Speira commissions new furnace in Germany

Germany-based recycled-content aluminum alloys producer Speira GmbH has commissioned a new melting furnace in its headquarters city of Hamburg that, according to the company, delivers more capacity, more recycling, precise insights and data collection in all process steps with 15 percent less energy.

Calling it a “transparent” melting furnace, Speira, which formerly operated as Real Alloys, says the new equipment increases its production capacity by 7,500 tons annually.

The company invested about 6.4 million euros ($6.7 million) in the new 60 tons-per-batch furnace, which replaces one from the 1970s. 

“This new furnace is of great importance to us,” Alexander Dörsel of Speira says. “It increases the performance and output of the foundry in Hamburg and helps us to optimize the metal flows and recycling options at Speira”

The new production line’s use of an electromagnetic stirrer and updated burner technology has improved energy efficiency by 15 percent and significantly reduced the facility’s CO₂ emissions, according to Speira.

“By introducing state-of-the-art process control and further improving energy efficiency, we are setting new standards for our customers," Hamburg Plant Manager Danny Kelm says. "This is also a great signal for our colleagues and therefore for Speira’s future in Hamburg.”

The new furnace carries signage indicating it was provided by Spain-based GHI Hornos Industries. That firm reported in July it was engaged in a process with Speira to reduce the aluminum producer’s CO₂ emissions by 1.5 million tons annually across Speira’s network of facilities.

That same month, Speira announced plans to invest more than $11 million to install four new recycled metals-fed furnaces at its plants in in Grevenbroich and Töging, Germany.

A feature of the newly installed Hamburg furnace is a “fully “transparent oven.”

“Innovative sensor and camera technology provides real-time insights into all furnace processes, and the data obtained in this way enables continuous optimization of the operation and burner control, adapted to the mix of scrap and primary metal used," the company says.

Speira operates 11 recycling and production sites in Germany and Norway, recycling up to 650,000 tons of aluminum per year and producing around 1 million tons of rolled products.