Solum, a Danish recycling company, has inaugurated the first facility using a robot dedicated to the sorting of construction waste in Denmark.
The new plant, located in Roskilde, represents a milestone in the country’s green transition efforts in a sector responsible for almost 40 per cent of Denmark’s total waste output.
Designed to increase recycling rates, the robot is set to transform waste management practices by enabling precise and efficient sorting, reducing landfill waste, and cutting CO₂ emissions.
With advanced sensor technology, the robot is capable of sorting waste into specific recyclable fractions, such as wood, plastic, metal, and concrete, achieving up to 90 per cent purity in separated materials. This is an improvement over traditional manual sorting methods, which previously achieved only around 10 per cent recycling efficiency.
“This facility is a milestone not only for Solum but for Denmark’s broader vision of sustainability,” said Christian B. S. Christensen, Solum’s CEO and founder. “Solum has always embraced innovation, and today we are ushering in a new era for construction waste management. With the capacity to process 25,000 tonnes of construction waste annually and perform 40 sorting operations per minute, the robot offers both immediate environmental benefits and long-term adaptability.
“The robot’s learning capacity enables it to evolve with industry needs, ensuring it remains responsive to future waste management challenges and material advancements.”
The facility’s robotic system is designed to adapt to future industry needs, learning continuously through AI to sort emerging waste materials with even greater accuracy.
Attendees witnessed a live demonstration of the robot’s abilities, including its fine-tuned recognition of detailed material characteristics, such as paint on wood, ensuring only uncontaminated wood waste is directed for recycling. This precision allows reclaimed wood, for example, to be repurposed into new products such as chipboard for the furniture industry, directly reducing the carbon footprint associated with new production.
The event concluded with a tour and Q&A session, where media representatives and industry experts discussed the long-term impacts of robotic sorting on the construction sector.