28.08.2023

Sustainability at various levels

Modern technologies, self-generated energy and climate-friendly mobility. MAPAL is investing four million euros in its headquarters in Aalen alone.

MAPAL puts a premium on energy and environmental management. The aim is to make the operational processes at all the Group’s sites more sustainable. MAPAL has already proactively implemented a series of measures in recent years. Other projects are ready to be realized. By 2025, the company wants to reduce the energy-related CO2 emissions of its products by 40 percent compared to 2015.

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Parking spaces with charging points for e-cars in front of the main entrance at the Aalen site.
  • Parking spaces with charging points for e-cars in front of the main entrance at the Aalen site.
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    Parking spaces with charging points for electric cars are available for visitors to the headquarters in Aalen. ©MAPAL 

  • Aerial view of the factory premises of the MAPAL India site
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    The subsidiary in India generates around one third of its electricity requirements through its own photovoltaic systems. ©MAPAL 

  • Hardening of a hollow shank taper (HSK) by laser beam.
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    A newly developed laser hardening system for the processing of Hollow shank tapers. The system replaces the environmentally harmful salt bath hardening and requires much less energy. ©MAPAL  
MAPAL approaches the issue of sustainability head-on and at various levels: on the one hand, an energy management team deals with resource-efficient and energy-saving processes in the company itself. On the other hand, the research and development engineers at MAPAL work on supporting customers with innovative tools and chucks that address the issue of sustainability.

Use of smart technologies

Hardening of a hollow shank taper (HSK) by laser beam.
A newly developed laser hardening system for the processing of Hollow shank tapers. The system replaces the environmentally harmful salt bath hardening and requires much less energy.   ©MAPAL
Ein Schwerpunkt des Energie- und Umweltmanagements von MAPAL liegt auf dem Einsatz intelligenter Technologien und Systeme. Stehen Investitionen, wie der Bau oder die Ertüchtigung von Gebäuden beziehungsweise die Erneuerung von Produktionsanlagen an, werden diese unter ökologischen Gesichtspunkten geplant und umgesetzt. Spezialisten von MAPAL befassten sich mehrere Jahre mit der Entwicklung einer Laserhärteanlage, um das umweltbelastende Härten von Werkzeugen im Salzbad zu ersetzen. Vor wenigen Monaten konnte die Anlage erfolgreich in Betrieb genommen werden.

Eigenproduktion von Strom

Luftbild vom Werksgelände des Standorts MAPAL India
Die Niederlassung in Indien generiert rund ein Drittel ihres Strombedarfs über eigene Photovoltaikanlagen.  ©MAPAL
Auch beim Neubau der Niederlassung im indischen Coimbatore setzte MAPAL ganz auf Nachhaltigkeit. Rund ein Drittel seines Strombedarfs generiert das Werk über eigene Photovoltaikanlagen und setzte weitere Maßnahmen zum Klimaschutz um. Völlig stromautark arbeitet seit vergangenem Jahr die Niederlassung in Ballarat, Australien. In den MAPAL Werken in England, Polen und Italien werden ebenfalls eigene Photovoltaikanlagen betrieben. Im Kompetenzzentrum Vollhartmetallwerkzeuge in Altenstadt nutzt man eine eigene Brunnenwasserkühlung für die Werkzeugfertigung und die Gebäudeklimatisierung und verkleinert auf diese Weise den ökologischen Fußabdruck.

Green power and green heat

The company’s main plant in Aalen is consistently moving towards environmentally-friendly energy supply. A highly efficient cogeneration unit was in operation for many years. In the spring of last year, it has been replaced by a new even more efficient unit. As a result, MAPAL saves around 80 tons of CO2 every year. In addition, the company uses the waste heat from the machines in the newer halls to heat the buildings. Another hall at the Aalen plant will soon get a heat-recovery system and a high-performance heat pump to further improve the sustainable use of heating energy.

Since 2021, MAPAL has only purchased electricity produced in an environmentally friendly manner to meet its electricity needs both in the main plant in Aalen and in the eight subsidiaries in Germany. The main plant in Aalen will soon produce a large part of this itself. The installation of PV systems on several hall roofs is already in the final stages of planning. It will allow MAPAL to produce around half a million kilowatt hours of electricity to meet its own demand.
 

Climate-friendly mobility

MAPAL is also investing in a green future in the field of mobility. The company fleet consists of an increasingly number of electric and hybrid cars. Six electric charging stations are available in the visitors’ car park at the Aalen plant to provide a charging facility for visitors’ and company vehicles. All German sites now have their own charging stations. There are plans to extend this further. The installation of the first charging points for employees in Aalen together with the creation of a solar carport in the car parks is already underway. In the medium term, the company wants to generate a further 500,000 kilowatt hours of electricity in this way, i.e., a total of around one million kilowatt hours of electricity. The current investments in sustainable projects at the Aalen site alone thus add up to around four million euros.

This includes the environmentally friendly mobility of employees, such as providing company bikes, subsidising the “Deutschland-Ticket” and the option to work remotely. Converting lighting to LED technology and switching product packaging to recycled materials are also part of MAPAL’s sustainability concept.
 

Clear commitment to sustainable corporate culture

For Dr Jochen Kress, President of the MAPAL Group, the company’s commitment to the environment and climate is a matter close to his heart. He says: “We have a duty to future generations, and as a family business we consider this to be particularly important.” MAPAL has set itself clear, tangible goals. There may still be a long way to go to fully achieve these. “However, we’re working towards these goals with all our might,” Kress emphasises.
Kathrin Rehor, PR Project Manager at MAPAL

Contact

Kathrin Rehor Public Relations Kathrin.Rehor@mapal.com Phone: +49 7361 585 3342

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