Sustainability

A major advantage of aluminum as a material is its long service life. 75% of the aluminum ever produced is still in use. A large part of it has already been recycled several times, with this rate rising continuously and accounting for more than 2/3 of total consumption in Germany. Only 5% of the original amount of energy is required to recover the raw material, which significantly improves the eco-balance of this material.

An important prerequisite for recycling without loss of quality, however, is recycling-oriented product design and the sorted collection of the recyclable material. Therefore, all extruded MiniTec profiles are made of the same alloy. The aluminum swarf and profile remnants produced during production are collected in a closed cycle and sorted for recycling. Specially marked collection containers are available for this purpose in each department.

One of the most important contributions to the conservation of resources is the unlimited reusability of our profiles and components. The reason for this is the unique MiniTec profile connector, which allows structures to be assembled without drilling. This means that they can be easily dismantled and all components reused for other purposes. And by the way, the fact that no mechanical processing is required also means that less energy is needed.

We offer our customers energy-saving solutions for plants and machines. These are characterized by special drives and intelligent software solutions. Fast capacitive storage modules can also be used to buffer electrical energy. This extends to so-called regenerative modules. Intelligent control systems also ensure that braking energy is not lost, but can be used for acceleration and especially for start-up energy peaks.

Synchronous linear motors continue to ensure energy efficiency - especially where expensive compressed air controls can be dispensed with. Drives of plants should be switched off automatically when they are not needed at the moment. We make this possible by using appropriate control systems or compressed air units - this principle is followed in our conveyor systems in particular.

On request, we also offer our customers power and energy measurement systems for ISO 50001 energy management systems. A module supplied with the system measures performance data and provides energy meter values. These can be integrated and evaluated in ISO 50001 energy management systems.

MiniTec prefers environmentally friendly suppliers (EMAS or ISO 14001 certification) with the shortest possible transport distances, e.g. pressing plants from Northern Europe.

MiniTec pays attention to low energy requirements or the use of renewable energies in many areas. For example, two photovoltaic systems (total 180 kWp) provide renewable electricity, more than 80% of which is consumed by the company itself. This makes it possible to achieve an average CO² reduction of a good 110 thousand tons per year of harmful emissions.
The conversion of the hall lighting to LED ensured a 37% reduction in electricity consumption. These and many other energy and technical measures at all sites contribute to a consistent reduction in energy consumption and CO² emissions. During the energy audit according to DIN EN 16247-1 from February to April 2021, MiniTec was certified by the environmental auditor as having a very good energy standard.

The diversity of our insects is particularly close to our hearts. That is why we have had several bee colonies on our company premises for years, which are looked after in cooperation with the beekeeper BeeGreat. And our trainees have also built an insect hotel behind our building and ensured that the inhabitants always find enough food by planting a flower meadow.

Sustainability is also manifested in numerous details at MiniTec. For example, confetti panels made of recyclate are used in many areas (such as for side carts and table and work tops). Or wooden panels are used straight away. In general, care is taken to avoid PVC. Of course, we observe the Reach and ROHS regulations and avoid SVHC substances accordingly. Ready-made packaging units save additional outer packaging. Optimized cutting during sawing saves waste. The list could be extended at will.

In regular briefings, employees are trained by our environmental management about the importance for the environment and sensitized for continuous improvements.

Compliance with the specifications is monitored by quality management. Our environmental management system has been certified in accordance with DIN EN ISO 14001 since 2000. You can find extensive information about our management system, our current energy values and our efforts in environmental policy in our environmental report.