher the models. I don't think GW is willing to pay that much for a precision machine when they can get the customers to do it for them.

And for what purpose? To send the pieces in a jumbled mess to the customer, who then have to sort out each component and try to figure out what goes where, instead of just looking at the numbers on the sprue? The only way that makes sense is if the models came in a single piece with no assembly required, and I'm not sure anyone wants that.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/02 14:13:04


Post by: Grot 6


 CthuluIsSpy wrote:
DeadliestIdiot wrote:
 insaniak wrote:
Dries_Lee wrote:
The logistics of returning sprues to GW wouldn't be an issue if GW clipped the models from them in-factory.

GW would save money through lowering the weight of shipments and needing less virgin plastic.

The cost of paying people to clip parts from sprues would vastly outweigh the savings in shipping.


You'd have a machine do it. Given the amazing things machine vision can do, you could probably set it up to clip any sprues apart you like (i.e., you wouldn't need to build a clipping machine specific to each individual sprue). There'd be a large up front cost that might not make economic sense (whatever that means in practice) in terms of upfront cost + maintenance/upgrades vs cost savings in reusing clipped materials+saved transportation weight.

You would first have to build and design a clipping machine, and configure it in such a way that it's precise enough to not butcher the models. I don't think GW is willing to pay that much for a precision machine when they can get the customers to do it for them.

And for what purpose? To send the pieces in a jumbled mess to the customer, who then have to sort out each component and try to figure out what goes where, instead of just looking at the numbers on the sprue? The only way that makes sense is if the models came in a single piece with no assembly required, and I'm not sure anyone wants that.



Don't overthink it....



Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/02 14:22:42


Post by: JWBS


Personally I haven't recycled plastic or paper in years. It's not really a thing. That article linked earlier in the thread and a few others over the years have convinced me not to bother. It really should have been something of a scandal imo, but people just want to believe that plastic is recycled so the information is generally ignored. I just stick to metal and glass.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/02 15:55:14


Post by: ced1106


> Shipping extraneous plastic to consumers around the world who then send it back doesn't make much sense, no.

Yeah, that. Even shipping without sending it back consumes resources as well. While I'm not going to give up my hobby, not consuming is better than recycling. Shipping rates have gone up, July 4th travelling increased, and the current American administration is lowering tariffs from China, showing that reducing resource consumption isn't much of a priority for the American consumer.

Well, here's an article about DIY sprue recycling. Suggests grinding them up with a coffee grinder!
https://tangibleday.com/9-recycling-ideas-for-old-sprues-from-warhammer-and-model-kits/

And speaking of coffee grounds...





Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/02 19:01:27


Post by: Tokhuah


GW is going the opposite direction by increasing their options for tree killing packaging and land fill sprue...

https://icv2.com/articles/news/view/51789/games-workshop-unveils-new-warhammer-40-000-miniatures-blind-boxes


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/02 19:17:43


Post by: Wha-Mu-077


 Tokhuah wrote:
GW is going the opposite direction by increasing their options for tree killing packaging and land fill sprue...

https://icv2.com/articles/news/view/51789/games-workshop-unveils-new-warhammer-40-000-miniatures-blind-boxes


You do know that's not something new right.

I presume the person who wrote that doesn't know, since they're a journalist, and knowing anything isn't in their job description.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/02 19:28:40


Post by: DeadliestIdiot


 CthuluIsSpy wrote:

You would first have to build and design a clipping machine, and configure it in such a way that it's precise enough to not butcher the models. I don't think GW is willing to pay that much for a precision machine when they can get the customers to do it for them.

And for what purpose? To send the pieces in a jumbled mess to the customer, who then have to sort out each component and try to figure out what goes where, instead of just looking at the numbers on the sprue? The only way that makes sense is if the models came in a single piece with no assembly required, and I'm not sure anyone wants that.


I was really just saying that GW wouldn't need to pay someone to sit there and snip sprues apart... it'd be cheaper to have a machine do it. Regardless, precision probably wouldn't be an issue as these machines can be incredibly precise. And, sadly, I doubt the jumbled mess would be an issue because it wouldn't stop folks from buying models (alternatively, you could vacuum seal/shrink wrap the parts onto a bit of cardboard using much less and cheaper plastic than what the sprues are made of). All this said, I don't think you have to worry about GW doing this... I'd guess they don't sell enough models to make up the considerable up front cost of having a bunch of sprue clipping machines special built in whatever they save in reusing clipped sprue material+shipping weigh.

