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FOUNDRY RECYCLING OVERVIEW

Foundries are Recycling Leaders

Foundries are critical partners in the nation’s recycling efforts. The foundry industry is the fourth largest contributor to the recycling manufacturing economy according to the 2001 U.S. Recycling Economic Information Study (REI). Foundries are crucial components in the domestic recycling infrastructure, providing markets for scrap metal throughout the United States.

American foundries recycle millions of tons of discarded scrap metal annually into new products ranging from faucets to engine blocks to golf clubs to airplane parts. Foundries recycle all types of metal: iron, steel, aluminum, brass, copper and a variety of other non-ferrous metals. Metals are virtually unique among materials because they can be recycled indefinitely without losing their inherent properties.

Recycling is not a fad for metalcasters, but rather an integral part of our business. Metalcasters were some of the world’s first recyclers. For centuries, foundries have been making new metal objects by remelting old ones. In fact, the oldest existing casting is a copper frog made in Mesopotamia that dates back to 3200 BC.

Our industry recycles at all phases of the metalcasting process – from beginning to end and beyond.

  • We purchase recycled-content materials and components as our feedstock;
  • We use and reuse a variety of materials within the melting and molding stages;
  • We produce recyclable products for our customers; and
  • We supply secondary markets with usable by-products generated by our facilities.

A wide variety of materials including metals, sand, wax, wooden pallets, packaging materials, steel drums and other products find a second life through recycling as a result of foundry industry efforts.

How do foundries save energy and reduce pollution?

Making castings from recycled metal products saves energy and conserves resources. Since foundries produce castings with recycled content, we are able to reduce our needs for raw materials and energy. Processing raw materials places heavy demands on our nation’s energy resources; however, it requires 95% less energy to make castings out of recycled metals.

Reprocessing used materials in the foundry industry also has a domino effect by reducing the energy demands for mining, refining and many other metal-related processes. For example, every pound of steel recycled is estimated to save 5450 BTU’s of energy, enough to light a 60-watt bulb for over 26 hours. Foundries recycled over 14 million tons, or 31.5 million pounds of steel each year . . . enough energy to light the homes of Chicago for one year!

Recycling also reduces pollution risks by keeping materials out of the disposal facilties. For instance, reusing steel reduces both water and air pollution and saves water, compared to making new steel from iron ore. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, recycling steel reduces air pollution by 86%, water use by 40%, water pollution by 97% and mining wastes by 97% in comparison to using iron ore.

Is recycling good business?

The U.S. foundry industry is committed to the preservation and protection of the environment and our natural resources. Metalcasters recognize the vital role we play in recycling and take this job very seriously. Every day, foundries divert valuable materials from the waste stream, which in turn reduces the burden on landfills and minimizes the need for virgin materials.

Foundry recycling efforts not only support the preservation of natural resources, but also make good business sense. For example, using scrap metal significantly reduces energy usage, minimizing one of the largest expenses faced by individual foundries. With new industrial sands costing from $38-65 per ton, internal industry reclamation and reuse efforts result in significant cost savings. Diverting foundry byproducts from landfill disposal into recycling and beneficial use markets reduces disposal costs as well as saving landfill space.

Increased awareness, acceptance and proactive government policies are critical in order to continue the upward trend of recycling and reusing materials whenever possible. Foundries want to continue to be recycling leaders and responsible stewards of the environment.

Closing the Recycling Loop

Resource conservation, reuse and recycling are important parts of the global movement toward sustainability. Since the passage of the U.S. Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), much attention has been paid to recycling post-consumer or municipal solid waste. U.S. EPA and other partners have more recently embarked on an effort to truly close the recycling loop by focusing on reusing and recycling the byproducts of recycling manufacturing industries.

Under the Resource Conservation Challenge (RCC), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is engaged in a series of voluntary partnerships to increase the reuse and recycling of industrial materials. Foundry sand is one of three Focus Materials under the RCC’s Industrial Materials Recycling initiative. The foundry industry, U.S. EPA and other partners are working toward the goal of diverting non-hazardous foundry sands and slags from landfill disposal. For more information on RCC Industrial Materials Recycling, please visit http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/osw/conserve/resources/bene-use.htm.

One of the largest opportunities to recycle foundry byproducts lies in the construction industry. The Federal Highway Administration, an arm of the U.S. Department of Transportation, has a policy to increase the use of recycled materials in construction, reconstruction and maintenance of the nation’s transportation infrastructure. Foundry sand is one of six target materials for FHWA’s recycling efforts. Transportation is the largest consumer of metalcasting products, so it is fitting that foundry byproducts should help to rebuild America’s infrastructure at the same time that foundry products keep America on the move.