Owens Corning held a ribbon cutting ceremony on Dec. 2 to celebrate the activation of a shingle recycling pilot that kicks off its goal of recycling 2 million tons of shingles per year by 2030.

The pilot was established in partnership with ASR Systems, CRS Reprocessing Services and Indiana Shingle Recycling. The ceremony marks the completion of pilot equipment construction and the official launch of the company’s work to reclaim asphalt shingle components and repurpose those raw materials into new shingles. The event was held at the pilot site on the grounds of Indiana Shingle Recycling in Indianapolis. 

“Owens Corning is focused on sustainability and making the world a better place. We want to help distributors and contractors advance sustainability through high-performing, recycled shingles that protect homeowners’ most valuable asset,” said Gunner Smith, roofing president. 

While acknowledging ongoing efforts in research and development that inform this recycling work, Smith credited the role played by Owens Corning teams and pilot partners in advancing this effort from lab scale to pilot scale.

“As we start this next phase, we recognize those within Owens Corning and our collaborators who are sharing their knowledge, experience and expertise in the pilot operation,” Smith said. 

Following the ribbon cutting, guests toured the facility and saw a demonstration of the equipment, systems and technologies at the pilot operation.

In early November, Owens Corning announced advancements toward its circular economy goals through enhanced shingle recycling efforts. It is focusing on two workstreams for shingle recycling: the pilot effort to recycle shingles into new shingles and recycling shingles into asphalt pavement. 

The pilot effort to recycle shingles into new shingles utilizes proprietary, patented processes to effectively deconstruct post-consumer and post-industrial shingles and extract raw materials for reuse. Following extraction, the materials will be transported to Owens Corning manufacturing facilities for testing in the production of new shingles made with recycled content. 

By working closely with paving contractors, Owens Corning scientists have provided technical guidance for incorporating recycled shingles in an asphalt mix design that meets federal and state paving performance requirements. The company has diverted 40 million pounds of used shingles from the landfill into pavement since 2020 and is focused on proactively expanding this offering to additional markets to increase the volume of shingles diverted from landfills.