Edit: misread part of your post, I was thinking you were suggesting that the machines wouldn't be precise enough but it seems you're just saying precision is expensive, which I'd agree with heh.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/02 19:39:07


Post by: SirDonlad


I have a filastruder so i looked into the material GW use - unfortunately it is HIPS and gives off toxic fumes when subject to heat.

It could still be workable for someone using ABS main material and HIPS supports (it can be eroded with simple chemicals)

I'd support (ba-dum-tss) them doing a move to a material which could be turned into filament for your own 3d printer, but it would need to be under 240 degrees melt point to be of real use


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/02 19:53:55


Post by: NinthMusketeer


Eh, we'll have access to plastic-digesting microbes for cleanup within the next several decades anyways. Better question is what to make plastic out of as the raw materials dwindle.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/02 20:36:22


Post by: SirDonlad


well PLA is technically cornstarch, but material degradation is an issue.
We'll probably see more on that project to create hydrocarbons using sunlight that a californian team started a few years back

https://news.stanford.edu/2022/02/09/turning-carbon-dioxide-gasoline-efficiently/


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/02 20:44:37


Post by: insaniak


 ced1106 wrote:

Well, here's an article about DIY sprue recycling. Suggests grinding them up with a coffee grinder!
https://tangibleday.com/9-recycling-ideas-for-old-sprues-from-warhammer-and-model-kits/

I had that idea some years back. End result was good, but it was a lot of work and tore the plastic case of the grinder to pieces.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/02 20:55:54


Post by: Monkeysloth


JWBS wrote:
Personally I haven't recycled plastic or paper in years. It's not really a thing. That article linked earlier in the thread and a few others over the years have convinced me not to bother. It really should have been something of a scandal imo, but people just want to believe that plastic is recycled so the information is generally ignored. I just stick to metal and glass.


paper, cans and glass do get recycled a lot and reused. Something like 75% off all the aluminum ever mined is still being used due to recycling as all of these are cheap to recycle. Paper becomes cardboard and toilet paper -- they aint using the new stuff for you to whip your butt with.

Plastics is another story and it depends on where you live as some places in Europe and the US are now mandating that companies use recycled plastics which creates a market for it which causes it to be recycled in those areas but it's still a small part of plastics that ever do.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/02 23:36:48


Post by: Tokhuah


 Wha-Mu-077 wrote:
 Tokhuah wrote:
GW is going the opposite direction by increasing their options for tree killing packaging and land fill sprue...

https://icv2.com/articles/news/view/51789/games-workshop-unveils-new-warhammer-40-000-miniatures-blind-boxes


You do know that's not something new right.

I presume the person who wrote that doesn't know, since they're a journalist, and knowing anything isn't in their job description.


Never seen them in a US game store. Regardless of who knows what, making these things is stuck on stupid.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/04 17:18:27


Post by: aka_mythos


Engineer chiming in here... GW more than a typical manufacturer or even a recycling company is better positioned to recycle their own plastic. GW and model companies in general sell you everything on sprues because its the easiest way to avoid missing pieces from kits, particularly with so many little pieces... but almost every other sort of plastic product has a sprue or cut off of some kind when its manufactured, but it gets removed for subsequent manufacturing steps. Unless the manufacturer is producing something with more extreme strength or color requirements, they will then take those cut offs and sprues, grind them up and either sell the granulated plastic to another manufacturer or simply blend it into their stock of virgin plastic materials and use it in future batches of plastic parts. As long as GW ensures its only collecting its own plastic runners for recycling the only other thing they need to worry about is if people have coated the plastic with paint or oils... otherwise they can still reprocess and reuse the plastic. They'd want a progressive buoyancy sifter, which could be calibrated such that only their plastic that's free of contaminates can float all the way through the series of tanks.

