Endless recycling of aluminium
Aluminium has many advantages. It is of course very strong. But did you also know that it is 100% recyclable? In fact: you can recycle aluminium infinitely. So that is what we do with our aluminium door and window profiles. We keep turning them into new ones. Over and over again. A perfect example of circularity.
Yes, aluminium is strong, light and extremely durable. And it is 100% recyclable. Unlike many other materials, aluminium does not lose its characteristics in the recycling process. That means you can recycle it endlessly without any loss in quality.
Low energy input for recycling
Recycling aluminium requires only 5% of the energy input required for the production of primary aluminium. This means 8 tons of CO2 emissions per ton aluminium are avoided, every time aluminium is recycled. Even as important, studies show that the collection rates of aluminium during the demolition phase of a building are very high. They vary between 92% and 98%, meaning almost no aluminium is lost after its use phase. This ensures the raw material availability and energy savings for the benefit of future generations.
The lifecycle of aluminium windows and doors
Aluminium is extremely durable. It is not affected by UV rays or moisture and doesn’t corrode or rot. These are the main reasons why the material is used in buildings for a very long time. The lifecycle of aluminium windows and doors has an average of over 40 years, but lifecycles of over 60 years are no exceptions.
Innovative ways to improve the recyclability of aluminium
Due to the long lifecycle of aluminium in many applications, the available aluminium scrap currently covers only 40% of the world demand for aluminium. In future, this percentage will definitely grow due to, amongst others, more renovations of old buildings with aluminium windows and doors. It is a global trend. Although we would like to see this percentage increase, it is currently not realistic due to the current lack of scrap. Even though technically, it is feasible to recycle up to 80%, increasing the recycled content will not affect the global environmental impact, as all available aluminium scrap is being recycled to the maximum. It is all about balance.
That doesn’t mean we don’t need to focus on the recyclability of aluminium. On the contrary. We’re constantly investigating innovative ways to improve the recyclability of our products, while guaranteeing quality. This allows us to close the aluminium loop by recycling old window profiles and creating new profiles infinitely.
The ultimate example of circularity. Discover in this video how we turn old aluminium windows into new ones, over and over again:
