Sandvik Coromant supports Thai and Singaporean customers with recycling initiative

Metal cutting and machine tools expert Sandvik Coromant, is supporting Thai automotive parts manufacturer Dana Spicer, and one key oil and gas customer in Singapore, with its new tool buyback scheme. Building on the success of its longstanding global buyback program, the enhanced scheme makes the process of repurposing worn carbide machine tools easier for customers and boosts material circularity across the supply chain. Here, Manny Valenza, Sales Cluster Manager for Southeast Asia at Sandvik Coromant, examines the scheme and how the company is supporting its customers.

Sandvik Coromant has encouraged the recycling of cemented carbide for several decades. Sandvik acquiredWolfram Bergbau und Hütten, a world-leading tungsten powder and tungsten carbide producer, in 1997 and launched a buyback scheme to recycle carbide material through the division that is used by Sandvik Coromant to this day.

Since then, the program became a core part of Sandvik Coromant’s production cycle. With the scheme, customers can sell their worn-out tools to Sandvik Coromant. The materials can be extracted and reused in the production of new cutting tools; the program creates a closed loop in manufacturing.

This powder then undergoes chemical purification, which helps to retrieve materials that have the same properties as the tungsten originally extracted in the Wolfram mine. Additional elements in the cemented carbide are also managed sustainably. For example, cobalt that is retrieved from the used tools is sent to a third party for recycling. Carbide tools from all manufacturers are accepted into Sandvik Coromant’s recycling programme.

Thanks to upgrades to the program in December 2023, Sandvik Coromant customers are benefitting from a more streamlined and data driven recycling process. Customers wanting to sell their recycled tools to Sandvik Coromant can log onto an online portal and receive an instant price quote for the volume they are looking to recycle, as well as securing an order pick-up time and receiving recycling boxes in advance. To help customers understand the impact their recycling efforts have on the environment, the portal also provides data on the amount of carbon emissions that have been reduced by the metal they have recycled.

To make the logistics of sending recycled tools simpler, Sandvik Coromant has collaborated with market specific carriers to manage the transportation of tools. Users of the service can order containers, receive an automatic price quote, and automatically book transport with an authorised carrier. The goal is to make recycling as simple as possible.

With the upgrades to the recycling program, Sandvik Coromant aims to make customers more aware of the benefits of recycling. Customers who participate can see how much money they can make from recycling tools, while also gaining insight into the carbon emissions they will reduce by doing so. It is all about highlighting the gains of recycling, for profit and for the planet, in the most effective way possible.

“Sandvik Coromant is excited to be working with Dana Spicer in Thailand and a key player in oil and gas in Singapore,” said Valenza. ”With our support, we have been driving their sustainability efforts towards a more circular manufacturing environment by helping to reduce their carbon footprint.

“Not only are our products improving their productivity but with our buyback scheme we are also reducing the number of consumables used through our used carbide buyback program, further enhancing our commitment to more sustainable business practices.

“We have collected their used carbide, which has been crafted to make new tools in our recycling facility in Austria. Besides the direct environmental benefits, the customers receive a certificate and economical benefits from selling used carbide, demonstrating their commitment to a more circular world.

“Most people aren’t aware that 95% of a used carbide insert can be recycled”, continued Valenza. “Sustainability is high on our agenda at Sandvik Coromant, and also for our customers. We provide an opportunity for our customers to contribute to their sustainability targets and sell back used carbide tools in a smooth process. Together with our customers and partners we take responsibility for the environment. It is all about highlighting the gains of recycling, for profit and for the planet, in the most effective way possible.”