For several years Eckert & Ziegler has provided services to take back old radiation sources. In this field of business, the acquisition of the isotope specialist Nuclitec GmbH located in Braunschweig (Germany) has resulted in the new segment Environmental Services. The history of this new segment goes back to the end of the 19th century, when Friedrich Giesel, then Head Chemist at the Braunschweig facility, manufactured the first commercial radium samples ever for scientists like Ernest Rutherford and Marie Curie. Since 1976 considerable infrastructure and a seamless service portfolio for taking back, recycling and disposal of radioactive sources as well as for handling, processing and intermediate storage of low level radioactive waste has been built up.
Based on over 30 years of experiences and comprehensive licenses, the Environmental Services segment collects, measures, sorts, treats and packs low level radioactive waste from hospitals, research institutes and industry for its final disposal. High pressure compaction to reduce the final volume of waste material is one of the process steps carried out at the Braunschweig facility. Treated waste typically includes protective cloths, laboratory and medical components like glass dishes, cleaning materials, measuring and calibration devices, air filters and building rubble. Categorization and measurement of waste materials is performed in the segment´s own measurement laboratory which is accredited by the German calibration service (DKD/DAKKS). All process steps are carried out under a certified quality assurance system following DIN EN ISO 9001:2008