How one logistics company invested in sustainable disposal

Greenbank Recycling Solutions secured the sale of five fully automatic cardboard balers, helping a customer to simplify cardboard waste disposal with financing from Siemens Financial Services (SFS).

Established in 1993, Greenbank helps businesses streamline recycling and waste management processes, making them more efficient, cost effective and sustainable. It takes a tailored approach, analysing customers’ waste operations to make factual, data based recommendations that both stack up financially and help the customer achieve their economic and sustainability goals.

The company serves the distribution, retail, food packaging, and manufacturing industries, providing machinery such as balers and compactors, as well as maintenance and consultancy services.

In this case, the customer was an international logistics group providing supply chain solutions for restaurant chains around the world. The company’s headquarters are in the US with a significant number of sites in the UK. Greenbank is its preferred supplier of waste management solutions in the UK, thanks to the comprehensive approach described above.

To support corporate sustainability goals, five fully automated cardboard balers were required for the high volumes of cardboard waste. These robust machines compact excess cardboard into tightly bound bales, significantly reducing waste volume, storage space and the cost of disposal.

The investment in these balers was considerable therefore it was in both Greenbank and the customers’ interest to utilise a finance solution to facilitate this transaction.

SFS UK has been a key financing partner of Greenbank for over a decade. SFS has a wealth of experience and expertise to manage complex structures, values and asset types as well as the unique opportunity to draw on global resources.  

As this was a global customer with equipment being installed in the UK, it made the financial application more complex. The SFS UK based account manager leveraged his relationship with his US counterparts to gain a deeper understanding of the financial position of the customer to ensure a successful credit approval.

Ashlyn Saltmarsh, executive assistant at Greenbank, explained how this financing solution from SFS enabled the sale of these cost saving, sustainability enabling machines. ‘The sizeable exposure, the location of the customer’s financial decision makers, and the required speed of the transactions could have put off even the most experienced financier.

‘SFS kept us in the loop throughout, so we were never in the dark about how conversations were progressing.’

Kerrell Banks, account development manager, SFS UK, said: ‘The size of investment, complexity and international element in this transaction meant we needed to do more due diligence than usual. We were fortunate to have the support of SFS in the US, as well as the experienced and knowledgeable staff in the UK. Completing this deal demonstrates the power of collaboration and service excellence.

‘We are pleased we were able to support Greenbank in completing these transactions, but also that their customer can now benefit from this valuable equipment and see a long-term return on this investment and sustainability.’