1. Purpose and scope
These General Terms and Conditions govern the industrial sorting, separation and ancillary operations on plastic materials provided by Sortplast, S.L., hereinafter “SORTPLAST”, to customers acting in the course of their business or professional activities.
These Terms shall apply exclusively to relationships between businesses or professionals and to all contracted services, unless SORTPLAST and the Customer expressly agree otherwise in writing.
In the event of a conflict, the following shall prevail, in this order: (i) the specific conditions of the accepted offer or quotation; (ii) the relevant Sorting Order or Batch Sheet; and (iii) these General Terms and Conditions.
The Customer’s general terms shall not apply unless expressly accepted in writing by SORTPLAST.
2. Offers and formation of the contract
SORTPLAST’s offers shall be prepared on the basis of the information, documentation, photographs, samples and other data supplied by the Customer.
Unless the offer itself specifies another period, it shall remain valid for 30 calendar days from its date of issue.
The issue of an offer does not imply final acceptance of the material until SORTPLAST has been reasonably able to verify that its actual characteristics are compatible with the intended service.
The contract may be concluded by written acceptance of the offer, electronic acceptance through a personalised link or another system recording acceptance, signature of the Sorting Order or Batch Sheet, or actual commencement of the service with both parties’ knowledge and acceptance.
Subsequent amendments must be recorded in writing or by electronic means allowing their acceptance to be evidenced.
3. Sorting Order / Batch Sheet
Each job shall be linked to a Sorting Order or Batch Sheet, which may form part of the offer or constitute a separate document.
The sheet may record, among other details, the material, its legal status, the relevant European List of Waste (LER) code where applicable, the expected quantity, the weight received, the target fractions, the colours or polymers to be separated, quality specifications where applicable, the price, the number of stages, the treatment of rejects, packaging, transport and the specific conditions of the work.
The Sorting Order or Batch Sheet shall supplement these General Terms and Conditions and shall take precedence over them in matters it expressly regulates for a specific operation.
4. Description of the service
SORTPLAST provides industrial sorting services for shredded plastic materials, including, depending on each assignment, colour separation, polymer separation, removal of certain contaminant fractions, sorting in one or more stages and expressly agreed ancillary operations.
The specific configuration of the service shall be determined according to the material’s actual characteristics and the objectives defined with the Customer.
Unless expressly agreed, SORTPLAST does not provide washing, chemical decontamination, drying, grinding or other operations beyond those expressly included in the offer.
5. Minimum billable quantity
The standard minimum billable quantity per sorting order or campaign shall be 10 net tonnes of input material.
SORTPLAST may accept smaller quantities. Where a quantity below 10 tonnes is accepted, unless the offer expressly states otherwise, a minimum charge equivalent to 10 tonnes at the price per tonne set for the work shall apply.
The minimum quantity is not necessarily a physical minimum for receipt, but a financial minimum for invoicing.
6. Ownership of the material
Delivery of material to SORTPLAST for sorting does not transfer its ownership.
The input material shall remain the Customer’s property throughout the process, as shall the resulting fractions, unless expressly agreed otherwise in writing or required by mandatory law.
This principle covers sorted fractions, unsorted material, rejects, fines, dust, separated contaminants and any other fraction resulting from processing.
Civil-law ownership of the material shall not alter any obligations that environmental legislation may impose on SORTPLAST while the material is in its possession or under its control.
7. Legal status and declaration of the material
SORTPLAST may accept both materials legally classified as waste and materials legally classified as products, provided the specific operation is permitted under the facility’s authorisations and applicable legislation.
The Customer is responsible for correctly declaring the material’s legal status. Where it is classified as waste, the Customer must provide the relevant European List of Waste (LER) code and the necessary documentation.
SORTPLAST may check the consistency of the information supplied and reject the material where there is a material discrepancy or it cannot legally treat it.
8. Material information and characteristics
Before delivery, the Customer must provide truthful and sufficiently complete information about the material.
In particular, where known or reasonably required, the Customer must disclose the polymer type or types, origin, composition, colours, approximate particle size distribution, moisture, dust level, presence of metals, other non-plastic materials, contaminants, chemicals, hazardous substances or waste, and any circumstance that may affect safety, machinery, quality or the process.
The Customer may not deliver hazardous, prohibited or previously undeclared materials without SORTPLAST’s express authorisation.
The Customer shall be liable for costs and damage directly resulting from false, inaccurate, incomplete or omitted information that it should reasonably have disclosed.
9. Minimum material conditions
Unless an offer expressly specifies otherwise, material must be delivered shredded, clean and with a maximum moisture content of 1.0 % by weight, and free from quantities of dust, contaminants or other elements incompatible with safe and appropriate sorting.
Moisture may be determined using SORTPLAST’s usual procedure or the method specifically agreed in the offer.
