Vinyl records shredded and granulated into colorful flakes

Black gold on repeat – vinyl recycling at Record Industry

Plastic June 3rd, 2025

It defies the ravages of time again and again, celebrating a seemingly endless comeback – the vinyl record. A traditional company from Haarlem, Record Industry, is partly responsible for its peak in the 1970s, as well as for the modern-day boom. Since 1958, the company west of Amsterdam has been producing thousands of records in all sorts of colors every day. To ensure not a single gram of the precious PVC plastic is wasted, Record Industry recycles production waste directly on-site using shredding technology from WEIMA and Wanner.

Vinyl shredding and recycling

Record Industry in Haarlem, Netherlands
Anouk Rijnders from Record Industry holds a recycled green record in her hands and smiles
WEIMA WLK 4 Shredder
Interview with Anouk and Dennis from Record Industry
At Record Industry in Haarlem, thousands of records are produced every day – sustainably and with virtually no waste. Thanks to shredding technology from WEIMA and Wanner, excess PVC is recycled and directly reused. This creates colorful vinyl made from 100% recycled material – a true cycle in the spirit of analog sound.
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Analogue technology is trending

While many pressing plants were forced to close in the late 1990s due to the rise of the compact disc (CD), the record industry has managed to successfully maintain its position in the music business to this day. This is now paying off, as records have once again become a sought-after medium in recent years, appreciated not only by music lovers. In addition to nostalgia and their collectible value, the quality of analog sound is increasingly preferred.

Milling machine or cutting machine with copper master record being milled

Production of DMMs for record production

Employee engineer of Record Industry sitting in the recording studio and master room in front of a computer screen

Production of master recordings

Patrick Henzler, Sales Director at WEIMA, in front of a green plant background with a white shirt, smiling
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One-stop shop for artists

The company’s manufacturing process demonstrates that seemingly outdated technology can indeed pursue modern sustainability goals. Record Industry sees itself as a full-service provider. Artists can have music recorded and mixed directly in its in-house recording studio. Next, the audio is cut into either a lacquer disc or copper plate (DMM) using a cutting lathe, which translates the audio signal into a modulated groove. This master is then processed through several steps in a galvanic (electroplating) process to create stampers, metal molds that are used to press the grooves into vinyl, producing the final record.

Record Industry employee examines a record master in front of a blue grinding machine

Sanding the master templates

A Record Industry employee opens a metallic negative mold for record production

Production of the negative mold for subsequent plate pressing

9 million records
Vinyl Revival
Record Industry produces up to 60,000 records a day in Haarlem.

Highly automated production processes

During the pressing process, so-called pucks (shaped similar to those used in ice hockey) made of special PVC are used. Pressure and heat are used to form the pucks into thin records. After a short cooling period, they are automatically placed in paper sleeves for protection. The final step is packaging in the appropriate covers and sleeves. The record is ready for sale and playback.

A white robot moves around the aisle next to pressing machines at Record Industry

Automation in record production

Wanner C-Series granulator next to a Record Industry press machine
Discarded black PVC pucks for recycling, collected in white plastic container
WEIMA WLK 4 single-shaft shredder at Record Industry, next to a Wanner granulator and conveyor belts
Wanner cutting mills next to press machines, in front of which a white robot drives
Rear view of a Wanner C-Series granulator next to a pressing machine for record production

In the middle of the recycling scene: Wanner granulators

From the puck to the plate – and back again

During each pressing process, a process-related overhang of PVC material approximately 20 mm wide is created on the outside – the remaining part of the puck. This is sheared off, giving the record its final circular shape. Therefore, next to each of the nearly 40 pressing machines is a compact C-series cutting mill from Wanner in Wertheim, Germany. The production waste is automatically ejected from the pressing machine and fed into the cutting mill’s hopper. Within seconds, the cuttings are shredded into approximately 4 mm flakes and fed to the extruder via a mixing valve. This eliminates waste, as the edge trimmings are processed directly inline.

Close-up of a record pressing machine, showing the removal of an orange PVC overhang

Orange edge section is cut off fully automatically

Colorful diversity for sustainable products

The end product is high-quality PVC flakes that can be reused in the record pressing process. The colorful mix of flakes creates a unique marbled color during pressing. Record Industry is proud that, with these colorful records, they now have a 100% recycled product in their portfolio. The conclusion to the collaboration with the shredding specialists at WEIMA and Wanner, as well as their partner Thiele & Kor Plastics Machinery from the Netherlands, is correspondingly positive:

A Record Industry employee places record waste on a conveyor belt

Manual disposal of record production residues

Colorful 25 mm PVC flakes on a conveyor belt

25 mm PVC flakes

Side view of a WEIMA WLK 4 plastic shredder with electromechanical drive and WEIMA WAP gearbox, to the right a conveyor belt

WEIMA WLK 4 plastic shredder with electromechanical drive and WEIMA WAP gearbox

PVC recycling plant at Record Industry with WEIMA shredder, Wanner granulator, dust removal, on the left an employee fills a conveyor belt with record production residues

PVC recycling plant at Record Industry

Vinyl records shredded and granulated into colorful flakes
PVC plastic material cycle in record recycling
"Thanks to the seamless collaboration with the technicians at WEIMA and Wanner, pressing our records is virtually waste-free. The project planning and implementation with Thiele & Kor Plastics Machinery was also very pleasant. We are now making maximum use of our material resources and can deliver a truly sustainable product to our artists. This reflects the spirit of the times and is also economically attractive for us."
Dennis Borst, Record Industry
Dennis Borst
Technical Director at Record Industry
Christian Zirnig
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