Every injection and blow molding operation makes them. Purge blocks from color and material changes, solidified lumps from line cleaning, head waste, the dense cakes of plastic that pile up in a corner and are a genuine pain to deal with. They are too hard and too bulky for a granulator, and hauling them off is money out the door. But you usually do not need a giant industrial shredder to handle them either. You need something compact, quiet, and easy to run.
That is exactly what the L 30-Series is. It is a plastic lumps and purge shredder built specifically for in-house recycling of the small-to-medium lumps and purges that molding lines generate, in a machine sized to fit right in the workshop where the waste is made.
This is the third post in our shredder series, covering every shredder we build and who each one is for. It follows the G-Series general purpose shredder and the SG-Series combination system. This one is the specialist for dense molding waste.
Built for purge and lumps, not everything
Where the bigger Virtus shredders are generalists, the L 30 is focused. It is designed for the specific problem of small and medium-sized cakes: purge, lumps, and head waste from injection and blow molding. That focus is why it can be compact and simple instead of large and complex.
The L 30 runs a 310 mm diameter flat E-type rotor, using the same proven Virtus knife holder and knife design found across the shredder line, in your choice of 600 mm or 850 mm widths. Like the G, V, and X series shredders, it is driven by an oversized gearmotor and equipped with outboard bearings, so the core mechanical quality is the same as the big machines, just right-sized for the job.
Why it is easy to live with
Three things make the L 30 genuinely low-hassle on a busy floor.
No hydraulic feeding system. The L 30 uses a tangential infeed, which means gravity and the rotor do the feeding rather than a hydraulic ram. That removes a whole hydraulic system you would otherwise have to power and maintain.
Plug and play. The controls are designed to be simple. Its compact, maneuverable design and plug-and-play controls give it total flexibility and ease of use, so you are not commissioning a complex machine to grind purge.
Quiet. The L 30 runs at a low rotor speed of 60 rpm, and combined with its compact design, that makes it possible to shred lumps at a relatively low noise level, which matters when the machine lives in an occupied workshop.
It can be fed manually or by conveyor, and it discharges by conveyor or into a dropbox, so it fits into whatever material handling you already have.
What it handles and what you do with the output
The typical diet is small and medium-sized cakes such as head waste, purge, and molding lumps. Once shredded, you have two good options. You can shred purely to reduce volume, which cuts your disposal cost and makes the material far easier to handle. Or you can shred as a first step and then run the output through a granulator to be reintroduced into production immediately, turning waste you paid for back into usable material. The L 30 also serves a quieter but valuable role: it can destroy sensitive products or recycle small batches of low-volume products to avoid contaminating the main product line.
The concave ground square knives produce high-quality output and can be rotated when one side wears, which stretches knife life, and the large diameter flat rotor has specially machined pockets that hold and secure the knives. For abrasive applications, optional weld-on hard facing is available.
Typical materials and real-world jobs
The L 30 is the compact specialist for dense molding waste. Here is what it is built to take:
| Injection molders | Purge blocks, solidified lumps, and head waste from material and color changes |
| Blow molders | Purge and cleanout cakes from line changes |
| Low-volume and sensitive parts | Small batches or sensitive products that need secure destruction |
| In-house recyclers | Dense cakes reduced for easier handling or further granulation |
The L 30 is focused on small-to-medium molding purge and lumps. Larger or more varied scrap like pipe, bales, or bulky containers is a job for the G-Series or a bigger shredder.
L 30-Series at a glance
| Feature | Detail |
|---|---|
| Rotor diameter | 310 mm flat E-type rotor |
| Working widths | 600 mm or 850 mm |
| Rotor speed | 60 rpm, for low-noise operation |
| Feed system | Tangential infeed, no hydraulic feeding system |
| Drive | Oversized gearmotor, outboard bearings |
| Controls and feed | Plug-and-play controls, manual or conveyor fed, discharge by conveyor or dropbox |
Is the L 30 the right shredder for you?
The L 30 is the right pick when your problem is specifically molding purge and lumps, your volumes are small to medium, and you want a machine that fits and runs in the workshop without a lot of fuss. If your scrap is larger or more varied, pipes, bales, big bulky parts, you are into G-Series territory instead. And if you want the shredded purge turned straight into regrind, pair the L 30 with a granulator for that second step.
See it in action
Sometimes the easiest way to understand a machine is to watch it run. Our YouTube channel has material demonstrations across the full Virtus lineup, so you can see how different materials feed and process at each stage of size reduction before you ever pick up the phone.
Not sure? Send us your purge
Purge and lumps vary a lot in hardness and size, so a real test is the best way to know how the L 30 will handle yours. Send us a sample of your actual purge, lumps, or head waste, tell us your volume and whether you want to reduce it or granulate it afterward, and our testing facility will run it and send back a confidential technical analysis with real results. We record the test too, so you can watch your own material go through before you decide.
After the sale, you are not on your own
Knives and screens wear, and when they need replacing, parts for the L 30-Series are in stock on Virtus Equipment Direct, our online webstore, so you are not waiting on a quote for a part you already know you need. Our service team handles installation and can commission the machine, train your operators, and set up a maintenance schedule from day one. And if your team works in Spanish, so do we. Nuestro equipo le atiende en espanol, desde la primera llamada hasta la instalacion y el soporte.
Frequently asked questions
What is a lump and purge shredder for?
It breaks down the dense plastic purge blocks, lumps, and head waste that injection and blow molding lines generate. These are too hard and bulky for a granulator, so a compact shredder like the L 30 reduces them for easier handling, disposal savings, or further granulation.
Does the L 30 need a hydraulic feeding system?
No. It uses a tangential infeed, so there is no hydraulic ram to power or maintain. That is a big part of what keeps it compact, simple, and easy to run.
Can I turn purge back into usable material with it?
Yes. You can shred purely to reduce volume, or shred first and then granulate the output so it can be reintroduced into production. The L 30 handles the tough first step that a granulator alone cannot.
What is a lump and purge shredder for?
It breaks down the dense plastic purge blocks, lumps, and head waste that molding lines generate. These are too hard and bulky for a granulator, so a compact shredder reduces them for handling, disposal savings, or further granulation.
Does the L 30 need a hydraulic feeding system?
No. It uses a tangential infeed, so there is no hydraulic ram to power or maintain. That keeps it compact, simple, and easy to run.
Can I turn purge back into usable material with it?
Yes. You can shred purely to reduce volume, or shred first and then granulate the output so it can go back into production.
Terms worth knowing
A few terms come up constantly when you are speccing this kind of machine. Here they are in plain language:
Tangential infeed. A feed geometry where gravity and the rotor do the feeding, eliminating the need for a hydraulic ram and its power pack.
Flat E-type rotor. The rotor design with machined pockets that hold and secure the knives, used across the Virtus shredder line.
Reversible knives. Concave ground square knives that can be rotated to a fresh edge when one side wears, extending knife life.
Plug-and-play controls. Simple controls that let the machine run without complex commissioning.
Pre-cutting. A first-stage size reduction step before granulating, which is the role a lump shredder often plays.
Related machines
If this machine is not quite the right fit, these are the neighbors to look at:
