Aludecor, a pioneer and leader in Metal Composite Panel manufacturing, today announced the official launch of STONESENSE , an innovative architectural surface system engineered to deliver the timeless elegance and visual depth of natural stone without its traditional structural limitations. Inspired by the legacy and enduring power of natural stone, STONESENSE introduces a curated portfolio of engineered stone-finish metal composite surfaces. Developed for modern building envelopes, the series blends tactile aesthetic experience with advanced material performance, offering architects, builders, and developers a lightweight, highly durable and versatile alternative to mined stone. Designed for modern facades & envelopes The STONESENSE series is structured around three distinct material...
Romania’s aluminium can recycling rate increased to 80.5 per cent in the first nine months of 2026, compared with 75 per cent in the same period last year, according to data published by RetuRO, the administrator of the country’s Deposit Return System (DRS), and analysed by Every Can Counts. The number of aluminium cans returned between January and September was 6.3 per cent higher than in the corresponding period of 2025. The return rate also improved to 85 per cent from 82 per cent a year earlier. Aluminium cans were the only packaging category to record growth in the first nine months of 2026, as the total number of deposit-bearing containers placed on the market declined by 2.4 per cent. The number of cans placed on the market increased by 2 per cent, while plastic and glass packaging...
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Denver, Colorado-based space infrastructure developer, ThinkOrbital has incredible ideas to deploy at the lower Earth orbit. The enterprise has designed an orbital platform or the ThinkPlatform that can be utilised for component production in space, alongside aiding in the removal and recycling of space debris which usually contains enormous amounts of aluminium. Just like a flying saucer, the ThinkPlatform would be spherical, having a free-flying, non-pressurised platform which would either work as a portion of a bigger commercial station or simply join with an existing spacecraft’s dock. Lee Rosen, the co-founder, president and chief strategist of ThinkOrbital, mentioned SpaceX’s Starship while considering a spacecraft. ThinkPlatform would be very beneficial in manufacturing high-speed...
Headquartered in Australia, a clean tech company, Graphene Manufacturing Group Ltd. (GMG), has announced a supplementary investment of AU$ 600,000 in capital expenditure for extensive developments of its Battery Development Centre (BDC). The company intends to use the CAPEX for future discoveries, prototyping and production in the BDC. This expenditure is vital for GMG as it amplifies BDC's semi-automatic pouch cell prototype manufacturing process for consumer verification and the precise constitution of Graphene Aluminium Ion (G+AI) Battery cells. The Brisbane-based company also has expanded its functional ability by appointing new experienced staff in pouch cell production, in turn causing significant progress in its battery performance optimisation initiative. GMG is optimistic that...
The George and Judy Marcus Hall (Marcus Hall) for the Liberal and Creative Arts, by Mark Cavagnero Associates, is a fusion of glass, concrete, and steel. The 75,000-square-foot academic building combined a substantial concrete foundation with a rectangular volume of thin, recycled aluminium sheets. Cavagnero chose aluminium insulated panels and a horizontal aluminium sunshade for the project due to their noncorrosive properties despite considering San Francisco's generally mild weather and temperature conditions. The site's proximity to the Pacific Ocean, the resulting marine airflow, and the city's famous fog were also considered. While the building envelope's energy efficiency was prioritised in the choice of construction materials and systems, the structure's aesthetic appeal was also...
The globally recognized windows and doors brand, Tostem, celebrates its 100th anniversary by launching the latest innovation, which is also a first in the aluminium door and window manufacturing industry. The latest anodizing colour, "Dusk Gray", marks the start of a new era for Tostem, which is continuing after a century. On December 11, 2022, Masakatsu Kudo, the leader of PT LIXIL Aluminum Indonesia, oversees Tostem Indonesia, "When the sun amplifies the view, the sunset unites the home with nature. Inspired by the nuances of twilight in Japan, Dusk Gray is an exclusive colour to create uniqueness in residential spaces." Tostem is part of LIXIL Corporation's manufacturing bases in Japan and Asia, with an aluminium production capacity of around 220,000 tonnes per year. Tostem products...
American leader of aluminium packaging supplies, Ball Corporation EMEA, has decreased carbon emissions by 82 per cent in its integrated supply chain following collaboration with the international supply chain specialists Woodland Group. The data provided informing the public about lower carbon emissions rate belongs from the phase March 2021 to September 2022. Woodland Group successfully introduced the latest rail route specially laid for Ball, adhering to the transport chain at its Doncaster unit. This entire upgradation resulted in 4.3 times lower carbon emissions across 1,442 FEUs (forty-foot equivalent containers) which is equal to 886 tonnes of less carbon emitted than the usual transportation carried out by the road. This programme also resulted in freight trucks operating more...
