Sumitomo Electric, through its subsidiary A.L.M.T. Corp., developed a new efficient recycling technology in 2007 with less energy consumption and environmental impact than conventional methods, and commercialized the technology in 2011. Meanwhile, its partner, Toyota, collaborated with the project in the collection of scrap carbide tools by installing recycle bins at its production sites.
Today, more and more super-hard, lightweight materials, such as titanium, Inconel® and new aluminum alloys, are desired in various industrial fields including aerospace, defense, energy, and transport. The hardness of these materials, however, inevitably creates a demand for more accurate and advanced machining, which is the most urgent issue in the metal-working industry in order to achieve a competitive edge in the global market.
Sumitomo Electric has created a domestic recycling system, which completes all recycling processes of precious tungsten in Japan, by collecting scrap carbide inserts and rotary tools sorted by Toyota and reprocessing them as recycled carbide products.
Emphasizing environmental issues as one of the most important challenges for our business, Sumitomo Electric will continue to meet customer demands and spare no effort in reducing the environmental impact in all aspects of the life cycle of carbide tools: production, use, regrinding, and recycling.
