Germany – windows & façades: renovation market helps to speed up recycling

The rapid growth of the renovation market has helped to increase the exchange of aluminium windows and façades. Industrial and commercial buildings are being adapted to meet the increasing demand for insulation and comfort.



The German Aluminium Recycling Initiative A/U/F has set targets of recycling aluminium windows and façades into high quality aluminium within the framework of a closed loop system. According to Wolfgang Beck, director of A/U/F, a quarter of renovation projects are carried out according to guidelines set out by the A/U/F, and it is hoped that the number will increase within the next year.



The initiative ‘‘Aluminium and the Environment in Window and Façade Installations‘‘ was established in 1994 by a leading supplier of aluminium profiles. The aim of the initiative is to encourage commercial recycling of old aluminium window frames, doors and façades in order to increase the fraction of recycled aluminium used in building and construction. The sixteen companies involved in the initiative have a 90% share of the German market and have successfully implemented a closed-loop system that allows old window frames to be sorted, melted down and remoulded into new windows. The A/U/F system is able to fulfil the legal requirements of many Länder, which stipulate that new aluminium frames can be used in construction if they are made from recycled material. Recycling has several advantages: firstly aluminium can be recycled an indefinite number of times without a reduction in quality. Secondly, energy consumption for recycling aluminium is only 5% of that of new production.



In order to increase the quantity of used aluminium frames and doors in the closed loop system, A/U/F is currently looking to enhance the network of collection points. This way, dismantled windows and doors can gain quicker entry to the closed loop system from the building site. The process has been successfully used on many large-scale projects