With energy efficiency and recycling we are a making a statement for climate protection 🌍
Article in “Obersteirische Nachrichten”, issued May 29./31. on page 31 (in German)
In order to preserve a planet worth living for future generations it is necessary to use energy and resources as sparingly as possible. Everybody needs to take action – from citizens to industrial plants.
In the electric arc furnace at Breitenfeld Edelstahl AG (the biggest in Austria), electricity is used to recycle scrap. Efficiency is a top priority there: As little energy as possible should be used to produce each ton of steel. Time is also an important factor, because the faster the steel is melted the less energy is consumed.
Thanks to an extensive optimization program, the required melting energy was reduced by around ten percent last year. This saves as much energy every day as ten Austrian households consume each year.
Energy can however also be saved indirectly, for example through recycling. This is why, at Breitenfeld many of the by-products of the manufacturing process are sorted and reused in our own site, instead of depositing them. This does not only prevent unnecessary extraction of resources but also many driven kilometers in which those by-products would have to be shipped away.
One of the challenges here is ensuring the quality of the recycled materials, says process technologist Daniel Janz: “A clean separation and well thought-out processes are essential for useful recycling. This is the only way to guarantee and sometimes even improve product quality.” As Breitenfeld Edelstahl AG is aware of its big responsibility, energy efficiency and recycling remain central issues – also in order to secure more than 300 jobs in St. Barbara.
