Constellium formed a partnership with Tesem, a global leader in luxury packaging, to launch an initiative called “Closing the Loop.” This collaboration is expected to advance sustainable aluminum production and promote circular economy practices.
“We are excited to partner with Tesem on this important initiative,” said Patrick Broom, director Sales & Marketing Specialties of Constellium. “The ‘Closing the Loop’ project is a prime example of how strategic collaboration can drive innovation and sustainability in the luxury cosmetic packaging market.”
Sustainability is increasingly central to the luxury beauty packaging industry. Tesem is dedicated to innovating and optimizing manufacturing processes, aiming to significantly minimize the sector’s environmental impact. According to the company, aluminum represents 50% of its carbon footprint, so this closed loop initiative is important to meeting these goals.
“We are proud to work with Constellium to create a sustainable future through this closed-loop recycling system,” said Guillem Serrat, general manager, Tesem. “This partnership not only supports our environmental goals but also strengthens the quality and sustainability of our products.”
Through this partnership, Constellium will work closely with Tesem to create a closed-loop system that enables the recycling of high-purity aluminum. Tesem has invested in enhancing their assets to ensure the efficient cleaning and preparation of aluminum scrap. At Tesem, the production scrap is collected and meticulously sorted and cleaned. The company implements autonomous mobile robots (AMR) to ensure that the scrap is correctly sorted, ensuring the efficiency of this initiative and preventing any mixing of alloys.
The scrap that Tesem collects is then delivered to Constellium for recycling, utilizing advanced technologies to make sure there is no loss of purity. Both companies’ R&D teams have collaborated to ensure the scrap meets the stringent quality standards required and to adjust casting parameters to integrate higher levels of recycled material.
This innovative approach will allow Constellium to supply Tesem with aluminum coils that have a significantly reduced carbon footprint, while also achieving the same original purity. The coils will be produced at Constellium’s rolling mill in Singen, Germany.
The Closing the Loop project enables us to produce 1 ton of high-quality recycled aluminum using only 5% of the energy required to produce aluminum of the same purity from primary sources and reducing the need for mining. As a result, we cut the carbon footprint of this aluminum by more than 70%, while still maintaining its quality, performance, and shine.