Earlier this month I visited a metals recycler in the UK to see at first-hand how they're recovering end of service engine parts and scrap metal, especially titanium, to provide high grade ferrotitanium to the steel industry. This is a great example of how used components and production scrap can be cleaned, melted and returned as raw material to the supply chain. It's all a part of what we now call the Circular Economy; the concept here is that materials just keep on going around - material supply, product manufacture, use, service, end of life, recovery/recycling, material supply...it's a never ending circle, or that's the idea anyway. 

 
In other audiences it's also referred to as 'sustainability'. The real trick though is to aim for closed loop recycling where the materials stay in your industry i.e., the titanium stays as aero grade, not in golf clubs! We know that in our industry we will continue to have a 'sustainable' supply of retired aircraft to tear down/part out and recycle but the challenge over time will be to develop more closed loop recycling for the sector so that we can continue to support ourselves as we compete with others for materials. It's also an essential part of managing our environmental footprint and decoupling growth from environmental impact. As time goes by, this will also involve a move away from just metal to composites as well. That's why as an industry we have to keep one step ahead and look to the future. So, at AFRA, as the leading organisation for EoL management of aircraft, we're not only dealing with the here and now but also looking to the future and to ways of working and innovations in recycling that will support sustainable growth. 

To be successful we also need to share ideas and solutions. So if you have something that you think might fly, let us know!

Best regards,

Nigel Marsh