SGM Magnetics, Cleansort form strategic partnership

Italy-based SGM Magnetics, with U.S. operations in Sarasota, Florida, and Cleansort GmbH have announced a strategic partnership agreement through which SGM will market and service Cleansort's laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy, or LIBS, sorting technology in France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, North America and selected regions in Asia.

SGM says it recognizes Cleansort as the leader in LIBS metal sorting, adding that its technology offers “unique accuracy in material analysis, efficient surface cleaning through laser ablation, exceptional data computing capabilities and industry-leading throughput in tons per hour in combination with highest sorting qualities.”

LIBs can detect lighter alloying elements such as those used in aluminum production. 

Cleansort was founded in 2018 by the managing partners of Clean-Lasersysteme GmbH and the company’s Managing Director Philipp Soest to commercialize technology developed by Clean-Lasersysteme, a developer and producer of laser systems for industrial surface treatment, with funding from the German Federal Environmental Foundation.

Cleansort says its LIBS technology focuses a high-intensity laser beam on the surface of the material to be sorted, vaporizing a small amount of the metal close to the surface and creating a plasma light with a characteristic spectrum that signals the concentration of the alloying constituents even in heavily soiled, coated and painted materials.

The partnership represents a significant step toward expanding Cleansort’s global presence and provides its customers with access to SGM's full range of complementary metal separation technologies, further enhancing sorting.

Celebrating its 70^th anniversary in 2024, SGM Magnetics offers a comprehensive range of metal separation technologies, including magnetic ferrous separation, eddy currents, dry gravity separation, ballistic separation, induction sensors, color sorting, X-ray transmission and X-ray fluorescence technologies.