Novelis, the company that makes the aluminum for the Ford F-150’s body and engine, has announced a $48 million investment in its automotive aluminum scrap recycling facility. The “closed loop” investment includes a new 81,000 square-foot building capable of processing, sorting and storing automotive scrap aluminum. Designed specifically to meet the needs of North American automakers, the recycling center will enable Novelis to process as much as 10,000 metric tons (20 million lbs) of recycled scrap per month.Typically, 40% of an aluminum coil is left over after an automaker stamps out parts. But in the closed loop created by Novelis, a group of trucks delivers aluminum from Novelis to Ford and waits until parts have been stamped, then collects the scrap aluminum from the factory floor and returns the scrap directly to Novelis, where the scrap reenters the system, Novelis says.
Ford’s use of aluminum in the F-150 has significantly reduced the weight of the car, making it 30% more fuel-efficient than earlier models, the company says. According to the Business Standard, Ford plans to produce 850,000 units of F-150 cars and will need about 350,000 tons of aluminum sheets.