No general maximum dust percentage is set. Its compatibility shall be assessed according to the characteristics of the material and process.
10. Material unsuitable for treatment
Where material received exceeds the moisture limit, contains quantities of dust incompatible with the process, is excessively dirty, contains undeclared contaminants or does not meet the agreed characteristics, SORTPLAST may refuse all or part of its processing.
In that case, the material shall be made available for collection by the Customer and the same notification, collection and storage conditions as for processed material shall apply.
Extraordinary inspection, handling, cleaning, conditioning or other costs caused by the material’s non-conforming condition may be charged additionally where attributable to the material or the information supplied by the Customer.
11. Inspection and acceptance
Before or after unloading, SORTPLAST may carry out a visual inspection, open big bags, take samples, conduct tests, analyse composition and check the material’s behaviour during an initial trial.
SORTPLAST may accept, partially accept or reject a batch where its actual characteristics do not reasonably correspond to those declared or prevent the service from being performed under the intended conditions.
Unloading or physical receipt of the material does not in itself constitute final technical acceptance.
12. Undeclared contaminants and damage
Where the material contains undeclared substances or elements that cause equipment contamination, cross-contamination, extraordinary cleaning, production stoppages, machinery damage, inability to process other batches, a need for external services, extraordinary waste management or additional transport or handling costs, SORTPLAST may charge the Customer for reasonably substantiated costs directly resulting from those circumstances.
SORTPLAST shall take reasonable measures to prevent or minimise damage.
13. Performance of the process
SORTPLAST shall determine the operating parameters and sorting sequence it considers technically appropriate to achieve the contracted objective.
It may use one or more stages and reasonably adapt the configuration where justified by the material’s actual behaviour.
Unless expressly agreed otherwise, the Customer contracts for the provision of a sorting service, not the use of a particular machine, technology, configuration or number of passes.
14. Purity, quality and specifications
SORTPLAST does not generally guarantee any particular purity, recovery or yield.
A specific purity, composition, tolerance, recovery or specification shall only be contractually binding where it is expressly stated in the offer or sheet as a guaranteed specification, the measurement criterion has been defined, an appropriate sampling procedure exists and the corresponding tolerances have been established.
Indicative objectives, preliminary trials or results obtained from samples shall not in themselves constitute a guarantee for an entire industrial batch.
15. Material variability
The Customer acknowledges that the outcome of industrial sorting may depend, among other factors, on the material’s composition, particle size and geometry, colour, shade, transparency, moisture, dust, dirt, homogeneity, contaminants and physical, optical or spectral behaviour.
A sample previously supplied by the Customer shall only be representative insofar as it adequately reflects the material subsequently delivered. Variations between samples or between different parts of the same batch may affect the outcome.
16. Sampling, retained samples and independent analysis
Where a contractual quality specification exists, the offer or sheet may define the sampling and analysis system, including the sampling point, quantity, frequency, analytical method, laboratory, tolerances and handling of conflicting results.
Where a retained sample has been taken, SORTPLAST shall keep it for 30 calendar days from completion of the work, unless another period has been agreed. After that period, it may be disposed of without any further retention obligation.
In the event of a discrepancy, an analysis may be requested from an independent laboratory agreed by the parties. The cost shall initially be advanced by the party requesting the analysis and ultimately borne by the party whose position is contradicted by the result, unless otherwise agreed.
17. Yield, recovery and losses
The sorting process may generate differences between the input weight and the sum of the final fractions due, among other factors, to dust, fines, moisture, adhered material, handling operations, cleaning and normal losses inherent in the process.
Unless specifically guaranteed in writing, SORTPLAST does not guarantee 100 % material recovery or a particular yield percentage. Recovery targets intended to be contractually binding must be expressly defined for each material.
18. Weighing
Unless otherwise agreed, the weight used for invoicing shall be the net weight of material received, excluding the weight of big bags, pallets and other packaging.
Weight shall be determined by individually weighing the big bags or other load units on scales with the required verifications or certifications. The sum of those net weights shall constitute the batch’s input weight.
SORTPLAST shall notify the Customer by email of the weights recorded after receipt and weighing.
The Customer shall have 48 hours from the sending of that notification to raise a documented objection. In the absence of an objection within that period, the notified weights shall be deemed accepted for operational and invoicing purposes, except in the case of manifest error.
19. Reject material and items received
Unless otherwise agreed, all fractions obtained and all items received shall remain available to the Customer.
SORTPLAST shall return the sorted fractions, rejects, unrecovered material, unprocessed material, used incoming big bags, used pallets and other items received with the batch.
SORTPLAST shall not retain those materials or items unless expressly agreed in writing or where a legal obligation requires another course of action.
20. Outgoing packaging
Unless otherwise agreed, the fractions obtained shall be prepared for dispatch in new, unbranded big bags without external commercial branding.
