Pulp Friction Ltd

What Pulp Friction Ltd does

Pulp Friction Ltd is a UK private limited company headquartered at Darent Industrial Park in Erith, Kent, that collects, sorts, bales and trades recyclable waste materials — principally paper, cardboard and plastic film, with secondary metals and, since December 2024, residual general waste converted into Refuse Derived Fuel. The company runs its own fleet of varied collection vehicles out of a single large depot and services industrial and commercial customers across London and the Home Counties, including printers, print finishers, direct mail producers, packaging manufacturers, government departments, charities, universities, manufacturing and engineering businesses, large retailers and garden centres. In 2023 the business ethically recycled over 45,000 tonnes of material and is supplied by a team of roughly seven named office staff plus operational drivers and yard personnel under founder and CEO Steve Oliphant.

The business model combines four revenue streams: (1) transaction-fee material processing margins between the price paid to waste generators and the price realised from paper mills, brokers and reprocessors for baled output; (2) recurring rental and lease income on compactors, baling presses, air extraction systems and a wide range of waste containers (compaction bins, roll-on-off containers, stand trailers, flat pack pallet boxes, dolavs and 1100L wheelie bins); (3) professional services revenue from environmental auditing and waste management strategy work; and (4) the newly launched general waste collection service. Pricing is bespoke and quote-based, with the company advertising market-leading rebates for recyclables and a price-match guarantee against incumbents for general waste. There is no proprietary software or AI layer; the moat rests on operational experience, owned logistics assets, ISO 9001/14001 and TRA compliance credentials, and the repurchased Pulp Friction brand originally established in 1995 and reactivated in 2019 after the 2012 Viridor divestiture.

Name

Pulp Friction Ltd

Legal name

Pulp Friction Ltd

Website

https://www.pulpfrictionltd.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Pulp Friction Ltd is a UK waste recycling company that collects, sorts and bales paper, cardboard, plastic film, metals and (since December 2024) general waste from industrial and commercial customers across London and the Home Counties, operating its own fleet from a depot in Erith, Kent.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Waste Recycling Services

SIC

Refuse Systems (4953), Wholesale-Paper & Paper Products (5110)

akta.pro primary industry

Recycled Fiber, Recovered Paper & Secondary Fiber Trading (IMAMAIAK)

Keywords

• Waste paper recycling
• Cardboard collection services
• Plastic film recycling
• Metal scrap recycling
• General waste collection

Headquarters

HQ city

Erith

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Supply Chain, Personnel, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Recyclable Material Processing and Collection: Pulp Friction collects, sorts, treats and recycles waste paper, cardboard, plastics, and metals. They purchase waste materials from generators and sell processed baled materials to paper mills, brokers, agents, and reprocessors. Revenue is derived from material processing fees and the margin between material purchase cost and sale price to end markets.
2. Equipment Supply and Leasing: Pulp Friction supplies, rents, and leases baling presses, compactors, and various waste containers (wheelie bins, open top containers, roll-on-off bins, dolavs, flat pack pallet boxes, stand trailers) to customers. This provides recurring rental revenue and supports their core collection services.
3. Environmental Consultancy: The company provides environmental auditing and consultancy services including waste collection strategy, waste management policy development, and waste treatment/disposal technology assessments.
4. General Waste Collection: From December 2024, Pulp Friction expanded into general waste collection services, including wheelie bin services (emptied by RCV/dustcart), skip collections, and roll-on-off container services. Residual waste is processed into Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) for energy-from-waste or CHP facilities.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Pulp Friction Ltd collects, sorts, treats, and recycles waste paper, cardboard, plastic film, metals, and general waste from industrial and commercial customers across London and the Home Counties. They purchase waste materials from generators, process and bale them, and sell processed materials to paper mills, brokers, agents, and reprocessors. They also supply, rent, and lease baling presses, compactors, and waste containers, and provide environmental auditing and consultancy services.

Product overview

Pulp Friction Ltd is a specialist waste paper, card and film recycling company offering a comprehensive suite of collection, processing and recycling services. The core offering centers on paper, cardboard, plastic film, metal, and general waste recycling services, supplemented by environmental consultancy. Equipment rental/sales includes compactors, baling presses, air extraction systems, and various container solutions (compaction containers, roll on off containers, stand trailers, flat pack pallet boxes, dolav containers, and wheelie bins). The company operates primarily in London and the Home Counties, collecting from printers, print finishers, Direct mail companies, packaging manufacturers, government departments, charities, universities, manufacturing businesses, large retailers and garden centres.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Paper Recycling Scheduled and ad-hoc collection services for all grades of paper including newspapers, magazines, office papers, printers waste paper, envelopes, packaging grade solid boards, scanboard, folding box board and securely shredded documents. Targeted at industrial and commercial waste producers.
• Cardboard Recycling Collection services for baled cardboard including part and full loads, as well as loose cardboard in large volumes using stillages, wheelie bins, open top roll on off bins, and compaction units. For high-volume cardboard producers in London and the Home Counties.
• Plastic Film Recycling Collection and receiving services for clean, washed plastic film, PP Sacks (bulk builders sacks), and specific types of rigid plastics including wheelie bins, UPVC window frames, drainage pipe, guttering, and Garden Centre pots, tubs and trays. Targeted at industrial plastic waste producers.
• Metal Recycling

Quantifiable outcome

• Ethically recycled over 45,000 tonnes of paper, cardboard and plastics in 2023
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Paper Round: London-based specialist paper and cardboard recycling company serving commercial customers with scheduled collections. Most direct competitor to Pulp Friction on paper/cardboard collection services in the London market.
• Ward Recycling: UK metal and paper recycler operating collection services for commercial waste producers. Comparable to Pulp Friction on metal and paper recycling streams with overlapping customer types.
• Day Group: Specialist UK paper, cardboard and plastics recycler with merchant and processing operations. Comparable to Pulp Friction as a specialist secondary fibre buyer and processor supplying paper mills.
• Simply Waste Solutions: Regional UK commercial waste collector offering general waste, recycling and skip hire to SMEs and enterprises in the South East. Comparable to Pulp Friction's expanded (Dec 2024) general waste offering and London/Home Counties catchment.
• Recycling Lives: UK recycling and waste management business providing commercial recycling services including paper, cardboard, plastics and metals. Comparable to Pulp Friction on core recyclables streams and customer segments.

Broad incumbents

• Biffa plc: Listed UK waste services group providing commercial collections, recycling and skip/RoRo services nationwide. Competes with Pulp Friction on general waste and cardboard collection from large retailers, DCs and industrial customers in the South East.
• Veolia UK: Largest UK waste management operator offering commercial collection, materials recycling and energy-from-waste. Comparable to Pulp Friction across paper, cardboard, plastic and general waste streams, but at national scale with bundled service contracts that Pulp Friction also bids against.
• Suez Recycling and Recovery UK: UK division of Suez providing commercial waste and recycling, including paper, cardboard and plastics. Competes with Pulp Friction for large enterprise contracts, particularly retailers, universities and industrial customers.
• Viridor: Major UK waste and recycling company that acquired the original Pulp Friction and SBS Ltd in 2012 and held the brand until 2019. Directly comparable as a large-scale paper/recyclables buyer and processor across the UK, with overlapping offtake relationships with paper mills.
• FCC Environment (UK): UK arm of FCC Group offering municipal and commercial waste collection, recycling and treatment. Comparable on commercial cardboard, paper and general waste collection with overlapping customer profiles in retail and distribution.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInuk.linkedin.com/company/pulp-friction-ltd-erith

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Pulp Friction Ltd