Italian truck manufacturer IVECO has re-launched their Daily Trade Made heavy-duty vehicle with an elongated 4.5m aluminium tray for a better logistical approach and an extended 5-year per 250,000 km guarantee. This makes the car suitable for construction jobs, transporting materials from one place to another. The framework has outstanding inspiration from the 45C18 Daily cab chassis. At the same time, the Tradie Made ‘Super Tray’ displays a factory-fitted, internally embedded 2218mm W x 4500mm L heavy-duty aluminium tray. This will help the construction sector with a factory-perfected vehicle that can immediately be sent to the work site without needing unique additions or fittings that usually take more time to acquire. Plus this will also curtail third-party entry into the construction...
The end-user aluminium sector has been busy with innovations this week, with USA’s Airbus launching the DisruptiveLab, a helicopter for testing flight-like simulations which flaunts aerodynamic aluminium and composite fuselage especially created to decrease drag and fuel consumption. Ball Corporation made headlines when it announced the closure of its aluminium beverage cans facility in St Paul, Minnesota, and rumours are the company would release 100 of its employees. A California-based business, Anderson Valley Brewing Company, decided to switch from glass bottles to aluminium cans for beer packaging, initiating a much more sustainable and environment-friendly effort. Skoda announced the launch of its first electric SUV (e-SUV), Enyaq iV, made of green raw materials, like 13kg of...
The New-York based American Public Benefit Corporation Kickstarter recently launched its full-size aluminium mechanical keyboard, titled AZIO Cascade 98. This keyboard is the company's first low-profile keyboard with a full-size number pad. The thin profile keyboard, which has a 98 per cent layout and an RGB backlight, can be utilised for both wirelessly and wired devices. “Cascade 98 is the perfect board for anyone who wants to make their keyboard just a little more personal. With an array of customization options, you can swap out switches or keycaps to match your style and preferences. The Cascade 98’s ergonomic compact design includes a full-size number pad and a dedicated row of Function keys. To minimize input errors, the Cascade 98 features the traditional large size “0″ key on the...
Ball Corporation has declared shutting down its aluminium beverage can facility in St Paul, Minnesota and relieving 100 employees of their duty. On November 5, Ball had confined to the State of Minnesota to discuss these sudden layoffs. This will result in the final closure of the Rexam Beverage Can Company site in the state. In August, Ball announced stopping production at two of its units in North America and another one in Phoenix, Arizona. These declarations were based on the Q2 2022 reports. The company is claiming that this is in accordance with the plummeting consumer demand. The final act of closing the facility will commence on February 8, 2023, with the calculated termination of employees. Ball claims that “inflation-related expenses and a decrease in customer/consumer demand...
Glide Products, one of the leading manufacturers of a wheelchair in Australia, is known widely for producing customised and lightweight wheelchairs. The company is known for incorporating high-grade Australian aluminium, making the chairs lightweight and recyclable to some extent. The Glide G2 Series 2 is a lightweight, foldable wheelchair with multiple axle positions and customised seating. The wheelchair features an aluminium frame with a single folding cross-member and also comes with fixed or quick-release axles with wheels and rims in aluminium or steel. "The greater majority of our chairs need to be lightweight, strong, and high performing. Aluminium gives us the right specification," said Steve Walsh, operations director and owner. Founded by the two Perth brothers, the company was...
Sustainability has become a top priority for the aluminium industry. From small to large scale, many companies are doing their bit to move towards a greener and cleaner environment. Anderson Valley Brewing Company (AVBC), a California-based brewery, announced they are shifting from glass bottles to aluminium cans, making the switch to the most environmentally friendly beer packaging conceivable. Recycling a can requires 90 per cent less energy than recycling glass bottles since aluminium is constantly recyclable. AVBC stated they would use aluminium cans with cardboard covers to pack the beer bottles. Additionally, by transitioning from glass to cans, AVBC lowered their trucking by approximately 60 per cent. This is because cans are lighter and transport more effectively. By enabling a...
