Together we build cities beyond tomorrow - Putting Circularity into Practice
Some might say ‘less talk and more action’ is needed to achieve circularity. Our Sustainability Manager, Lucile Souyri, disagrees. Here, Lucile and Henri Gomez, Senior Vice President Hydro Building Systems explain how by talking to and working with forward-thinking architects, contractors, fabricators and other supply chain partners, WICONA has achieved full circularity.
They highlight the value a circular approach offers investors and developers and offers advice for those looking to design and install façades for a circular economy.
What’s your ‘latest and greatest’ sustainability achievement at WICONA?
Lucile Souyri: It has to be the leap we’ve taken from sustainability to full circularity.
By that I mean designing façade systems that are produced using recycled materials, designed for disassembly, recycling and reuse. Ultimately, products that become part of a circular economy approach. For us, it’s only with a circular reuse of material that we can Drive Decarbonization of the Building and Construction sector.
What was the first step?
Henri Gomez: Initially, we focused on end-of-life aluminium recycling. The first project featuring our post consumer recycled aluminium was completed in 2018. Now, most of our systems are produced using CIRCAL 75R with a carbon footprint at 1.9kg CO2 equivalent per kg of Aluminium: more than 4 time less than the European average!
Recently, we became the first aluminium building system company to manufacture door, window and facades from 100% recycled aluminium - Hydro CIRCAL 100R. You can read about the world’s first building to feature a façade manufactured from 100% post-consumer recycled aluminium, here.
What progress have you made to close the material loop?
Not only we have continuously worked on the recycling content of our aluminium, but we are now also pushing for end-of-life recycling of all the components of our systems.
In 2024, we are leading the industry in circularity and have closed the material loop for our facade systems.
Describe how the cycle of circularity works at WICONA?
Lucile Souyri: We harvest old windows, doors and facades from buildings getting demolished. The aluminium frame is removed from the glass. The scrap is then shredded and after a sorting step the alloy required to produce construction-quality recycled aluminium is identified and remelted into CIRCAL billets.
Henri Gomez: Then, the post-consumer recycled aluminium billets are extruded for use in the fabrication of new WICONA façade systems that are designed to be demounted and dismantled easily at the end of their life for reuse. That’s only for the aluminium, but we have also made a lot of progress on all other materials used in our facades, together with our partners to close the circularity loop fully.
What’s been transformative in achieving full façade circularity?
Henri Gomez: Taking action and working with our suppliers and multiple partners across the façade and construction supply chain to look at the products and process as a whole lifecycle.
It’s been about reducing not only the carbon footprint of our aluminium but the other components too. In particular, the use of recycled materials, the ease of disassembly and the recyclability of all the end-of-life components.
Tell us about one of the biggest circularity challenges?
Lucile Souyri: Two years of pilot projects mean we now have the right logistical partners and are ready to launch at a bigger scale.
The teams are working alongside demolition companies, building contractors, façade engineers and our customers (fabricators and installers) to reclaim the scrap. But it’s not only across the different disciplines.
Countries require companies to have a license to deal with waste, each with different requirements – we’re navigating this country by country.
How do you resource technologically, and from a material supply and people perspective?
Henri Gomez: We are part of Hydro, a pioneer in recycled aluminium, which offers access to state-of-the-art sorting, shredding and melting technologies.
At Hydro Building Systems and via our WICONA brand, we form the connection to the construction sector – a sector that still generates excessive waste.
European and national regulations are starting to drive change, particularly surrounding the treatment of end-of-life products to avoid landfill and their recycling or reuse. This is what provides the market opportunity in terms of material supply.
With a huge wave of renovation across Europe on the horizon, we see this as an urban mining opportunity. Spearheading efforts to establish closed-loop material flows, we are facilitating the recovery of end-of-life aluminium systems to ensure the reuse of all materials and drive the decarbonisation of our market.
Lucile Souyri: We identify the renovation projects with aluminium content and find the right partners to recycle all the components of windows, doors and facades. These end up in our new products.
We now have dedicated teams in northern and southern Europe to organise and manage the process. And that’s not only for aluminium but also for all other materials in our systems.
Is there any value in the circular aluminium for investors and developers?
Lucile Souyri: Without a doubt and what’s more we can demonstrate the material value at a building’s end of life. This makes circularity commercially attractive.
Now, we offer customers a ‘track and trace’ QR code called Frame ID, to be installed in our product. This holds access to maintenance information, lifecycle data and end of life value, which can then be integrated to a BIM object.
Are certain countries driving circularity right now?
Henri Gomez: Yes, for sure. The EU taxonomy classification system is the cornerstone of the EU’s sustainable finance framework. Already, the Netherlands, France and Germany have systems in place to drive circularity in the construction sector.
