search
date/time
 | Yorkshire Times A Voice of the Free Press |
12:59 AM 20th April 2024
business
Part 2: Eco-Revolution Optima's Journey To CIRCAL 75R Sustainability
Dr William Beer, CEO, Tunley Environmental
Furthermore, several commercial benefits were reaped by Optima through the adoption of CIRCAL 75R, including amplified sales, heightened exposure, and widespread adoption by architects. By embracing CIRCAL 75R, Optima has not only revolutionised their product line but also harnessed the power of sustainable innovation, effectively reinventing their offerings by simply altering suppliers, a move that has resonated profoundly within the industry.
Optima is a provider of premium glass partitioning systems designed and manufactured in the UK. It's extensive range includes fire-rated doors and partition systems, adaptable meeting rooms, bespoke partitions and doors, and a variety of sustainability-focused services. With a strong focus on innovation, product development, and sustainability, Optima is dedicated to offering high quality, customisable solutions for a wide range of architectural concepts and designs.
Optima began working with Hydro to supply their CIRCAL 75R eco friendly aluminium in the UK. Hydro is an industry-leading aluminium and renewable energy company dedicated to spearheading a more sustainable future. With a global presence encompassing over 33,000 employees across 140 locations in 40 countries, Hydro is at the vanguard of the energy transition, driving the green aluminium revolution through renewable energy solutions. Hydro is dedicated to fostering a fair society and circular economy by producing responsibly and aiming to achieve net-zero aluminium production by 2050 or earlier. With a steadfast focus on innovation, technological progress, and a robust commercial mindset, Hydro is actively facilitating the green transition and forging partnerships to pave the way for a more sustainable future.
Understanding CIRCAL 75R: A Revolutionary Aluminium
Hydro CIRCAL 75R represents a pivotal shift in the production of sustainable aluminium, redefining the industry's approach to material sourcing and manufacturing. At the core of this revolutionary aluminium is a meticulous process that leverages recycled materials to create a prime-quality alloy for the development of sustainable building systems. The Hydro plant in Dormagen, Germany has pioneered a sophisticated technology to efficiently sort and separate aluminium from other metals, ensuring that only specific alloys are directed to the recycling process. This stringent selection process allows for the transformation of post-consumer materials into a new life for windows, doors, and facades, preventing the unnecessary use of virgin material.
Compared to the traditional production of primary aluminium from the extraction of Bauxite, the creation of Hydro CIRCAL 75R represents a significant reduction in environmental impact. The extraction of Bauxite and the subsequent production of primary aluminium require a substantial amount of energy, leading to abundant CO2 emissions, contributing to climate change. In contrast, the production of Hydro CIRCAL 75R involves the meticulous dismantling of old building components, followed by a remelting process that saves up to 95% of the energy required for primary aluminium production.
Hydro CIRCAL 75R sets a new standard for environmental responsibility by drastically reducing CO2 emissions. With its current CO2 equivalent footprint of 1.9 kg per kg of aluminium, Hydro CIRCAL 75R surpasses the global average for primary aluminium production by more than 85%.
One contributing factor to this reduced emission factor is due to the circular economy through the reuse of materials. At least 75% of the prime-quality aluminium alloy in Hydro CIRCAL 75R is derived from post consumer materials, with the ultimate goal of progressively reaching total recycling.
Dr William Beer
Pioneering Development: Reducing Overall LCA Carbon
Tunley Environmental completed a comprehensive LCA on Optima's product, revealing that aluminium was a significant hotspot in their carbon emissions profile. Instead of overhauling their business and succumbing to the trend of using timber, Tunley recommended the sourcing of lower carbon emissions aluminium. This led to the identification of Hydro CIRCAL 75R, and through adept negotiation, Optima successfully became a customer of this grade of Hydro aluminium.
