The company says the initial annual production of Hydro Circal is expected to be around 4,000 metric tons.

Norsk Hydro, an aluminum manufacturing company based in Oslo, Norway, has announced its aluminum plant in Commerce, Texas, has been certified by DNV, an independent risk management and quality assurance company based in Oslo, to produce Hydro Circal. This is the company’s first facility in the U.S. to achieve this certification.  

According to a news release, Hydro Circal is a low-carbon recycled aluminum product containing at least 75 percent postconsumer end-of-life scrap.  

“With auto manufacturers switching to electric vehicles, combined with the growing need for aluminum, we see this as an opportunity to bring large-scale production of Hydro Circal,” says Trond Gjellesvik, president of Hydro Aluminum Metals, North America. “We help forward-leaning customers reach their climate ambitions by delivering products with a lower carbon footprint that promote a more circular economy.”  

By adding capabilities to produce Hydro Circal, Hydro will be able to supply more automotive, transportation and other extrusion ingot customers with certified low-carbon aluminum. The initial annual production of Hydro Circal is expected to be around 4,000 metric tons. The independent DNV-GL issued the certificate for production in May.    

“We are seeing interest from several aluminum extrusion companies and leading original equipment manufacturers and look forward to partnering with them to further expand production of automotive products with Hydro Circal at Commerce.  This is a great recognition of the work being done by the team at Commerce and in North America,” says Dan Luckett, plant manager at Hydro Commerce. “We have been able to learn from the pioneering steps taken by Hydro to produce Circal at our plant at Deeside in the U.K. and successfully implement that here in the U.S.”  

Hydro says recycling scrap aluminum requires 5 percent of the energy used to produce primary aluminum, saving energy and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Hydro has set a 2025 strategic ambition to double its recycling of postconsumer scrap as it significantly reduces the CO2 footprint compared to preconsumer/process scrap as well as primary aluminum.   

Recently, Hydro has made progress in reducing its emissions through doubling its use of postconsumer scrap by 2025. The company’s Extrusion North America division is upgrading recycling capabilities at its site in The Dalles, Oregon, allowing it to process an additional 10,000 metric tons, or 11,023 short tons, of postconsumer scrap annually and to increase overall recycled aluminum output by 27,000 metric tons, or nearly 30,000 short tons. This upgrade also will reduce energy consumption and result in lower CO2 emissions and metal costs at the site, according to the company.

In April, Hydro began construction of its aluminum recycling plant in Cassopolis, Michigan. Production will commence in 2023 with about 70 employees. When ramped up to full production, the plant will produce 120,000 metric tons of recycled aluminum extrusion ingot per year.  Following the completion of the Cassopolis plant, Hydro will have the ability to produce more than 1 million metric tons of recycling-based aluminum extrusion ingot each year in the U.S. 

The vice president of safety and compliance at Leadpoint has died at 57.

Brian Haney, vice president of safety and compliance at Leadpoint Business Services, has died of cancer at 57 years old. Haney is remembered for his numerous contributions to Leadpoint’s safety strategy. He created LiveSafe, a safety philosophy that helped Leadpoint associates understand safety both at work and at home. Haney followed this with another program, “Start Safe, LiveSafe,” which established proper safety practices during the first 90 days of Leadpoint’s presence at any new site.

“None of this work would have been possible without his leadership and genuine commitment to safety. We are extremely grateful for the time Brian was here and what he accomplished for our company and the recycling industry,” says Frank Ramirez, CEO and president of Leadpoint.

Before joining Leadpoint, Haney had experience working in safety and compliance roles for a Fortune 500 waste and recycling company, a used-oil and antifreeze recycler, an international chemical distributor and as an EHS consultant.

He presented at SWANApalooza and Waste Expo events, and according to Leadpoint, “worked tirelessly to improve safety across the industry.”

Haney is survived by his wife Jennifer and son Benjamin.

Aluminum's domestic market remains strong as U.S. industry investment hits the highest level in decades.

The Aluminum Association, Arlington, Virginia, has released preliminary estimates as part of its monthly Aluminum Situation Report showing a 5.3 percent growth in demand for the aluminum industry in North America through the first quarter of 2022. This follows estimated 8.2 percent demand growth through the end of 2021 and comes during a period of significant investment by U.S. aluminum producers, fabricators and recyclers.  

“The picture for the U.S. aluminum industry remains very strong,” says Charles Johnson, president and CEO of the Aluminum Association. “Economic recovery, demand for recyclable and sustainable materials and robust trade enforcement are all making America a very attractive place to make aluminum, as evidenced by the fastest pace of investment for the industry in decades.”  

The report states that aluminum demand in the United States and Canada totaled an estimated 7 million pounds in the first quarter compared to 6.6 million in the first quarter of 2021. All major semi-fabricated product categories saw increased year-over-year demand growth in the first quarter, led by sheet and plate products by 15.2 percent and extruded products by 7.3 percent. Overall, mill product demand grew 11 percent year-over-year through the first quarter.  

Aluminum exports, excluding scrap, to foreign countries declined 29.8 percent in the quarter. Imported aluminum and aluminum products into North America grew by 37.4 percent year-over-year in the quarter after growing 21.3 percent in 2021. While growing, these import levels remain below record volumes last seen in 2017.  

The association’s index of net new orders of aluminum mill products has shown an increase of 1.8 percent year-to-date.  

Over the past year, the aluminum industry has collectively committed or invested nearly $3.5 billion in U.S. manufacturing and more than $6.5 billion over the past decade. This included a $2.5 billion investment by member company Novelis to build a greenfield low carbon aluminum rolling mill and recycling facility in Bay Minette, Alabama, which is the single largest domestic aluminum investment in decades, according to the association.  

