The BMW Group’s (BMW) light metal foundry received Aluminum Stewardship Initiative (ASI) certification for a decade of sustainable practices.
The Landshut-based plant ‘s history of recycling involves working with local processors and separating aluminum residue by type in every casting system and at various mechanical processing stations, ensuring materials aren’t mixed with their individual compositions. Roughly half of the foundry’s aluminum is recycled, significantly reducing reliance on CO2-laden primary aluminum, the carmaker announced in a statement.
The ways in, and conditions under, which bauxite is mined and processed in Australia, Brazil and Africa matter a great deal to the company. In fact, it has already reached out to its aluminum suppliers and recycling partners to gradually bring them into the ASI-certified fold.
Steel and aluminum comprise the lion’s share of weighted materials used by the German automaker in its vehicles. Aluminum is a crucial component, effectively compensating for heavier parts of the electric vehicles, namely batteries.
ASI’s defined mission is the proliferation of sustainability performance and material chain-of-custody for the aluminum value chain. In addition to mitigating environmental degradation, ASI considers social and governance impacts in aluminum’s production, use and recycling process.