Sustainability & Management (SM)

Hans van Leerdam, AL Solutions SL, Spain

Safety in aluminum extrusion is essential, not only because of high pressures, extreme temperatures, and heavy machinery, but because safety fundamentally depends on human behavior. Most incidents arise from unsafe actions and shortcuts, not technical failures. Building a strong safety culture requires a shift in mindset, led by top-down leadership. Safety must be embedded in how the company thinks and operates, shown through real actions, not just statements. It should be a core value, not merely a priority, as priorities can change. Too often, especially in large corporations, excessive focus on safety KPIs overshadows true safety. This can encourage unsafe behavior like underreporting incidents and create a false sense of control instead of improving safety. When safety is fully embraced as part of the organizational mindset, employees are empowered to follow procedures, wear PPE properly, and report incidents openly. Clear communication, training, and engagement are key to lasting behavioral change.

Grace Asenov, Fastmarkets, United Kingdom

Fastmarkets' low-carbon aluminum price assessments provide transparent, independently verified benchmarks that support sustainable decision-making across the value chain. As decarbonization and recycling reshape the extrusion industry, reliable pricing data is essential for tracking costs, understanding low-carbon premiums and managing exposure to shifting global markets. Fastmarkets publishes global recycled and low-carbon aluminum price assessments, including benchmarks specific to the United States, to reflect the evolving value of lower-emission material. This presentation will examine the key forces influencing aluminum prices in North America, including energy costs, recycled content and trade policy; and how these factors relate to the growing demand for low-emission and secondary aluminum. By linking market fundamentals with sustainability goals, Fastmarkets helps producers, traders and end users make informed choices that advance emissions reduction and responsible sourcing.

Tony Da Silva, XtruAdvance; Drazen Kostelski and Mohamed Parpia, Ryan, LLC, Canada

Most extrusion plants perform significant experimental development without recognizing it as research. Every die trial, metal-flow correction, speed-temperature optimization, container-pressure investigation, or scrap-reduction experiment is, in practice, a structured attempt to overcome technological uncertainty. In both the United States and Canada, these activities often qualify as R&D for tax incentives and funding programs, yet most extruders fail to identify or document them. As a result, companies leave substantial financial value unclaimed each year. This session will demonstrate how common process-optimization work in aluminum extrusion meets the scientific criteria for R&D, even when performed on the shop floor. Attendees will learn how to distinguish routine production from eligible experimental development, how to document trials correctly, and how to quantify the financial upside. By understanding the research they are already doing, extruders can recover funds, reinvest in capability, and strengthen competitiveness across North America.

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