That said, shipping the material whether to a recycler or back to their own facility for reprocessing is always going to be the potentially cost and environmentally prohibitive aspects.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/04 20:18:11


Post by: Grot 6


You "Recycle" your own sprues by clipping them down to manageable bits and putting them in a plastic tote. THEN you have them on hand for your projects, or whatever you want to do with them. It is not about sending them back to GW to reuse. If I may be so bold, THAT particular plastic that GW uses will cost more to send back through the supply chain, break down in massive industrial heating arrays (I/E the production process) and reheated and recast through the molds. (we call it processing)

As to that nonsense about "Carbon footprints", that is all it is, nonsense. It goes along with that same point made about "heating the water to wash the mug" is bupkas. YOU are made of carbon... Carbon is a building block of life, it goes without saying that the stand/ idea is ridiculous, and it is only propagated by the "Green Industry" for one reason, and one reason only. $$$ Cash.

As to proof...
A briefing, on "Recycling" from Someone Who I Know. ( i cut it short, honestly.)

Someone I know used to work in a particular industry that worked in this exact same realm. Exact same mindset, Exact same good idea fairies, Exact same proposition/ idea.
"We can recycle the ...items... in country, thereby reducing the "carbon footprint", waste, and costs associated with The Item.
At the time, Someone I know... was pumped full of that nonsense about recycle the bottles, and we would be saving the unicorns and butterflies, as well as Uncle Sam's cold hard cash spent on the supply chain of the bottled water.

In the end- Same issues... "Who's going to collect the bottles, Who's going to run the machines, Who's going to send them back out, etc.etc.etc..."

In the end- You Doubled to nearly Tripled the chain, because of course you need contracts, and funding to carry the water for these nonsensical ideas. And along with expanding the chain of supply recycle, then you need specialized people to fix it, and billing, and call centers, and etc, etc,etc. as you throw more money around, and everyone gets in on the grift.

I could fill easily three or four pages on the grift, too. THIS is not just the water bottle I am talking about. It goes from the boot on your foot, to the plane that you fly, it all goes through a lifecycle that meddling kids always want to put their hand into the machine of progress and try to "Fix".

FOR GW- The answer is simple, even if they have a bunch of lame minds in suits not seeing the answer.
You, as the customer, save your sprues, because you can use them, "and save the green", as you make all of these wonderful new pieces of terrain, THAT we show you, along with the GW patented plans vehicles, as you participate in the HHHobby...

Get yourself a good 4X4 plastic box, as you clip up your sprues, and then you fill it with the sprue material.
You have a bits box for the extra bits, Then it goes without saying that you have a sprue box for the sprues, as well as another for the card stock from the packaging, that you use in conjunction with the bits and sprues to make all of the nifty terrain that you ad to your wonderful tabletop HHHobby battlefield.

In the end, We as consumers have the choices. You can use the sprues for something else, Ego "Recycling", or you can throw them at the ducks.
It's on you what to do with them, and I will tell you from a LEARNED and EXPERIENCED supply chain professional that you take that stuff, use it for other uses, and stockpile it. You will never get a satisfactory answer from a bureaucracy, I don't care who you are.

A time is coming where you are going to be able to break that stuff down for use to make stuff in your 3D printer. When that happens, GW will THEN come for your children, and fight you for "Their" patented, and claimed licensed "GW SPRUE" material.

Economy wise- If you were so concerned about the environment, you wouldn't even have dreamed in a million years to use Plastic miniatures as a choice. You would have fought GW tooth and nail for the tried and true TIN/ Pewter mix figures from back in the day for the more expensive versions of metal figures...

As a side note, Ze Germans have been recycling petrochemicals for years. Squeezing it out in high pressure vats and separation methods.

In the end, don't get distracted.
Plastics were pushed on you by the very same jagoff's that are now telling you that your ham sandwich is killing the earth, and that your even breathing is affecting the "Carbon Footprint".

The only "Carbon Footprint" I am interested in is the one I stain one of these Commie asses with, as they preach out of one side of their mouth about how much you and your coke bottle are destroying the fishie's, while they run around in their Tesla's, and drink Latte's from Starbucks. While at the same time, collecting a check, and grifting as they bounce around the globe with the WEF in their private 747's and their entourage in the three other planes behind them.