Sustainability tax measures and green finance ‘that work towards construction that uses circular products and processes’ are key to securing healthy environmental and commercial outcomes for everyone.
Are there any live projects to demonstrate circularity in action?
Lucile Souyri: Yes, for now we’re focusing on bigger projects that require more than seven tonnes of aluminium.
In a world first, a complete aluminium and glass façade has now been removed, recycled and reinstalled in a pilot project on metal construction company Lenderoth’s office and production building in Bremen, Germany. You can find out more here, where Christophe Lenderoth (Christophe Lenderoth GmbH), Marcel Bartsch (WICONA) and Moritz Feid (Saint-Gobain Glass) explain the background to the project and how a true circular economy functions in practice.
How do competitors of WICONA compare in terms of circularity?
Lucile Souyri: There are competitors using recycled aluminium in their products but it’s worth checking whether the recycled element is pre- or post-consumer scrap.
Previously used aluminium is known as ‘post-consumer’ scrap, and its carbon footprint is close to zero. However, recycled aluminium made from secondary production or ‘pre-consumer’ scrap is different.
I’m proud to say WICONA is the market leader in recycling post-consumer scrap to make new aluminium profile systems for windows, doors and facades, including the non-aluminium components.
Can you discuss any partnerships your company has engaged in to promote circularity in construction?
Lucile Souyri: Yes, it’s about more than just the aluminium. Each product has 15% of non-aluminium components such as polyamide, rubber, stainless steel and other plastic parts.
We’ve been working with our material suppliers to ensure that these are sourced sustainably. In fact, we were the first system supplier in the world to use recycled polyamide for the thermal insulation of our systems. Plus, our high-insulation spacers are produced using PET made from recycled water bottle plastic.
More recently, we’ve partnered with Saint-Gobain to help create sustainable façades that have circularity built in. Both companies have implemented urban mining initiatives to collect and recycle end-of-life aluminium and glass. You can find out more about this here
What key performance indicators (KPIs) are you monitoring to track sustainability progress?
Lucile Souyri: One of the circularity metrics we’re using is ‘tonnes of aluminium recovered per year’. For 2024, we have set a target to recover 400 tonnes of aluminium and by 2030 we’re aiming for 20,000 tonnes.
What is WICONA doing to keep transport miles down?
Lucile Souyri: There are several ways but here’s one example in relation to the transportation of the scrap we reclaim. Hydro Aluminium Metal has recycling facilities in Spain, Germany as well as a partner in the UK. This means a project, generally, is no more than 700 km from a sorting plant, which keeps transport miles down – our aim is to keep the radius tight.
What is your next circularity goal for WICONA products?
Henri Gomez: The next goal is to achieve 85% recycled and 100% recyclable by 2025.
The circularity project is not only about the aluminium but facade to facade. Bringing all the component materials back to the loop Our goal going forward is to complete the whole system and we are working on this continually both internally and with our suppliers, customers, contractors, specifiers and investors.
Then, we will keep innovating to take circularity even further.
What advice would you give to architects looking to adopt circular economy principles
Henri Gomez: Don’t shy away from green building. For those in an architectural practice, it’s a way of setting your practice apart from others with potential commercial benefits as well as tax relief opportunities. Look to specify recycled and recyclable products as much as possible and if you’re unsure talk to suppliers, many of whom have been supporting on specifications for green building accreditations such as BREEAM, LEED and DGNB for many years now.
Likewise for in-house architects or those in the public sector, we’re always here to assist with anything from building physics, performance requirements, EPDs and sustainability to technical calculations, budget and deadlines.
And what would you say to façade consultants?
Lucile Souyri: Many façade consultants view aluminium as carbon intensive, which of course it is if you’re using coal-based primary aluminium. More up-to-date façade engineers however are realising the benefits of using systems made using end-of-life recycled aluminium.
Thanks to the optimization of our production process and the use of recycled material, the embodied carbon in our products is one of the lowest in the market, even compared to system providers using PVC and wood. On top of that, we guarantee full circularity at the end of life of our system, for the aluminium and all other components.
Why should fabricators support circularity?
Lucile Souyri: The fabricators we’ve worked with so far all say it helps them to win projects and we know from fabricators generally that circularity is becoming more popular in specification tender documents.
Spreading the word to architects and specifiers is the best way to support circularity in construction.
How can people find out more information about sustainable facades and circularity?
Lucile Souyri: Firstly, talk to us, we’re always keen to discuss circularity and how we can support you.
Alternatively, take time out to watch our popular WICONA MEETS series where we meet world-renowned designers and architects to find out how they see the future of facades, which covers sustainability and other topics.
We’re also putting together a series of webinars that will cover specific subjects like circularity - watch this space!