Simon Brown grows his ResourceCo from 1992 beyond Adelaide with vision to turn waste into valuable products
Simon Brown's Adelaide environmental recycling and reccovery group, ResourceCo, had turned 60 million tonnes of waste into valuable products by its 30th year in 2022.
Images courtesy ResourceCo
ResourceCo, founded in Adelaide in 1992 by 21-year-old Simon Brown, grew into a leading environmental recycling and resource recovery group, winning the Telstra and Australian government business of the year awards 10 years later.
Starting the company with himself and one labourer, Brown identified a niche for an innovative and environmentally-friendly recycler of materials from demolition sites. ResourceCo set up a centralised business at Wingfield, north of Adelaide, in 1995.
The business evolved from the early days to recycling different types of waste streams to making ResourceCo a dedicated company focused on adding value to waste. ResourceCo was the first recycling company to supply recycled road base products to government departments in South Australia, with the support of EPA (Environment Protection Agency) proving to be a huge breakthrough in product acceptance.
ResourceCo grew into company of 900 employees by its 30th year in 2022, processing more than two million tonnes of waste products annually, with operations in South Australia, New South Wales, Victoria and also working in Thailand, Malaysia, Japan Korea and India. By that 30th year, ResourceCo had turned 60 million tonnes of waste into valuable products.
ResourceCo offered its customers services including contract crushing, the recycling of asphalt and steel, site remediation, research and product development and environmental strategy consulting. It also worked with Australian and overseas industries to turn waste into products, and exploring ways to use waste as an alternative source of fuel.
Simon Brown had definite ideas and strategy behind ResourceCo’s growth as one of Australia’s leading remanufacturing companies. He wanted to see waste recognised as a valuable resource and, to keep that value in the Australian economy, governments needed to provide certainty for the industry’s continued growth and investment: “We also need governments at all levels to show leadership in committing to bold procurement targets for the use of recycled material. In using their extensive purchasing power, governments can have a significant impact on creating a demand-driven transition to a circular economy.”
