Aluminum recycling with a future

The company was founded in April 2023. Managing Director Gregor Kurth comes from the industry and has chosen the path from a corporate group to a medium-sized company. An interesting, but also courageous decision. He founded the company primarily because he wanted to pursue the idea of service. This is also reflected in the name „AS Aluminum Support GmbH“.

Kurth brings with him his professional network and clear ideas about the business field of AS Aluminium Support GmbH as well as prospects for this medium-sized company. „We keep the waste in the circular economy,“ explains Kurth.

AS is divided into two business areas. The Metal Service division offers a full range of storage services. Storage space and a wide range of handling equipment make this possible. AS can draw on a network of cooperation partners from the western ports of Antwerp, Rotterdam and Amsterdam to the east of Europe. „We store aluminum scrap from customers here – in various quality classes – and when the customer needs it again, the materials are delivered to the appropriate recycling plant,“ explains Gregor Kurth.

The second area is the aluminum recycling area. The focus here is on the processing of aluminum waste. If necessary, it is classified, separated or sorted. A waste treatment plant approved in accordance with BImSchG is available on the site for this purpose. Aluminum alloys from various sectors find their way to Dormagen: for example, beverage cans, automotive scrap, lithographic sheets or so-called end-of-life scrap.

In principle, only aluminum scrap with an aluminum content greater than 85 % is treated here. „We also have remelted aluminum scrap, also known as RSI (Recycled Scrap Ingots) in various alloys, cast in 650 to 850 kg blocks, here on site. The customer then receives aluminum from us with a very specific composition. Especially for short-term requests, when customers need 400 t quickly, this is a way to deliver immediately,“ explains Florian Schneider, responsible as key account manager for the customers of AS Aluminium Support GmbH. „When everything is running normally, it‘s okay, but when there are challenges like this, it‘s fun,“ he adds enthusiastically.

In order to be able to process these inquiries, there is sometimes a special need for equipment. „For example, the inbound of our customers changes. Then we need appropriate handling machines at short notice to meet the demand. Here, too, we have created a network,“ reports Kurth. „We work together with BRR – Baumaschinen Rhein-Ruhr GmbH. As long as I can remember, we have only had positive experiences with SENNEBOGEN because these machines offer high availability and the partner behind them – BRR – is really powerful. BRR works in exactly the same way as we do. If I have a special requirement, I call Patrick Spiller at BRR Herne and say I need support with a particular machine. Then I know that BRR will pull out all the stops to help us.“ BRR – Baumaschinen Rhein-Ruhr GmbH, based in Herne, is a family business with around 100 employees. With 300 machines over 14 t, they have one of the largest rental fleets in Germany and offer equipment from SENNEBOGEN and Komatsu as well as attachments from NPK, LaBounty and OilQuick. In addition, a subsidiary was founded that deals with construction site digitization, among other things. „My father founded a company in 1983 and he also used SENNEBOGEN material handlers in the past. We are sticking with SENNEBOGEN and I have noticed quantum leaps in terms of fuel consumption, availability and technology,“ emphasizes Kurth.

In September 2023, AS ALUMINIUM Support GmbH got a new addition. The 822 G, a 22 t recycling excavator from SENNEBOGEN‘s new machine generation, the G-series, joined the team. With this further development of the 818 E, SENNEBOGEN has once again focused 100 % on material handling. The 822 G is characterized by excellent responsiveness – the hydraulics can be adjusted very precisely to the operator – and fast, superimposed movements with a hydraulic system that is optimized for the demanding tasks in recycling and scrap yards. At the same time, the machine uses Green Efficiency technology (see info box) to save resources and work efficiently. The Maxcab comfort cab, which can be raised as standard, makes working even more comfortable and, above all, safer. The backrest has been raised, the seat widened by 3 cm and the suspension additionally reinforced to offer the operator maximum seating comfort. Furthermore, the standard air conditioning with a total of 12 individually adjustable air vents and the view to the front and side have been optimized. The windscreen, which is completely continuous from the roof to the floor, is made of armored glass as standard.

„The 822 G we have here now is the smallest excavator I have ever used. But it is a material handler that we can work well in the halls and it is ideally suited to the area we have here. The diesel version has extremely low fuel consumption, I can remember 35 liters for large material handlers in the past, the 822 G consumes 6.5 liters depending on use with catalytic converter (TIER V final),“ explains Kurth proudly. „What we have new is the ULM stick from SENNEBOGEN and an OilQuick quick coupler. We have three attachments for this: a sorting grab, a 5-shell grab and a 2-shell bulk material grab, because these are suitable for a wide range of bulk material, such as we have here. The quick coupler is really convenient and makes work easier, especially when requirements change.“ To equip the SENNEBOGEN 822 G with a quick coupler, the material handler was pre-equipped by SENNEBOGEN with a corresponding hydraulic system.

„I definitely don‘t regret the purchase, we now use the excavator in a variety of ways,“ summarizes Kurth. And he sees the future in recycling, if only to cover the increasing demand for raw materials. Large regional aluminum plants are expanding their recycling activities. This is where the services of AS Aluminum Support GmbH are in demand. „As a family business, we want to continue to expand and maintain our flexibility, speed and agility,“ says Kurth.