Thus Endith the Lesson.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/05 12:18:14


Post by: AllSeeingSkink


 aka_mythos wrote:
Engineer chiming in here... GW more than a typical manufacturer or even a recycling company is better positioned to recycle their own plastic. GW and model companies in general sell you everything on sprues because its the easiest way to avoid missing pieces from kits, particularly with so many little pieces... but almost every other sort of plastic product has a sprue or cut off of some kind when its manufactured, but it gets removed for subsequent manufacturing steps. Unless the manufacturer is producing something with more extreme strength or color requirements, they will then take those cut offs and sprues, grind them up and either sell the granulated plastic to another manufacturer or simply blend it into their stock of virgin plastic materials and use it in future batches of plastic parts. As long as GW ensures its only collecting its own plastic runners for recycling the only other thing they need to worry about is if people have coated the plastic with paint or oils... otherwise they can still reprocess and reuse the plastic. They'd want a progressive buoyancy sifter, which could be calibrated such that only their plastic that's free of contaminates can float all the way through the series of tanks.

That said, shipping the material whether to a recycler or back to their own facility for reprocessing is always going to be the potentially cost and environmentally prohibitive aspects.


Sprues and runners that are removed at the factory on many products are a lot simpler than those on model kits and/or designed in a way they can be snapped away easily. Often on stuff things that are simpler shapes or can be made from better flowing plastics, the sprues can be reduced or even done away with entirely (many plastic products you'll find an injection point on them with no extraneous sprue marks). On model kits, you might have 100 or more attachment points on a single frame that need to be carefully cut.

It also usually doesn't matter if the sprues are clipped off poorly on most products, which means it can be done quickly and carelessly at the factory. Imagine getting a box with 5 models, 10 components each, all with 3 attachment points that have been brutally clipped off in a way that requires filler on each one, 150 points to fill and smooth over just to build 5 models, that sounds like fun



Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/05 20:21:13


Post by: DeadliestIdiot


 Grot 6 wrote:

Blah blah blah


Methinks you've been at the koolaid a bit too much...


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/07 16:40:06


Post by: CthuluIsSpy


DeadliestIdiot wrote:

(alternatively, you could vacuum seal/shrink wrap the parts onto a bit of cardboard using much less and cheaper plastic than what the sprues are made of).

That would be even worse for the environment though. Sprues at least can be reused by the customer. That "cheaper" plastic would be discarded and end up in some turtle's throat, and it would be cheaper for GW, not for us.
The best ecological approach would be to encourage people to reuse their sprues, not give GW ideas to raise prices and make themselves look like saints for just using sweat shop labour (which would be the cheaper and most logical alternative for a company to use than a fancy machine) and dumping sheets of cheap plastic in the ocean.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/07 16:56:22


Post by: Grot 6


Removed - rule #1


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/07 17:42:11


Post by: Dries_Lee


Could the Precious Plastic project work for recycling sprues?

https://www.onearmy.earth/project/precious-plastic


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/07 18:04:52


Post by: CthuluIsSpy


Dries_Lee wrote:
Could the Precious Plastic project work for recycling sprues?

https://www.onearmy.earth/project/precious-plastic

Probably. I like this. I think this is a better solution than trusting a corporation.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/07 21:17:49


Post by: DeadliestIdiot


 Grot 6 wrote:
DeadliestIdiot wrote:
 Grot 6 wrote:

Blah blah blah


Methinks you've been at the koolaid a bit too much...


That's all you got?

Try and read what I wrote and actually try to come up with something marginally snarky next time, before you make a douche out of yourself again just trying to insult me for no other reason.


Sure thing my man. I've got a doctorate in atmospheric sciences. I say this not to claim I'm better than you (doing that sort of thing is stupid), but just to show that I know what I'm talking about. Climate change is real. The observations support it. The theory supports it. Global warming is a specific aspect of climate change, we didn't change the name to cover something up. Carbon footprints are a way of understanding the impacts of actions on the global climate budget, not a scam. Exxon launched a specific effort to undermine the efforts to combat climate change by pushing climate denial arguments in an organized manner into the public zeitgeist to convince the public and Congress to abandon anything that might cut into their business.
The main contributors to climate change are companies who like to point the finger and push delays in the spirit of "protecting the economy" for short term profits. Since they won't do anything meaningful, we, the individuals, must work to lower our individual carbon footprints where we can. Do we (as individuals) need to drop everything that produces greenhouse gas, not at this point. Should you substitute in lower carbon footprint things when you are capable and the opportunity presents itself? Absolutely! I've heard enough of people peddling disinformation. I did read what you wrote. You've been at the corporate koolaid too much whether you realize it or not. Better?


