Validation and calibration of a cost model for the collection of paper, paperboard and cardboard to calculate the proportion of costs attributable to packaging

The results of an existing model for estimating a cost-sharing formula in relation to the joint collection of packaging as a proportion of the goods originally collected are no longer valid without reservation, as the paper & board packaging proportions have since risen very significantly, partly due to the growth in online retail and a decline in the NVP-PPK proportions. The existing model, including its parameters, must therefore be evaluated and calibrated using real-world data in order to recalculate the cost-sharing formula. The aim of the project is to validate and calibrate the model parameters in order to (1) determine the cost share of packaging collection within paper and board collection for different mass proportions under real-world (i.e. not merely model-based) conditions and options for route planning and optimisation (e.g. collection intervals), and furthermore (2) to optimise route planning for paper and board collection. As a fundamental principle of the methodology, collection rounds are to be monitored and assessed using sorting analyses and compaction tests, for which – based on the socio-economic structure – a particularly low or high proportion of packaging, in the range of 25 to 45 per cent by mass, can be expected. Monitoring the collection rounds essentially involves documenting route and travel times (GPS-assisted) and recording container volume, number and fill level. Sorting analyses involve a representative sample of containers, which are removed shortly before the respective collection round using a transfer procedure and subsequently analysed by manual sorting into a few relevant fractions.