75%
The emissions associated with the production of flat steel products can already be reduced by up to 75 percent.
The magazine of Friedhelm Loh Group
The magazine of Friedhelm Loh Group
Text Daniel Giebel ––– Photography
Stahlo is an expert partner when it comes to the procurement of green steel.
“By helping companies to calculate the emissions in the supply chain for their flat steel portfolio and plan sustainable targets to be achieved by 2030, Stahlo is aiming to help promote transparency and sound decision-making.”
Kerstin Hirsch,
Applications consultant, Stahlo
CARBON REDUCED PLASTICS
LKH is pressing ahead with technical innovations to promote the use of CO₂-reduced plastic. For example, the company is making increasing use of recycled materials and bioplastics, which have an 85 percent smaller carbon footprint than conventional plastics. In 2024, further initiatives to replace certain materials are expected to save some 1,300 metric tons of CO₂.
CARBON-REDUCED STEEL
Green steel is in demand. With its state-of-theart site in Gera, Stahlo is one of the pioneers in this field. The company, which is an expert partner for the procurement of CO₂-reduced steel, has rigorously geared its organisation and processes to reducing CO₂ and operates one of the most cutting-edge, energy-efficient steel service centres there is.
ENERGY EXPERTISE
Infrastructure is an essential part of the energy transition. Industrial solutions from Eplan and the Rittal Energy & Power Solutions business unit are helping to ensure the efficient planning and rapid expansion of energy grids. They are also contributing to e-mobility and energy storage systems. What’s more, Rittal cooling units achieve energy savings of up to 90 percent.
2. FOR CLEAN PROCESSES
“We are aware of our responsibility to the environment and the world in which we live. This commitment from our corporate principles applies throughout our Group. Sustainability thus plays a role for every employee and is also relevant to our work with suppliers, partners and customers. Only together can we achieve our targets.”
Isabel Tartler,
Sustainability Management, Friedhelm Loh Group
100%
The LKH plant in Heiligenroth obtains 100 percent of its electricity from hydropower.
LESS METAL WASTE
Metal – whether in the form of tin, aluminium or stainless steel – is precious, and the Friedhelm Loh Group takes various steps to reduce the amount it has to scrap. For example, FLG companies are optimising their use of materials, ensuring more effective damage protection for delivered materials, recycling waste metal and using alternatives to destructive testing. As a result, the volume of scrap metal has been cut by more than 1,800 metric tons this year – in Germany alone.
WASTE PREVENTION
Recycling instead of throwing away – at the Rittal plant in Haiger, a team is working in collaboration with a film manufacturer to develop a recycling system for film waste. Currently, up to 90 kilograms of film waste is disposed of each day. The aim is for the film manufacturer to use this waste to produce new film in the future. In other areas, too, we are working on ways to prevent waste, such as reducing the amount of paint-stripping in the paintshops.
60%
Our target for 2030 is reducing CO₂ emissions by 60 percent compared with 2019.
EFFICIENT PLANT PROCESSES
When it comes to energy consumption, the companies in the Friedhelm Loh Group don’t just look at their buildings – they also consider their plant processes. Here are two examples. One of the paintshops at the Rittal plant in Haiger is being converted to clean and degrease workpieces at a lower temperature. It will also soon start using a new powder coating that dries at a cooler temperature. The results are of the same high quality, but the energy consumption is much lower. Starting in the coming year, the plant will also be saving even more energy thanks to a new control system for its air compressors that ensures they do not run at high power when this isn’t necessary. These concepts are already being extended to other plants in Germany and around the world.
3. FOR GREENER PLANTS
“As Energy Manager for the Friedhelm Loh Group, I focus 100 percent on devising and implementing energy-related measures for the Group worldwide.”
Felix Müller,
Energy Manager, Friedhelm Loh Group
All our sites are gradually being switched to using green electricity, like the Rittal plant in Haiger.
USING GREEN ELECTRICITY
Since there are limits to the expansion of photovoltaic installations – due to space constraints, for example – buying in green electricity also plays an important role. The Friedhelm Loh Group does this across Germany and, in some cases, on a global level. For example, 100 percent of the electricity purchased by the LKH plant in Heiligenroth is generated by hydropower, while a solar park in India has been supplying two-thirds of the electricity we need there since 2017. Our aim is to switch all our international sites to green electricity by 2030.
100%
Our aim is to switch all our international sites to green electricity by 2030.
PHOTOVOLTAICS EXPANSION
We already have PV installations supplying us with solar power at our sites in Germany, Italy and Austria. This year, we are putting further installations into operation at Rittal China and the Rittal Global Distribution Centre in Haiger. In total, these installations will supply some 2.8 megawatts of power, almost doubling the proportion of our overall electricity needs that we cover ourselves. Over the coming years, teams will analyse what else is possible in terms of generating solar power and will implement measures accordingly.
