A DROITWICH firm is celebrating after winning a national award for developing new systems.

Egbert Taylor, based in Elmley Lovett, won the Smarter Systems (Efficiency) Award at the National Recycling Awards.

The firm, which manufacturers waste containers and provides waste solutions, won the award following its partnership with Nathan's Wastesavers, the UK's largest textile industry recycling specialists.

Egbert Taylor came up with an innovative locking system and remote monitoring solution in response to problems with textile thefts.

Now, via Egbert Taylor’s wireless and sensor technologies, only appointed collectors can access the textile banks.

When within a certain proximity of the textile banks, the sensor technology recognises the approved individuals and the doors unlock, allowing the contents to be collected.

Kevin Docherty, sales manager, said: "The National Recycling Awards is a beacon of excellence for our industry and we’re delighted to not only have been recognised on a national level for our achievements, but also to have beaten some of the nation’s most well-known names to the title.

"We’re incredibly proud of our work with Nathan’s Wastesavers and we now look forward to continue building on our success and developing our partnership."

This year’s National Recycling Awards, which took place at London Hilton, Park Lane, on 27 June, beating 10 other companies that had been shortlisted for the coveted category.

More than 600 of the recycling sector’s most prominent figures came together to celebrate the waste industry’s achievements, many of which were vying for an illustrious recycling award across 21 categories.

Corin Williams, editor of MRW, one of the waste and recycling’s prominent titles and National Recycling Awards organiser, added: "Every year through the awards we discover and celebrate truly ground-breaking initiatives, technology and services.

"This year is no exception.

"There has been intense public scrutiny of our sector recently, and there is quite rightly a lot of concern out there about where our waste ends up.

"The MRW National Recycling Award 2019 winners show our industry has the inspiration, expertise and enthusiasm to meet these challenges and lead from the front."