When you consider the effect of technology and research at Disney Parks, discarded glass bottles are probably not the first thing to think about. Maybe you don’t see all the glass that Disney does.
Disney is now busy pulverizing some of these glass bottles; Nearly 2,000 pounds can be crushed in an hour and reused for use in other areas, potentially on horse trails, as a replacement for the floor of a greenhouse, or even where mulch once was.
The industrial machine – a glass of pulverizer – is located in a behind stage area on Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort in Orlando, Florida, out of sight from the guests. It is rather low -tech without high -tech components in use.
All the broken glass eventually becomes a somewhat shiny, clean, truth -like material. “We have a greenhouse almost complete with powdered glass,” said Debbie Mola Mickler, area manager at Disney’s Horticulture. “Role crew members ask me questions about it because they pass by and their natural reaction is, ‘wow, your greenhouse floor glistening.'”
‘Wow, your greenhouse floor glistening.’
Debbie Mola Mickler, area manager at Disney’s horticulture
And that’s the product produced by Glass Pulverizer.
This project started when other environmental teams at Disney asked what to do with the glass, explained Jarrod Stewart, Disney’s environmental integration project manager.
“Could we pulverize it? Use it potentially for road repair, other things?” were the questions suggested to Stewart.
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Thus, a search for a machine that could take a bottle of wine began with a wax seal that is still around the top and a label on the front, separate it and then surely crush the glass to spread a truth -like material.
“I stumble upon the type of machine that we drive here separating all these non-glass items,” he said. “It actually emits the labels and all that all that separately.”
The result is a truth-like material that can be mixed with coquina or replace the mulch-ning high-tech sensors required. “There is no smart equipment at all on this machine – not even in the control panel,” Stewart said.
At the core is a patented Hammermølle. “The glass bottle is gone, but wax is still intact, even with the drips and everything that comes out of it,” Stewart said. “It’s a very interesting percussive action … It’s the patented part of the machine.”
As several teams across the Disney World property heard about the pilot, interest grew. Debbie Mola Mickler saw it on the news and immediately called Stewart to request a test batch for greenhouses and horticulture teams. The Catering team also wanted to be included and offer a transport solution: “They said, ‘You know what, our trucks are running around the property all day … We just let go of the full trash and pick up the timber as we drive by,” Stewart said.
Pulverizer’s output is now used in selected areas that guests can see. “We’ve used it in a few places on stage,” Stewart explained. “One in Fort Wilderness, where it actually replaces mulch around the food car pad.” In this case, it is a more permanent solution as Mulch eventually had to be replaced due to wear.
Behind the scenes, Imagineering and Disney’s facility team is investigating even more uses, including non-structural concrete or paths. It may even end up with other Disney locations around the world and even at sea, thanks to the Disney Cruise Line-one with the produced sand-like material used or with the glass sent to be powdered.
“The sustainability design team determines how it can be used to work against sustainable design goals they have by using recycled material in the construction,” Stewart said.
While the powderizer remains in one behind the stage area, the influence of the initiative is increasingly visible.
Hi, can we participate in this? How do we help this grow?
Jarrod Stewart, Disney’s environmental integration project manager
“You know, sometimes when you ask people to sort their garbage to another one, you know, separate category, they are a little hesitant, or you might get a little pushback,” Stewart said.
“In this case because people see it, they identify themselves with the story. They want to be part of it. So we get calls every week with ‘Hi, can we participate in this? How do we help this grow?’
