The milling of all kinds of materials is an essential part of our biodegradability testing, to ensure an efficient process. Upon request, Normec OWS also offers milling as a separate service, whereby we ship the milled materials to our customers. We have a range of cutting mills available for the shredding, grinding, or milling of different types of material, including soft, fibrous, hard, and elastic materials.
Our cutting mills can reduce materials to different fraction sizes, according to customer demand, such as smaller than 2 mm, smaller than 1 mm or smaller than 500 µm. This can be done for materials which are easy to mill, such as plastic pellets, up to materials which are notably hard to mill, such as soft plastic films or flexible wipes. In certain challenging cases, such as for specific kinds of harder as well as various elastic materials, we offer (cryogenic) milling using liquid nitrogen.
Yes, we are recognized by DIN CERTCO in line with ISO 17025. This accreditation covers all test procedures and standards with regard to compostability and biodegradation. Additionally, we are ISO 17025 accredited by BELAC for our compost analyses and also recognized by TÜV Austria. Normec OWS is also ISO 17020 accredited for inspection services and ISO 14001 approved for environmental management. View our recognitions & certificates.
Our main offices are located in Ghent, Belgium. We also have a subsidiary located in Kettering, Ohio to serve the needs of our American customers.
Testing duration depends on the specific type of test and the product itself. This can range from a couple of weeks for material characteristics testing, to months or even years for biodegradation testing. As these are microbial processes, we cannot predict the exact duration beforehand.