Interestingly, the LCA approach not only highlighted the environmental benefits of using aluminium over timber, but also showcased the advantage of aluminium in terms of product longevity. “In the ever-evolving landscape of commercial real estate in the UK, the average lease length continues to decline, reaching a mere 5.6 years in 2022. This trend underscores the necessity for specifiers to adapt and select materials that align with this temporal context. Materials such as aluminium, with its infinite recyclability, perfectly fit this bill, offering both sustainability and adaptability for the future”, Christian Mabey, Managing Director, Optima Products.
Optima's products can be disassembled and reassembled elsewhere, further bolstering their lifespan, which is a crucial factor for the use phase of a LCA, making aluminium the preferential choice. Moreover, the infinite recyclability of aluminium, as opposed to the limitations of timber, was a significant factor. This science-led approach has empowered Optima to enhance their offerings to clients around the world, demonstrating the pivotal role of LCA in driving sustainable business practices and informed decision-making in product development.
The reuse of products offers significant environmental advantages over recycling. While recycling undoubtedly contributes to sustainability, the reuse of products reduces the need for energy-intensive processes involved, such as melting and reprocessing materials.
Furthermore, the reuse of products minimises the generation of waste and the associated environmental impacts. To fully harness the benefits of product reuse, it is essential for products to be designed with disassembly and reinstallation at the outset. This approach extends the lifespan of products, reducing the overall demand for raw materials, energy, and resources. The design for disassembly and reinstallation also facilitates the repair and refurbishment of products, further extending their functional life. By prioritising product reuse and designing with facile disassembly in mind, companies can significantly reduce their environmental footprint, promote resource efficiency, and contribute to a more sustainable future.
Optima are trailblazing this by spearheading the reusability of their products, transcending the traditional model of recycling or replacement. Notably, they have introduced take-back schemes and are actively engaged in reselling old products, underscoring their commitment to sustainability. Despite the misconception that reusing is cheaper, Allan Wood of Optima emphasises the cost of disassembling for reuse.
Acknowledging that it entails meticulous care, time, and logistics, resulting in a slight increase in the cost compared to virgin products. However, the prioritisation of sustainability by their clients is evident, as many opt for reuse, understanding the long-term environmental benefits. A LCA completed by Tunley Environmental determined the carbon savings of the take back scheme to be a staggering 98% in a specific example this equated to 4.1 t CO2e which is equivalent to the emissions from driving an average diesel car for 15,073 miles.
Next Steps
As Optima continues its sustainability journey with Tunley Environmental, the focus now shifts towards sourcing lower emission factor materials of the non aluminium parts, with a particular emphasis on low carbon glass, identified as the current hotspot. In response, Optima is investing the potential for glass reuse and has made significant progress in the storage of glass. However, challenges related to humidity, storage costs, and transportation logistics require further attention. Recognising the broader significance of assessing lower footprint glass across the industry, Optima aims to lead the charge in driving this pivotal transformation. The company's New Product Introduction process (NPI) now integrates carbon, particularly LCAs, as an inherent part of the development process, with a strategic shift towards designing low footprint products from the outset. Furthermore, Optima acknowledges that carbon footprint alone provides an incomplete picture and, therefore, plans to delve into investigating the biodiversity footprint of their products over the next 12 months. This proactive approach reflects Optima's commitment to ensuring that biodiversity is included in comprehensive product footprint assessments, aligning with their dedication to holistic sustainability practices.
Conclusion
Based on its partnership with Tunley Environmental, Optima were able to identify aluminium as a carbon hotspot in their products. This was greatly reduced through sourcing of eco friendly aluminium from Hydro. However, benefits of the LCA’s continued, through changing product designs to facilitate repair and replacement. These modified designs also enabled reuse programs to be implemented greatly reducing the emissions of Optima’s products further. This demonstrates how starting on the journey to sustainability causes improvements on all aspects of business operations.
More information on Tunley Environmental
https://www.tunley-environmental.com/
and for Optima https://optimasystems.com/