New big bags shall not automatically be included in the price per tonne and shall be invoiced separately at the price stated in the offer or quotation.
New pallets, special packaging, specific labelling or other additional requirements may likewise be invoiced separately.
21. Transport, loading and unloading
Unless expressly agreed otherwise, the Customer shall arrange and bear the cost of inbound transport and collection of the material.
Normal unloading of input material and normal loading of output fractions shall be carried out by SORTPLAST using its own resources and shall be included in the service.
The Customer shall be responsible for ensuring that the vehicles and carriers used are suitable and comply with applicable legislation.
Responsibility during transport shall lie with the Customer, carrier or relevant operator in accordance with the transport arrangements made and applicable legislation. SORTPLAST shall be responsible for the material while it remains in its custody where legally attributable to it.
22. Transport appointments and waiting times
Loading and unloading shall preferably take place by prior appointment.
A maximum waiting period of 60 minutes from the vehicle’s agreed appointment time is included.
Additional waiting, arrivals outside the agreed time, extraordinary operations or additional costs attributable to the Customer or its carrier may be charged at the rate specified in the offer, order or current tariff previously communicated to the Customer.
23. Completion times
Unless expressly committed to in writing, times communicated by SORTPLAST shall be estimates.
They may be affected by circumstances such as unexpected material characteristics, the need for additional stages, breakdowns, maintenance shutdowns, supply interruptions, logistical delays, documentary non-compliance, force majeure or other circumstances reasonably beyond SORTPLAST’s control.
SORTPLAST shall inform the Customer of significant delays as soon as reasonably possible.
24. Price, VAT and invoicing
Prices shall be those set out in the accepted offer.
Unless expressly stated otherwise, all prices shall exclude VAT and other applicable taxes.
Charges may include, as applicable, rates per tonne, minimum charges, batch prices, additional stages, analyses, trials, extraordinary handling, cleaning, big bags, pallets, storage, waiting, transport, waste management or other additional services.
For services invoiced per tonne, the basis shall be the net input weight received, determined in accordance with Article 18.
25. Cancellation of work
Where the Customer cancels a job after SORTPLAST has incurred specific costs to prepare or perform it, SORTPLAST may charge the costs actually incurred and reasonably substantiated.
There shall be no general fixed cancellation penalty unless the specific offer expressly provides otherwise.
26. Payment terms and non-payment
The standard payment term shall be 30 days from the invoice date.
There shall be no general prepayment requirement for new customers.
Where amounts are overdue and payable, SORTPLAST may suspend acceptance or performance of new work, require payment of outstanding amounts, claim the late-payment interest legally applicable to commercial transactions and claim legally recoverable collection costs.
As a standard policy, SORTPLAST shall not make release of material conditional on payment of an overdue invoice. The material may leave the facilities and the debt shall be managed separately. SORTPLAST may refuse new orders while invoices remain overdue.
27. Notification of availability and storage
When work has been completed, or rejected or unprocessed material is available for collection, SORTPLAST shall notify the Customer by email.
The storage period shall begin on the day following the sending of that notification. The first three calendar days shall be included at no additional charge.
From the fourth day, a progressive and cumulative daily charge shall apply: day 4, €50; day 5, €100; day 6, €200; day 7, €400; and so on, with the charge for each new day doubling.
The daily amounts are cumulative. Thus, if the material remains in storage until day 6, the accumulated charge shall be €350 before taxes.
The offer may expressly establish different storage conditions for a specific operation.
28. Uncollected material
If the Customer does not collect the material, SORTPLAST may send further requests for collection.
After 15 calendar days from the first notification of availability, SORTPLAST may formally initiate the steps necessary to require collection and take measures permitted by applicable legislation concerning storage, transfer or management of the material.
Legally applicable costs may be charged to the Customer.
No material shall be automatically deemed abandoned or automatically become SORTPLAST’s property solely through the passage of time.
29. Claims
Claims must be made in writing and clearly identify the Customer, batch reference, date, affected fraction, nature of the claim and the supporting information or analysis.
The standard period for notifying claims relating to visible defects or incidents shall be 10 calendar days from the Customer’s receipt of the output material at destination, evidenced by transport documentation or other reasonable means.
The Customer must retain the material concerned in conditions allowing its inspection and must not mix, transform or consume it where this would reasonably prevent verification of the subject of the claim.
Representative samples must be made available at SORTPLAST’s request.
The above period shall not affect rights that cannot legally be excluded in respect of defects not initially detectable.
30. Liability
Each party shall be liable for direct damage legally attributable to it as a consequence of failure to fulfil its obligations.
Where legally permitted, SORTPLAST shall not be liable for loss of profit, loss of production, loss of contracts, loss of opportunity, indirect or consequential damage, damage arising from subsequent improper use of the material or damage caused by characteristics not declared by the Customer.
