A car battery mother lode

In an industry often marred by hazardous waste and bad press, a Meadowbrook-based business is racing towards a greener future.

V Resource is Queensland’s first and only lead acid battery recycler, where old car batteries are turned into materials like plastic, lead metal and lead paste.

An ethical dilemma was the catalyst for founder Vincent Huang’s entrepreneurial success.

Vincent, a John Paul College alumnus and the 2017 EY Entrepreneur of the Year, previously worked as a scrap metal dealer and was often asked by customers to illegally export car batteries.

‘I wanted to sleep well at night, so I recruited an R&D team with the goal of creating an exportable product in 2013,’ he says.

‘It wasn’t easy, but we got it done – it’s good business to be kind to the environment.

‘Everybody thought it was crazy, but I wanted to invest in the most advanced technology to make sustainability sustainable.’

The environmental ripple effects include landfill diversion, local waterway protection and reduction of toxic waste to name a few.

For Vincent, the business’ positive environmental impact is just one part of his vision.

‘I want people to realise that recycling as an industry doesn’t take place on a scrap metal yard – it can be very professional, high-tech and modern,’ he says.

V Resource is already paving the way for this rebrand in Logan with award-winning office interiors and cutting-edge technology.

On average, around 5,000 batteries are recycled per day – and Vincent’s already looking to increase output.

‘In the next 12 months, we’ll be able to scale up and recycle all of Queensland’s batteries in a single day with the same number of staff,’ he says.

‘We’re also looking to recycle our own water, acids and industrial waste in the next 6 to 12 months, which means we’ll be able to reach 99.9 per cent recycling rate in the plant,’ he says.

Vincent also plans to shake up the status quo with the latest tech.

Since hiring an in-house R&D team, the company has become paperless with all systems accessible on an iPad or mobile phone.

An automated warehousing system is also in the works, where containers will be loaded and unloaded by machines instead of staff.

‘We don’t want our staff to do drudge work when a machine can do it more safely,’ Vincent says.

‘We plan to upskill our existing employees to be able to design, operate and streamline automations instead.’

Learn more about the company on the V-Resource website.