In the next ten years, the metal industry will change more significantly than in any previous decade. There are numerous reasons for this: In addition to new production processes, legal regulations and digitalisation, environmental protection also plays a major role. These are the topics that will accompany us in the next ten years and will cause a great number of changes in the industry.

For hundreds of years now, metals in smelters have been liquefied using coke, coal or natural gases. The efficiency of the plants has been improved over the years; however, the basic operating principle has always remained the same. With an increasing number of electric arc and induction furnaces, which rely on electrical energy and mainly recycle metals, the efficiency of the furnaces is significantly higher than with fossil fuels. The electrification of steel production is made especially possible due to the fact that increasingly fewer new metals have to be produced. The recycling rate in Europe is higher than ever before: Approximately 70 per cent of the aluminium produced has merely been remelted. This trend will continue in the coming years as recycling becomes more cost-effective than the extraction of new ores.

The longevity of products is also becoming more important again. With the right alloys and coatings, metals can be used for a much longer time than without special treatment. While car bodies are often adequately protected against corrosion, the industry is somewhat more regressive. Economic output is reduced by about four per cent every year due to rust. The numerous closed down mines and furnaces in the Ruhr area, which have been rusting for years, are a good example of what industry would look like without corrosion protection.

Lightweight construction: Same performance with less weight

Increasing raw material costs and advances in the area of environmental protection will also ensure that products made of metal will become ever lighter in the future, particularly in mass production. Fewer metals will need to be melted, and at the same time cars, for example, will benefit from the reduced weight that needs to be moved. The changeover to lightweight construction is not equivalent to a reduction in load capacity. Computer-aided calculations can be used to design components with the same requirements, but which nevertheless weigh considerably less and are made of aluminium instead of steel, for example.

Environmental protection is the main topic of the 2020s