Cool! Newhun Turns Plastic Waste Into Aesthetic Watches

For Sae, Yahya, and Regi, this plastic waste is like a million rupiah coffers. As a form of gratitude for the earth, these three young men process plastic waste into high-value watches with the brand name 'Newhun'.

Sae, one of the founders of Newhun shared the story of his long journey of researching this product to the Bandung City Public Relations team.

"I have been doing research for 2.5 years before Newhun was finally established on May 5, 2022. After that, I also invited Yahya and Regi to become the founders of this brand," said Sae to the Public Relations of Bandung City.

Located at Jalan Sabang No. 2A, Cihapit, Bandung City, the production process runs every Monday-Friday. Slowly, Newhun began to grow, and the personnel who participated in developing it also increased.

"There was Dian who joined as Operational Manager. Then we also recruited one employee. Incidentally there were two people who wanted to be volunteers. So now there are seven of us here in total," he continued.

Interestingly, although Newhun's product initiated the concept of going green, Sae's educational background as the initiator of this brand is very different. He is a graduate of Arabic Literature from Padjadjaran University.

However, even so, he often goes to the field to participate in various social and environmental activities. This is what inspired Sae to make products from plastic waste.

"Initially from anxiety. If you go home, you must pass a TPS on the side of the road which is always full. It feels really annoying to see that pile of garbage," he said.

"I've always participated in social activities in Bantar Gebang. Look at the conditions there where garbage trucks come every minute carrying more trash than capacity. I think that everything in the capital city should be advanced, but how come the waste processing is still like this. What about other areas? ?" added Sae.

Finally, he did research for 2.5 years to find out how to process plastic waste so that it still has a function and economic value.

Sae also hooked up with Yahya, who has a management education background. Then invite Regi who comes from a mechanical engineering graduate.

The process of making Newhun products is not easy. Starting from sorting garbage, washing, chopping, injection/melting, printing, and assembling. For Sae, the most difficult stage is the process of sorting and washing the garbage.

"There are 7 types of plastic waste and we have to separate them according to type and color. After that, they are washed manually. Drying is also still manually using sunlight. If there is no sun, it can take up to two days before it is completely dry," he explained.

Not only that, they also found challenges when printing. Press tools that are still manual make printing often fail. Of the 10 products made that day, five failed.

"Most of the time, the ingredients don't meet the contents of the mold. In fact, in the past, out of 10 products, only one was successful," he said, showing a pile of boxes filled with failed products.

Of the seven types of plastic waste, usually materials such as disposable plastic cutlery, crackle, soap bottles, shampoo bottles, gallon caps, bottle caps, as well as other plastic waste types DPE or PEDH (High Density Polyethylene), LDPE or PE-LD (Low Density Polyethylene), PP (Polypropylene), and PS (Polystyrene) which are often used to make Newhun products.

"The harder it is, the easier it is to chop. If the plastic is smooth, it is difficult to chop it," he admitted.

For one item, a watch requires 150 grams of plastic. Then, the table clock requires 150 grams of plastic. Meanwhile, the wall clock is made of 500 grams of plastic.

Next, coasters, made of 80 grams of plastic. Then, a table measuring 1 x 1 meter with a thickness of 20 mm requires 25 kg of plastic. Then, a table with a thickness of 10 mm requires 15 kg of plastic.

"A day if you use an injection machine, the current capacity can make 14 shapes. A table clock can make 7 items. Wall clocks, watches, tables can only be made one per day. Moreover, watches are more difficult because the products are detailed with many contours," explained Sae.

He admitted that it was not difficult to get plastic waste materials. In fact, the garbage comes by itself to their location. Usually they get plastic waste from the closest people and residents in Cihapit Village.

"But we don't open a garbage collection because it will definitely overflow, this place will not be enough," he said.

Sae also said that on average, Newhun can sell 20 items a month. However, the number is still very volatile. In fact, there are also times in a month they don't issue anything at all.

"But there are also those who order 70 pcs of table clocks once. Then there are those who order medals of up to 100 pcs," he said.

Despite his ups and downs, Newhun's turnover in 2021 has almost reached Rp. 100 million. In fact, in the middle of this year has touched 50 million.

The product price range varies greatly, depending on the level of difficulty of manufacture. The cheapest product is coasters, priced at Rp. 35,000. Then, a table clock costs Rp. 149,000. Then a wall clock for IDR 279,000.

"If the watch now has a promo, it's still Rp. 799,000, normally at Rp. 1.3 million. Then for a chair it costs Rp. 98.000. A square table costs Rp. 1.3 million and a study table that is one meter wide is Rp. 1.5 million," explained Sae.

If you want to order Newhun products, you can go through his Instagram account @newhun.recycle and Whatsapp. However, in the near future, Sae and his team are preparing ready stock products to be included in e-commerce.

At the end of the conversation, Sae said that to start a business, especially in a field like the one he was involved in, needed a lot of calculation and preparation.

"You have to be ready to burn money, especially in this type of business. If the food and beverage business is a fast business. In this case, the research is also long, the process is also longer. So the calculation requires a lot of preparation," he explained. (din)**

Head of Diskominfo Bandung

Yayan A. Brilyana