The association says the Aluminum Situation Report is one of more than two-dozen ongoing industry reports developed by them through surveys of aluminum producers, fabricators and recyclers. 

The groups will construct a plastics recycling facility near Muskegon, Michigan.

HydroBlox Technologies and Goodwill Industries of West Michigan (GIWM) have formed a plastics recycling joint venture. The groups are working to select equipment as well as a recycling site near Muskegon, Michigan.

“In keeping with Goodwill’s focus on sustainability and the triple-bottom line, we are excited to launch a new business line that diverts landfill-bound plastic, while also providing good-paying jobs,” GIWM President and CEO Jeanette Hoyer says.

Based in Pittsburgh, HydroBlox Technologies manufactures products that aid in stormwater drainage infrastructure and are made from 100 percent recycled plastic. According to GIWM, HydroBlox uses a proprietary mechanical recycling process that size reduces and processes difficult-to-recycle plastic to form them into 7.5-foot stormwater management planks or noodles that filter and direct the flow of water. The planks are used in road and trail projects, retaining walls, hydroponic farms, solar fields, green roofs and other applications.  

HydroBlox Technologies uses low-grade, commingled and mixed color plastic that typically gets landfilled. The manufacturing process uses no glue, binders or any hazardous materials in the process. According to GIWM, the core product is a plank that when buried in the ground transports water without the typical problems of becoming impacted with silt, sand or soil. Planks are used for drainage, road bases, retaining walls, hydroponics, solar fields and other applications. Additionally, HydroBlox’s green roof product allows for plant growth without soil.

According to GIWM, the company has been seeking solutions to keep its waste out of landfills for years. GIWM says Goodwill Business Development Director Nick Carlson works closely with the Michigan Recycling Coalition and was introduced to the HydroBlox team via the NextCycle Michigan team. NextCycle Michigan is an incubator led by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy that leverages public and private sector assistance along with investment to accelerate Michigan's recycling and waste recovery system.

“HydroBlox checks all the boxes for us in terms of evaluating a new startup,” Carlson says. “Recycling unwanted plastic into useful, environmentally friendly stormwater products will reduce Goodwill landfill fees, provide good jobs, while generating revenue to support Goodwill employment and training programs.”

“We are thrilled to begin what I understand is a first-of-a-kind joint venture for Goodwill that will not only divert plastic from landfills but bring new jobs and training opportunities,” says HydroBlox Technologies CEO Ed Grieser.

GIWM says the companies hope to find a 40,000- to 60,000-square-foot property for the joint venture. The companies expect to hire five to six people to run the operation and will use much of GIWM’s existing staff to help with management and business functions.

“GIWM manages around 20 million pounds of donations on an annual basis,” GIWM says in a statement to Recycling Today. “Only a portion (approximately 30 percent) of these materials end up being resold through our traditional retail channels. The rest of the materials are either sold overseas, sold into recycling markets or sent to landfill when items are broken or otherwise unsalable. The HydroBlox partnership gives us the opportunity to all but eliminate our plastic waste while creating good-paying jobs. It will also allow us to generate revenue to support our job training and placement programs.

“This partnership is a perfect fit for several reasons. First, we share the value of environmental preservation and the desire to make a positive impact on the environment, be it through advanced stormwater management or recycling. Additionally, GIWM has a goal of not only eliminating waste coming through our donation channel but transforming that waste into final products that advance our mission. The quality of the donations we receive at Goodwill has been decreasing as people find more opportunities to earn value from their old stuff. As a result, we have seen an increase in lower value materials. It is essential that we innovate to earn the most value from the donations that we have been entrusted with. This HydroBlox partnership is one way that we can do that.”

The association also formally appointed Bowman Richards as its president and presented several industry awards at the conference.

More than 500 professionals attended the in-person i-SIGMA Annual Conference April 11-13 at the JW Marriott in Orlando, Florida.

i-SIGMA, or the International Secure Information Governance & Management Association, is the trade association for secure information life cycle management. The association combines the former National Association for Information Destruction, or NAID, and PRISM International associations.

According to a news release from the Phoenix-based International Secure Information Governance & Management Association (i-SIGMA), the conference had more than 200 percent growth for total attendance over the association’s virtual event in March 2021. The event offered its attendees the opportunity to meet with nearly 50 exhibitors, learn from more than 25 education sessions and network at three events.

“It truly was amazing to see all our attendees, exhibitors and partners in person again,” says Kelly Martínez, director of marketing and communications at i-SIGMA. She adds that the show floor “was packed” and many people shared positive messages during the event.

During the event, the association also formally appointed newly elected board members at the event, including President Bowman Richards, who is owner and president of Nashville, Tennessee-based secure shredding company Richards & Richards. Richards takes over for Brock Miller and will serve a one-year term for the association.

The association also presented the Service Provider Member of the Year Award to Tom Schreyer of Affordable Shred and Storage in Buffalo, Illinois. Schreyer is an information privacy advisor. He assists business professionals in developing information security policies, updating management teams and training customers’ employees. In addition, Jennie Gift of CSR Privacy Solutions in Jensen Beach, Florida, received i-SIGMA’s Corporate Member of the Year Award. Gift is the former vice president of Shred Nations/Record Nations and Paxton Records. At CSR Privacy Solutions she is responsible for sales and service in North America, Europe and Australia.

The conference also featured several new components in 2022, including an Exhibitor Mini-Session, which showcased participating vendors; a Truck Lot Party where people enjoyed food and music around some shred trucks; and a Young Professional Reception.

The association plans to host its next i-SIGMA Conference March 30-April 1, 2023, in Las Vegas.