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/08 04:40:14


Post by: Grot 6


Removed - rule #1


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/08 13:11:34


Post by: DeadliestIdiot


I misjudged you. You're one of the rare ones who don't just insist that "it was cold out so climate change is a hoax" or "scientists are all in the pocket of big climate" (which, by the way, doesn't exist...on the other hand, green washing is a thing that companies do to make folks think they're doing something without actually doing anything). It's, frankly, exhausting to have to deal with day in and day out (and I don't even do research on climate myself, although I have the training to do so... I feel bad for my colleagues who actively study climate change). Keep up the open mind and I'll work to keep my frustrations in check.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/08 20:15:32


Post by: BuFFo


 Drakheart wrote:
Not sure on the logistics of getting this to work, but if it is a sustainable practice I'm all for it:

https://chng.it/Pg8LmGspv6



No.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/08 20:35:45


Post by: (HN)


This is honestly as pointless and silly as making a petition for GW to recycle the cardboard box.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/08 20:46:40


Post by: No One Important


What if GW swapped to a more useful sprue shape, such as hexagonal, that players can easily turn into crystals for basing?
Or round sprue with minor greebling that could easily be turned into small pipes?

I've built plenty of sprue terrain, and found the shape if GW's sprue to be annoying. It can be turned into a lot of things, but maybe if GW made it easier then more players would be into it. They could even go an extra step and make the sprue designs vary from faction to faction (hexagonal for necron crystals, straight round with minor greebles for IG pipes, oval with occassional embossing for tau pipes, battered round for ork pipes... uh... I'm sure there are other possibilities besides pipes... um... Death models get rougly rectangular sprue with wood grain texture for making fences...? Vague seaweed or coral shapes for Idoneth?).
Of course the sprue couldn't be too decorative or it couldn't do its job, but that's okay. It's not actually part of the kit - it's not a selling point, just making it easier for players to upcycle the sprue.
Sure, players would still have to clean off all the gates and this and that, and GW's modern sprue layout can be pretty convoluted (but imagining taking three pipe-shaped sprues, doing a little cleanup, adding a few details, and slamming them together to make a wall-o-pipes for Necromunda). And it might be difficult for GW to design sprues that could do this and still fulfill their real purpose... but the thought occured to me as I was trying to force myself to make some more sprue terrain to clear out space and I figured I'd throw it out there so I can stop thinking about it.
Except now that I've thought of the wall-o-pipes I'm tempted to assemble some gunpla I bought on a whim and see if I can make that happen with their sprues.
Oh well, such is life.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/08 21:28:14


Post by: CthuluIsSpy


I'd prefer it if the sprues had a rectangular cross section rather than a trapezoid. Then they could be used as building materials for model cabins. Right now it's a little awkward because of their shape; you have to trim them down to be more of a rectangle.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/09 02:27:32


Post by: ced1106


> green washing is a thing

It's already happened in the states for "organic". Larger store chains lobbied (or whatever) to relax standards for "organic", just so they could put "organic" on the lable. IMO, All these attempts to get *others* to be green are less productive than changes to our own lifestyle. I just saw an alternative energy video, and my thoughts were that, if you want to save energy, you could sleep at night and do activities during the day (at least on weekends).

Amazon, btw, keeps telling us how they're saving on packaging with envelopes and whatever cardboard box, but Prime membership means you get entire boxes and envelopes just for one item. (Amazon Prime has a weekly shipment instead, which saves you packaging, and them money.)

IMO, Post-industrial waste and its reduction would be a better focus than post-consumer waste. Post-consumer waste requires much more sorting and transport, both of which further requires energy, and doesn't address the idea of using resources more efficiently. For companies, more efficient use of resources means greater profit and lower prices for product.


> This is honestly as pointless and silly as making a petition for GW to recycle the cardboard box.

Time for a petition!

