Green, carbon footprint, energy optimization, net-zero are currently key topics across meeting rooms in most industries, particularly in our aluminium sector. While a lot of great dialogue and action has been happening in the recent past, AlCircle started to build one of many roads towards sustainability for the aluminium industry over a decade ago. Started in 2010 with a vision to bring the global aluminium value chain online, AlCircle has since established a worldwide presence, shown proof of concept and continues to innovate around how not just AlCircle, but the entire industry can work towards reducing their carbon footprint through adopting digital tools and processes. With a vision of ‘Think Aluminium, Think AlCircle’, we are growing each day towards our ultimate goal of promoting aluminium as a sustainable material and in turn becoming the one-stop solution for the global industry.

AlCircle began as a platform to bring the industry closer and more connected with an eventual goal of faster, more efficient, and well-informed business decision-making, all activities which currently involve extensive travel, large printed directories, physical meetings and events. What started as an industry newsletter stands tall at up to 10 million online hits a month, readership across 196 countries, and diverse readership across small, medium, and large aluminium industry players. The free newsletter is AlCircle's way of giving back to the industry through knowledge and information about every segment of the aluminium value chain and ensuring that it is not restricted to sharing about the global giants but shedding light on new innovations and developments by smaller companies in various corners of the world. AlCircle.com continues to provide these small companies with a digital channel as an affordable and accessible medium to share and promote, right beside news and promotions from larger corporations, all with a minimal carbon footprint. Furthermore, AlCircle's digital publications, such as industry reports and theme-based e-Magazines, continue to deliver industry know-how and development suitable to customers' email inboxes eliminating the need to do print runs, post, waste and then recycle. And all of this supports the aluminium industry in its path to net-zero and makes it all cost-effective. And AlCircle is committed to being our industry's most affordable and sustainable solution provider for maximum outreach and impact.

Doing business is the ultimate goal of any industry, and while our aluminium sector innovates around green technologies, buying and selling continue to be integral to the industry's sustenance. To fuel this, AlCircle launched its online marketplace as the world's first such platform dedicated to a single metal and its allied sectors. AlCircleBiz was a decade-old plan that came to life recently as an effort to connect global buyers and sellers, reducing their pain, cost, and above all, carbon footprint to meet, connect and do business with each other. In a short span of time, the platform has over 1000 sellers and the largest database of aluminium industry suppliers from over 90 countries, connecting with potential customers from all corners of the world. The current political instability, environmental incidents, and supply chain disruptions over the recent past have heightened the need for all companies to build alternative sources for their consumables and buyers of their products. AlCircle's marketplace is the answer to these industry needs by opening doors to a wide range of companies from your local region and from all across the world. As the aluminium value chain pyramid is growing exponentially towards the base, it is indicative of the thousands of downstream, end user, and recycling players that are dotting the globe, and AlCircle is working towards bringing them all on one single platform for ease of access and in-turn reduce the carbon footprint of discovering them through traditional methods.

The pandemic pushed AlCircle to pivot and provide the industry with yet another first, the Global Aluminium Expo, a virtual exhibition platform for global and local players to connect alike. Pushing away expensive booths and thousands of dollars in travel, AlCircle continues to provide an opportunity for the small and medium aluminium players to present alongside the industry veterans. While this is not a replacement for the much-loved physical expos, it is yet another opportunity for the industry to grow, connect, and learn from each other at the fraction of the cost and carbon footprint. The next one is slated for April 18-20th, 2023 and will be attended by thousands of visitors who aim to do business from sitting at their desks.

AlCircle’s ulterior goal stands to be the promotion of aluminium and exponential growth of the industry, which will only be possible with the development and promotion of newer players across the aluminium value chain globally. And through the digital tools at AlCircle, all of it has been and will continue to get easier, cleaner, and greener for the aluminium industry.