Metal Watch

TIGHT ALUMINUM SUPPLY IMMINENT

The aluminum industry may be facing a very tight supply situation in the medium term, according to Elzie Borders, president of Noranda Aluminum, Brentwood, Tenn., and chairman of the Aluminum Association, Washington.

"We think that by the end of 1999 we’ll have 17.8 million tons of capacity in the west," says Borders. "If the world markets grow at the long term average rate of two and a half percent per year, the demand will then be 19.3 million metric tons five years from now. If CIS imports drop by two and a half percent a year, as we’ve suggested, 1.8 million metric tons will be available from there."

If these conditions come to pass and there is no significant economic recession, says Borders, demand will require western smelters to run at 99 percent of capacity. In addition, the industry will require substantial imports from the CIS to meet Western demand.

Through 2004, if demand continues to grow at the same rate, the industry would require three million tons of additional capacity to be added between 1999 and 2004, says Borders.

"This represents 10 to 12 new smelters, at least two new plants coming on stream every year in the second half of the next decade. Whether or not the industry can support this growth will depend on whether prices remain high enough to fund the investments that are required while at the same time low enough to avoid creating significant damage to aluminum’s competitive position."

PROCESS OFFERS BETTER SILVER COATINGS

A new coating process has opened the door to new applications for silver-mirror coatings for mass-produced consumer goods.

The new process, developed by Lilly Industries of Woodbridge, Conn., requires only two solutions rather than the traditional three-solution process. The first is the traditional silver bearing solution. The second uses new, environmentally friendly chemicals with a longer active shelf life than solutions currently in use.

The new system is designed to provide a surface of silver with better adhesion to glass and an improved quality of mirror surface.

ALUMINUM RECYCLING INCREASES IN 1994

A strong market for all-aluminum used beverage cans sent the recycling rate up to 65.4 percent in 1994, according to data compiled by the Aluminum Association, the Can Manufacturers Institute and the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries. The figures represent an increase from the 1993 recycling rate of 63.1 percent.

Demand for used aluminum cans was strong in 1994, a reflection of strong demand for aluminum cans in the soft drink and beer markets. According to the three organizations, most of the 64.7 billion aluminum cans were returned through the industry’s market-driven collection infrastructure, which includes thousands of buyback centers nationwide.

In a related announcement, Alcan has released figures indicating that the company has recycled more than 13 billion used aluminum beverage cans in 1994, an increase over the 11 billion cans recycled in 1993.

The recycling figure represents "more than 50 all-aluminum beverage cans for every man, woman and child in the United States in 1994," according to reports from Alcan. "The value of the aluminum beverage cans recycled by Alcan in 1994 in North America exceeded $225 million."

STEEL RECYCLING REACHES HIGH IN ‘94

Steel can recycling rates reached an all-time high of 53 percent in 1994, with more than 1.55 million tons of steel recycled, according to the Steel Recycling Institute, Pittsburgh. SRI called 1994 a "banner year for the steel industry." Recycling of empty aerosol cans grew more than 220 percent in 1994. To date, more than 1,700 communities are accepting these containers for recycling.

Some 38 million appliances were recycled in the United States in 1994, at a rate of 70.2 percent (with more than 1.9 million tons of steel recovered).

More than 12 million tons of steel were recovered from recycled automobiles. Comparing the amount of steel recovered to the amount of steel used to produce new automobiles results in an automobile recycling rate of 95.2 percent in 1994.

The overall recycling rate for steel increased from 66 percent to 68 percent in 1994, according to SRI.

WATCHES BOAST 100% RECYCLED CONTENT

Mondaine Swiss Watch has introduced to the U.S. a line of precision wrist watches made from recycled metal. The family-owned watchmaker has been selling these recycled timepieces in Europe for three years now, smelting more than 50 tons of scrap in the process.

Mondaine gathers and recycles old piping, discarded household appliances, soft drink cans and other items that might otherwise end up as a rusty eyesore along Switzerland’s scenic alpine countryside. The would-be debris is then converted into casings for watches, which are eventually sold in finer jewelry stores and museums.