Dunno how many of you have seen the bulk bagged off-brand cereals in the store, but they're not just a better value, but more ecologically friendly as well. But what do the shoppers want? The cardboard boxes -- and the plastic bag that you still need to contain the cereal.

https://www.standuppouches.net/blog/is-cardboard-box-packaging-good-for-cereals



Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/09 04:19:21


Post by: ph34r


 CthuluIsSpy wrote:
I'd prefer it if the sprues had a rectangular cross section rather than a trapezoid. Then they could be used as building materials for model cabins. Right now it's a little awkward because of their shape; you have to trim them down to be more of a rectangle.
The trapezoid probably helps the sprue pop out of the mold cleanly and easily.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/10 14:34:31


Post by: Ian Sturrock


(a) It's pretty clear that the climate crisis is real, ongoing, and worsening; anyone still denying that, these days, is not worth arguing with, because they didn't get to that position by logic. It's an ideological stance with them.

(b) Incineration of waste is disastrous for local air quality and for global CO2 emissions. There's no clean way to do it. A UK cross-party committee looked into the science earlier this year and recommended no new incinerators in the UK. More here: https://ukwin.org.uk/facts/

(c) The manufacturer really ought to be taking steps to be sustainable or preferably regenerative. That's GW in this case. They could certainly reuse sprue material for lower detail products such as battleboards or other big terrain pieces.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/10 15:02:13


Post by: AllSeeingSkink


 Ian Sturrock wrote:
(c) The manufacturer really ought to be taking steps to be sustainable or preferably regenerative. That's GW in this case. They could certainly reuse sprue material for lower detail products such as battleboards or other big terrain pieces.


I don't think GW makes any of the big terrain stuff in house anyway.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/10 15:03:28


Post by: Ian Sturrock


I don't much mind *what* GW do with their sprues, as long as it's not incineration or landfill. Recycling it elsewhere is fine. It just needs to be their responsibility, rather than the consumer's.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/10 15:06:21


Post by: AllSeeingSkink


 ph34r wrote:
 CthuluIsSpy wrote:
I'd prefer it if the sprues had a rectangular cross section rather than a trapezoid. Then they could be used as building materials for model cabins. Right now it's a little awkward because of their shape; you have to trim them down to be more of a rectangle.
The trapezoid probably helps the sprue pop out of the mold cleanly and easily.


Yeah, the trapezoid has draft angles. I'm sure it could be more square, but having runners that fall out of the mould easily probably helps if the models are a more difficult to get out.

They could do circular, but I imagine the reason for doing trapezoids is so they only have to machine one side of the mould with the runners. I guess they could do a semi-circle and then people could glue them together to make a circle. We would then have to ask how environmentally friendly the glue is I guess.

But I don't really use my sprues for terrain and whatnot because unless you spend a lot of time hacking them into a different shape, the trapezoids are too identifiable as sprues.

I do use old sprues for holding models while spraying them, but I could use a single sprue for ages, you don't really need as many as you'll likely have on hand.



Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/10 20:24:55


Post by: ph34r


 Ian Sturrock wrote:
I don't much mind *what* GW do with their sprues, as long as it's not incineration or landfill. Recycling it elsewhere is fine. It just needs to be their responsibility, rather than the consumer's.
The reality of the modern recycling situation means that often “shipped oversees to recycle” in fact means “shipped overseas (such as to China) to incinerate”


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/10 22:06:44


Post by: Tastyfish


I would have assumed that there was already shipments going back between the GW stores and the warehouses, with excess stock going back to be stored or pulped.

So you'd be piggybacking off that.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/10 22:12:02


Post by: Grot 6


 Tastyfish wrote:
I would have assumed that there was already shipments going back between the GW stores and the warehouses, with excess stock going back to be stored or pulped.

So you'd be piggybacking off that.


The excess stock is put into the market. Always has been the case. That is why you have the flash sales of specific items after every iteration of game release.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/11 07:18:27


Post by: MoD_Legion


 Ian Sturrock wrote:
(a) It's pretty clear that the climate crisis is real, ongoing, and worsening; anyone still denying that, these days, is not worth arguing with, because they didn't get to that position by logic. It's an ideological stance with them.

