Companies need to become even better at using each other's resources, because what is waste in one company can easily be a valuable raw material in another. This is the case for the BIRN iron foundry in Holstebro, Denmark, which melts 90,000 tons of iron every year, 93 percent of which comes from recycled material such as scrap steel from old cars, discarded refrigerators and tire threads from used car tires. But even more scrap is needed, which is why the foundry is looking for more sources of scrap steel and new ways to process scrap.
Can steel springs from old spring mattresses be recycled into new cast iron?
Or what about galvanized steel from lampposts, if cleaned correctly?
These are just some of the considerations at one of Northern Europe's largest foundry groups, BIRN Group, headquartered in Holstebro, Denmark. Every year, the BIRN iron foundry produces and delivers around 47,000 tons of cast iron blanks, which requires the remelting of around 90,000 tons of iron. As much as 93 percent of the remelted iron comes from recycled material in the form of scrap steel.
With such a high proportion of recycled material, it is crucial for the company to maintain a stable supply of scrap.
According to Statistics Denmark, Danish exports of iron and metal waste for recycling amounted to 1.1 million tons in 2021, and it is certainly not inconceivable that some of the scrap exported could be recycled in Denmark. That's why the foundry group is looking for both new sources of usable scrap and new business models and forms of collaboration throughout the value chain.
- Recycling is a crucial part of our supply chain and an important part of a more sustainable use of our shared natural resources. That's why we are very interested in how we can optimize the use of the scrap that is already out there. This could be through even better sorting and return options for old products, but it could also be through completely new collaborations that we haven't even thought of yet, explains Lars Jørgensen, CTO at BIRN Group.
For the second year in a row, the foundry group is participating in Sustain Week, organized by the local business forum, ErhvervsForum Holstebro. Here, companies, researchers and world-leading specialists gather to discover and develop innovative sustainable solutions in a number of concrete cases.
Last year, BIRN participated to highlight the recycling of sand from foundry production, which was the starting point for several potential collaborations on how the used foundry sand could be recycled elsewhere.
Participating in Sustain Week this year is done with a clear desire to spot alternative materials and technologies that can increase the recycling of iron and steel scrap.
- We really need to do what we can to help each other in the industry. We already have a very good collaboration with our scrap suppliers, but our hope is that we can increase cooperation on scrap recycling all the way around so that we make our resources and surplus materials available to each other, says Jesper Astrup, Group Purchase Manager at BIRN Group, which is responsible for purchasing scrap for the Danish BIRN foundries in Holstebro and TASSO in Odense.
The so-called tire wire briquettes are a good example of how BIRN utilizes waste products. Steel wire from end-of-life car tires is collected and pressed into round briquettes together with cast iron shavings, among other things.
The briquettes supplement the scrap in BIRN's melting processes, which are continuously optimized.
- The tire wire briquettes are a textbook example of what we need even more of: alternative sources and materials for scrap, and perhaps from completely different places than we can imagine. Our castings must be very durable and resistant to extreme temperatures, chemical influences and violent vibrations and pressure changes, which of course places great demands on the quality of the scrap we use in our production. However, we are very optimistic about getting many new ideas for raw materials, methods and partners from other companies and organizations, says Lars Jørgensen.
For further information, please contact:
- Group CEO Claus Beier, BIRN Group, mobile +45 2923 1227 and e-mail: cbe@birn.dk
- Press service: Trine Kristensen, mobile +45 2980 4021 and e-mail: trine@publicity.dk