SORTPLAST’s aggregate liability in relation to a batch shall be limited to the net amount of the sorting service for the affected batch, excluding VAT, third-party costs and ancillary items.
Where the service invoice has not yet been paid, this limit may be applied by not invoicing or issuing the corresponding credit up to that amount. If it has been paid, it may be implemented through a refund or credit.
The above limit shall not apply where liability cannot legally be limited.
31. Confidentiality
Both parties shall treat as confidential any non-public technical, commercial or business information received in connection with the contractual relationship.
This obligation shall cover in particular the identity of suppliers or customers, material origins, formulations, compositions, samples, prices, parameters, results, photographs, videos and processes.
Neither party may publicly use the other’s name, logo or commercial relationship as a reference without prior written authorisation.
The confidentiality obligation shall remain in force for 5 years after the contractual relationship ends. Trade secrets shall remain protected for as long as they legally retain that status.
32. Photographs, analyses, results and technical data
Photographs, analyses, results and specific technical documentation generated concerning a Customer’s material shall be treated as confidential information relating to that Customer.
SORTPLAST may retain the copies necessary for traceability, contractual compliance, defence of its rights and compliance with legal obligations.
SORTPLAST may retain and use internally anonymised technical information derived from the work for analysis, process improvement, internal research and technological development, provided it does not enable the Customer to be identified and the commercial relationship is not disclosed publicly.
SORTPLAST’s own general procedures, technical knowledge, configurations, experience, methodologies and know-how shall not be considered the Customer’s property merely because they were used during the service.
33. Subcontracting
SORTPLAST may use qualified third parties for ancillary operations, analysis, logistics, maintenance, waste management or other services necessary for proper performance of the assignment.
Subcontracting shall not release SORTPLAST from its legal or contractual obligations towards the Customer.
Where an activity requires specific administrative authorisation, operators authorised for that activity shall be used.
34. Force majeure
Neither party shall be liable for failure to perform directly caused by unforeseeable or unavoidable events beyond its reasonable control.
These may include, as applicable, widespread power outages, fires, natural disasters, administrative restrictions, external strikes, serious transport or supply interruptions and equivalent circumstances.
The affected party must notify the incident and take reasonable measures to reduce its consequences.
If the inability to perform continues for more than 30 calendar days, either party may terminate the part of the service not yet performed, without prejudice to obligations already accrued.
35. Environmental legislation and waste shipments
Where the material is legally classified as waste, both parties shall comply with their respective obligations under applicable environmental and waste legislation.
Where applicable, shipments within Spain shall be managed in accordance with Law 7/2022 on waste and contaminated soils for a circular economy, Royal Decree 553/2020 regulating waste transfers within Spanish territory, and their implementing or replacement provisions.
International shipments shall be governed by European Union legislation and other applicable legislation, including Regulation (EU) 2024/1157 on shipments of waste where applicable.
Where the material is waste, the offer, order or contractual documentation shall be supplemented by the treatment contract, identification document and other required documentation.
The status of the shipment operator, administrative notifications and allocation of costs for return or alternative shipment shall be determined for each operation in accordance with applicable legislation and the relevant contractual documentation.
36. Regulatory compliance
Each party undertakes to comply with its applicable obligations concerning the environment, employment, taxation, transport, safety, risk prevention, anti-corruption and other relevant legislation.
The Customer may not request that SORTPLAST undertake actions contrary to the facility’s administrative authorisations or applicable legislation.
37. Communications
Contractual communications may be made by email to the addresses provided by the parties, provided reasonable records of their content and sending can be retained.
Communications concerning weights, receipt, non-conforming material, completion, availability for collection, offers, batch sheets and other operational matters may, among others, be made electronically.
The Customer shall be responsible for keeping its contact details up to date.
38. Governing law, jurisdiction and language
Contractual relationships shall be governed by Spanish law.
For any dispute arising from the contractual relationship, where the choice of jurisdiction may legally be agreed, the parties expressly submit to the Courts and Tribunals of Martorell, waiving any other jurisdiction to which they might be entitled.
SORTPLAST may provide versions of these Terms in other languages. In the event of a discrepancy between versions, the Spanish-language version shall prevail.
39. Partial invalidity
The nullity, invalidity or unenforceability of a provision shall not affect the remaining clauses where they can continue independently.
The parties shall endeavour to replace the affected provision with a valid one that reasonably reflects its economic and legal purpose.
40. Amendments and applicable version
The terms applicable to each service shall be those in force and accepted when the corresponding order is concluded.
Specific amendments must be recorded in writing or by electronic means allowing their acceptance to be evidenced.
General updates to these Terms shall not retrospectively alter work already contracted, unless expressly accepted by both parties.