Ah yes, misrepresenting the opinion of other people, claiming a moral high ground, and then saying it's ideological for the people on the other side . Nobody opposes the claim that the climate is changing (or well, I'm sure you can find some I guess), the contented claim is that it's man made (or largely/mainly man made) and that co2 is the driving force behind it. But I'm sure you knew that and made this argument in good faith.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/11 10:33:08


Post by: DeadliestIdiot


Can confirm... it's humies and co2 (also methane)


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/11 12:35:06


Post by: MoD_Legion


So how do you explain the medieval warm period and the global freeze scare of the 70's? If it's purely co2 (and other greenhouse gases) driving the temperature increase, these events don't fit your theory. Just saying, there might be more to it than co2 and simply ignoring the *many* other variables that obviously influence the climate, which might also explain why not a single climate prediction ever has been correct. Then saying everybody who doesn't agree is 'ignoring science' is intellectually dishonest at best.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/11 12:45:35


Post by: CthuluIsSpy


Another variable could be the sun. The sun does get larger and hotter over time.
It's likely that Climate Change is a combination of various variables, Co2 emissions being one of them.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/11 13:12:46


Post by: Gert


I love how "GW should recycle more" leads to climate change denial.
The Mods maybe gonna jump on the lack of topic or what?


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/11 13:24:44


Post by: Ian Sturrock


 Gert wrote:
I love how "GW should recycle more" leads to climate change denial.
The Mods maybe gonna jump on the lack of topic or what?


It'd be nice, wouldn't it, especially given the deniers are just repeating the standard, boring, long debunked, oil industry-funded propaganda that we've heard for decades.

Folks if you want facts about the climate denial propaganda campaign that gave you your oh-so-smart whataboutism, try desmog:

https://www.desmog.com/

If you want unbiased scientific info on the climate breakdown, The Conversation is a good starting point. It's written by academic researchers, with journalistic support, and doesn't have shareholders or owners.

https://theconversation.com/uk/environment

If you *genuinely* have something new to offer regarding climate science, I suggest doing your climate PhD, then writing some peer-reviewed articles, then doing the pop science version on The Conversation. I'll happily read that.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/11 13:54:35


Post by: Brickfix


On the topic of the increase in the sun's temperature and its influence on our gobal warning:

https://climate.nasa.gov/climate_resources/189/graphic-temperature-vs-solar-activity/

Doesn't look like an argument to me


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/11 13:58:26


Post by: CthuluIsSpy


Brickfix wrote:
On the topic of the increase in the sun's temperature and its influence on our gobal warning:

https://climate.nasa.gov/climate_resources/189/graphic-temperature-vs-solar-activity/

Doesn't look like an argument to me

Interesting. I stand corrected then.
I wonder where the decrease is coming from, that's a significant drop.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/11 14:26:55


Post by: Brickfix


It is not a significant drop. It's less then a W/m².

Edit: Rereading my comment it sounds a bit harsh. So from am engineering stand point, it is not a significant drop (I recalled this graph because I looked this up for temperature management on a satellite). For extra information, I recall there was a theory that there is a superimposed cycle over the 11 year solar cycle but it is not proven. This may have an effect on the amount of radiation reaching earth. Another possibility is a change in the distance between earth and sun, NASA has the horizons web app where you can get the planetary positions past and future to compare this to the graph.


Petition to get GW to recycle sprues. @ 2022/08/11 14:33:38


Post by: CthuluIsSpy


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Brickfix wrote:
It is not a significant drop. It's less then a W/m².

Edit: Rereading my comment it sounds a bit harsh. So from am engineering stand point, it is not a significant drop (I recalled this graph because I looked this up for temperature management on a satellite). For extra information, I recall there was a theory that there is a superimposed cycle over the 11 year solar cycle but it is not proven. This may have an effect on the amount of radiation reaching earth. Another possibility is a change in the distance between earth and sun, NASA has the horizons web app where you can get the planetary positions past and future to compare this to the graph.

Could be a matter of distance, although you'd think that if the sun was getting larger and stronger with age (an observed phenomena), the amount of radiation reaching earth would increase rather than decrease, unless for some reason Earth has drifted further from the sun to "compensate".
It might be due to an increase of aerosols and other chemicals blocking some of the sun's radiation, which apparently is an effect they have. Which given that this downward trend seems to start in 1950, seems to check out?