With in-person tours limited by safety regulations, Visy needed an engaging, and accessible solution to connect with schools, councils, and communities. The Virtual Material Recovery Facility (MRF) helps reduce contamination, improve recycling habits, and support councils in meeting waste diversion goals.

Earlier this year, we worked closely with Visy, a global leader in packaging, recycling and logistics, to create an interactive web experience to guide users through a typical Material Recovery Facility (MRF). The customised 3D web tool we created shows users how materials are recovered, and helps them learn more about what should and shouldn't go in their recycling bins.

Visy were facing the challenge of implementing a visually engaging way to tell their story - whilst still maintaining that key information was easily accessible to users. Due to various safety regulations, they are unable to offer many in person tours of their facilities and wanted a way to connect to stakeholder groups such as councils, schools and community groups. Visy still needed a safe and engaging way to showcase to the public what happens to their recycling beyond kerbside pick-up. Ultimately, the goal of this project was to demonstrate that recycling is really recycled and truly does have a real impact.

Unfortunately, there is still a lot of contamination when it comes to recycling. This is likely due to genuine confusion about what can and can’t go in the recycling bins and simple mistakes like bagging recyclables. The Virtual MRF aims to encourage better recycling habits to ultimately reduce contamination. It features a guided voiceover as well as video demonstrations of different processes at the facility - including manual, mechanical, and optical sorting, baling, and large-scale collection. Users have the opportunity to learn more about specific material streams and how they’re separated and sorted in the MRF.

“By improving public understanding of the recycling process and encouraging better recycling behaviours, Visy’s virtual MRF supports national goals to reduce landfill, improve resource recovery, and increase recycling rates.” said Suzanne Hall, Communications & Marketing Manager at Visy.

“The community can see how their actions help Visy to turn more of their recycling back into new packaging for Australia’s food and beverage industry. The platform also supports councils to meet waste diversion targets by empowering communities with the knowledge they need to recycle right.”

After the initial launch of the virtual MRF, Visy shared that the public has provided “overwhelmingly positive feedback.” It’s understandable that without a visual way to engage with stakeholders, communicating with users can be incredibly difficult. By implementing tools such as the virtual MRF, we hope to build public trust and understanding through the demonstration of transparent and tangible processes.

Virtual tools have the potential to have a real-world impact when they’re implemented correctly. Spatial Media is truly pleased that Visy have garnered such a positive response from an array of key stakeholders. We’ve begun to see an uptick in councils embracing digital tools over the past few years, and agree that this is the future of community engagement. By embedding a virtual tour directly into a website, we’re making it more accessible and engaging for all kinds of users.

To explore the virtual MRF for yourself, visit https://www.visyvirtualmrf.com.au/

To find out how we can work together to create a fully customised digital solution for you, get in touch at contact@spatialmedia.io