Skoda has declared the launch of its first electric SUV (e-SUV), Enyaq iV, exclusively in New Zealand by 2023. The Enyaq is fully composed of green raw materials, like 13kg of recycled plastic, 40 per cent of recycled steel and 60 per cent of recycled aluminium. This will fall under the genre of three new EVs that Skoda is about to develop in the upcoming four years, boosting the company’s strategy of transforming 70 per cent of its European sales to electric vehicles. The general manager of Skoda NZ, Rodney Gillard, exclaimed with pride that Enyaq will commence a “decade of transformation.” “With the launch of Enyaq in 2023, we are aligning Skoda with our customers’ evolving needs and expectations – offering exceptional styling and an enhanced user experience. We know that Kiwi drivers,...
Lenovo has launched an innovative product, YOGA Paper, in the Chinese territory, more expensive than the contemporary e-readers of its time. Though the global release date has not been specified, the aluminium-bodied sustainable device is one of the most significant discoveries by Lenovo to date. The device has a 5.5mm density CNC machined aluminium chassis, which is strong and can be recycled when the YOGA Paper reaches the end of its life. The rugged aluminium chassis also has an allotted slot for the complementary stylus. With the world moving toward sustainability, many big brands are shifting to aluminium as their skeletal material. Lenovo is one of the flagbearers of the change because aluminium is infinitely recyclable and can be mended to form any shape. Lenovo YOGA Paper has been...
During last year's end, a brand new EXPERT K5 3650 machine was installed at PT Polyplex Indonesia to efficiently enhance the production rate of flexible packaging solutions. This machine is a successor to the prevailing EXPERT K5 3650 in the compound installed in 2019. Both machines help achieve all the BOBST flagship techniques ranging from Alubond, DarkNight and AlOx. The machines at the Indonesian site together utilise a 700m coating drum, a feature of the EXPERT K5 to ultimately reduce aluminium consumption with increased production rate and lower costs. This 700m coating drum is the biggest estimated pit used in the metal packaging industry. The Alubond process by BOBST is an integrated coating technology that provides chemical anchoring (chelation) of the primary aluminium particles...
Stadler has intertwined itself in an agreement with VR Group, according to which it needs to provide 20 single-decker FLIRT electric multiple units (EMU) in Finland. The latest trains will flaunt a lightweight aluminium construction making the vehicles sustainable. The four-coach trains will have a capacity for 796 passengers and a total of 356 seats. The lightweight aluminium rakes can reach a speed of 160 kilometres per hour and be utilised for local transportation around the Helsinki and Tampere area. Slowly they will be introduced as intercity commutes. The contract requires Stadler to deliver additional spare parts with another shipment of 50 multiple units and a full-service extension. These new trains will act as the skeleton of the VR Group in introducing more sustainable railway...
Recently, Airbus went on to launch DisruptiveLab, a new helicopter to test flight technologies for enhancing aircraft performance and decreasing the carbon footprint left by helicopters. The helicopter features aerodynamic aluminium and composite fuselage specifically made to reduce drag and decrease fuel consumption. DisruptiveLab will be crucial for estimating the new aerodynamic architecture that helps to cut down the fuel intake. The helicopter will have a dual nature wherein a fully parallel hybrid propulsion system will charge the battery during flight. The new specimen will be ready for its first flight by the end of 2022, and associates are eagerly waiting for the simulation results. Other than that, Airbus and Neste have agreed upon a Memorandum of Understanding to jointly uphold...
The shipyard's DNA will be fully expressed in Project YN 20857, also known as Project Setteesettanta, which will have distinctive technological and design aspects. One of the few shipyards in the world that specializes in building lightweight aluminium yachts, Heesen was the first to use the incredibly fuel-efficient Fast Displacement Hull Form, a ground-breaking design by van Oossanen Naval Architects that can save fuel usage by up to 20%. YN 20857, which is 57 metres long and has an interior volume of 920 GT, perfectly complements the shipyard's line of products. Heesen is an expert at utilizing its cutting-edge shipyard in Oss by offering a well-balanced selection of Custom, Smart Custom, and Series yacht designs. The yard is currently building 14 yachts ranging in size from 50 to 80...
Rimowa, the high-quality luggage manufacturer, has collaborated with digital fashion company RTFKT to bring its renowned luggage brand to the metaverse via two NFT (non-fungible tokens) drops. Together, they have unveiled a line of 888 limited-edition luggage, which are only available through purchases of NFTs. The Rimowa X RTFKT collaboration's Original Cabin suitcase has the model's unique grooves and is built of premium anodized aluminium, making it incredibly light. As a result of the partnership, 2,222 "WorkerBot" NFTs will be made available. The luggage will be available in physical and digital forms (thus the term "Phygital"). To mint their NFTs, users must reactivate a Rimowa x RTFKT space station. Then there is a "forging" event where owners of NFT may come and use it to purchase...
