Fernanda Orvañanos Sotomayor
Elizabeth Daza
Naty QM
Universidad Popular Autónoma del Estado de Puebla
George Dionne
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Abaplas was a business that produced packing materials for exportation out of recycled plastic which they processed internally. They found themselves stuck with tons of plastic that was ready to use or sell but it was not moving at all. The partners decided to make sewer lids out of the excess plastic waste because in Jalisco the iron or copper lids were often stolen from the streets and sold. The partners decided to make an eco-supplement unlikely to be stolen and made use of the pelletized plastic.
Abaplas was born to revolutionize the industry with eco-products such as strips and packaging materials for exportation. The company has its own recycling procedure which receives, separates, washes, cuts, and pelletizes the product which will then be used as raw material and will be sold to other companies. Nevertheless, the amount of recycled plastic surpassed their capacity and they eventually found themselves with three hundred tons stored without being able to use or sell it. Then the idea emerged between the partners to create a new product with the excess plastic. “We were not only losing money, but we also had no idea about the tools needed or the marketing channels, but our dream was so big, we started to find our way and the means to achieve it", said Alejandro Orvañanos, "In the beginning, it was not easy, but the work and perseverance made us feel so alive, committed and passionate, that the long journeys became short and with much effort we managed to start a great project with dimensions we never imagined.” After months of investigation, it occurred to them to make sewer lids. They searched and found one machine and a mold that could work for their innovation and started the production. The result has been quite a success since in Jalisco, the robbery of metallic sewer lids from the streets is a severe problem. Besides solving the robbery aspect, the plastic lids cost much less, can hold up to 36 tons of weight and have 30 years of useful life. After such grand success, the partners decided to keep investigating more things to create from their raw material and now have 28 products including speed reducers, pluvial grills, valve box lids for potable water. They also developed floor boards for trucks, barnyards, and other media that normally used wooden boards which helps to prevent deforestation.
Eight years ago this company emerged with the desire to help clean our world from the plastic that contaminates our cities, woods, rivers and oceans, and contribute to the reduction of climate change. They wanted to create sources of employment, make their community aware of recycling, and create products with the trash that were functional for everyone. With that vision they have positioned themselves as leaders in our country and now in South America too. They now have an office in Costa Rica where they distribute their products to Ecuador, Salvador, Panama, Guatemala and Nicaragua.
With the commitment of creating a company that was both sustainable and environmentally responsible, Abaplas was created with ten employees; today it benefits around 90 families in Guadalajara and Valle de Guadalupe, Jalisco and Costa Rica with 4 manufacturing sites and management offices. Alejandro Orvañanos said, “Besides being a good business, we contribute to humanity.”
The enterprise now has three production lines from which a hundred and fifty sewer lids are obtained daily and three hundred tons of recycled and processed plastic are used monthly. Abaplas declares having a 30 percent annual sales growth and in demand more and more. Because of their success they are continuing to create eco-prototypes and collecting plastic waste from the automotive industries in Jalisco, Queretaro, Irapuato and San Luis Potosi. Today, the 28 new products represent 80% of their annual sales and the remaining 20% comes from the original packaging materials for export products. “We are now more structured with a very firm platform in which we see that the huge sacrifices from the past were worth it. This is part of feeling alive every day and achieving more goals in very short terms.” Marco Moreno said.
This business has achieved over eight years that for every kilogram used for their products, a kilogram of trash is eliminated from the world. “When people are integrated and separate waste for us to reuse, we will have a better planet.” – Moreno, M. By recycling plastic they are helping their community create sources of employment, avoiding deforestation, and contamination of their environment, preventing the theft of public sewer lids, helping the government invest less money in generic products that have the same function as metallic ones and creating a recycling culture amongst the entire community. “We give talks in schools to encourage recycling, we want the children who are our future to grow with the culture of separating waste and then, we will be able to have a better world," remarked Alejandro Orvañanos.
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Marco Antonio Moreno Sandoval & Alejandro Orvañanos Galina, Operation and Commercial Directors
