NEWS ON INNOVATIVE ALUMINIUM SOLUTIONS FROM THE SAPA GROUP 1:2015

IN HER ELEMENTDANISH DESIGNER FINDS HER METAL

SILVER BULLETTHE KEY TO

LIGHTER CARS

Most LED systems use aluminium for its thermal management properties – and it looks good.Gabriel Garufo, owner of LED lighting company Ledxon.

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Aluminium is hot property in a brightening Polish economy Al i i i h t t i

Golden glow

SHAPES • 1.20152

Editorial Contents

Shapes is the Sapa Group’s customer magazine. It is published twice a year in 18 language editions.

Editor-in-chief: Kevin Widlic, kevin.widlic@sapagroup.com Editorial Assistant: Eva Ekselius,

eva.ekselius@sapagroup.com Managing Editor: Ylva Carlsson Art Directors: Johan Nohr, Karin

Söderlind Language coordination: Inger Finell Production: Appelberg Publishing Group

Printing: V-TAB Changes of address: Inform your contact person at Sapa or Corporate

Communications at info@sapagroup.com Shapes is also available at www.sapagroup.comCopyright © Sapa AS 2015 - Sapa's product names in this magazine are all

trademarks of Sapa Group.

04Full speed aheadCarmakers are turning away from steel ahead of stricter carbon emission standards and a push to improve fuel effi ciency.

08Now trendingPolish companies report a surge in interest in aluminium furniture and lighting as the local economy powers ahead.

16The metal workerAluminium’s versatility and ability to refl ect light have made it Danish designer Bess Kristoff ersen’s metal of choice.

20Smooth moveThe new HVAC&R Applications Manual is facilitating the transition from copper tubing to aluminium – an industry fi rst.

MORE TO READ

How it works/FSW 03 · Role Model 07 · News 14

Trends 19 · Development 20 · Green Solutions 22

Creatorsat work

T HE ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT is a strong characteristic of Sapa. Our company was founded on it. Part of my job involves meeting customers, and I must admit I

have a soft spot for those who have created and run their own companies.

When I was fi ve years old, my father started his own company and made it into a major player. I know what dedication and sacrifi ces are necessary to build your own company.

Henry Ford founded Ford Motor Company in 1903. It is now a public company but it still maintains that spirit. Its new F-150 pickup truck is the fi rst large-series vehicle that dem-onstrates the advantages of aluminium.

In this issue you can read about two other entrepreneurs, from Poland. They’re not on the same scale as Ford, but they’re just as important to us. We know our solutions are often innovative, because the products are new.

And we know that they add value, because entre-preneurs accept nothing less.

04

08

16 20

SVEIN TORE HOLSETHERPresident and CEO of Sapa

1.2015 • SHAPES 3

FSW: The joining method which exploits the laws of nature. All we add is mechanical eff ort.

How it works

Process is fi nished

Tool plunged into metal

The rotating tool moves along the joint line

Start by rotating toolExit from work piece

ILLUSTRATION PETR KOLLARČÍK

FRICTION STIR WELDING is a method of joining that is based on the fact that metal is subjected to heavy plastic deformation at temperatures which are high, but lower than the melting point.

When the rotating tool is plunged into the metal, friction heat is generated. The tool produces severe plastic deformation under high pressure, during which the weld interfaces are stirred together and a homogenous structure is formed.

A method of joining

Playing to your strengthsAluminium’s use in lightweight cars and

in buildings is set to drive future demand.TEXT LOIS HOYAL PHOTO FORD MOTOR COMPANY

The Ford F-150’s use of aluminium sheet in the truck’s

body panels reduces total vehicle weight by 700 pounds

(320 kilograms). The F-150 uses higher-value-added 5000 and 6000 series heat-treated alloys rather than lower-grade alloys.

T HERE IS NOTHING like being ahead of the game. This ap- proach is being adopted by the Ford Motor Company, which has just unveiled an aluminium-

bodied version of its F-150 pickup truck, its most popular model.

“Finally, a car which allows aluminium to showcase its advantages,” says John Mother-sole, senior principal analyst at IHS. Other carmakers, including Toyota and General Motors, are set to follow suit.

The move comes as the car sector shifts from steel to aluminium in response to im-pending stricter CO2 emission requirements and the push to improve fuel effi ciency. As aluminium is lighter than steel, its wider use in the automotive industry will make cars much more fuel-effi cient. “The holy grail for the industry is aluminium’s use in light vehicles, with its promise of high-volume production runs,” says Mothersole.

Looking ahead, the construction industry will also continue to drive long-term alu-minium demand, particularly in those coun-tries at an earlier stage of development and urbanization. Aluminium’s light weight re-duces the bearing loads on a building, while its resistance to corrosion makes it suitable

MATERIAL DEMAND

A growing demand G Demand for heat-treated sheet, which will be used for lightweight vehicles, is expected to grow as much as 30 percent a year.

G China accounted for about 60 percent of global demand for aluminium extrusions in 2014, following a boom in the construction industry.

G The European construction market is reaching fi rmer ground, with expected average growth of 1.8 percent per year in real terms from 2014 to 2016, according to Euroconstruct. This will fuel demand for aluminium in the sector.

In North America, transpor-tation (cars, trucks, trailers,

aerospace) makes up about 35 percent of aluminium's physical use, followed by cans and pack-

aging at about 23 percent.

1.2015 • SHAPES 5

The Euroduplex is the world's only double-deck very high speed train that is capable of operating across several European rail networks.

Aluminium is becoming the material of choice for off shore applications.

for all weather conditions, and its workability gives architects more design freedom.

The construction market already accounts for two-thirds of the demand for aluminium extrusions, fueled by the construction boom in China in recent years. While building activ-ity in China is slowing, demand will be kept up by a rebound in the construction industry in North America and growing demand in devel-oping countries, such as Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand, explains Eoin Dinsmore, senior aluminium consultant at independent mar-kets analyst CRU Group.

Demand for aluminium is also on the rise in the aerospace industry. A new generation of aircraft made from aluminium and lithium alloys is poised to be introduced in certain civilian applications. Meanwhile, the marine and off shore sector is recognizing the benefi ts of aluminium for the design of lightweight constructions. And aluminium is becoming the material of choice for off shore helipads and other applications in the oil and gas industry, Dinsmore says.

Now it is up to producers to meet the antici-pated growth in demand.

ALSTOM’S EURODUPLEX MOVES as rapidly as any train in the world, using complex aluminium solutions from its development partner Sapa.

Reaching speeds of 320 kilometers (200 miles) per hour, Alstom’s Euro-duplex is a double-deck, very high speed train with the largest capacity, highest level of comfort and greatest safety on the market. The main cus-tomer for Euroduplex is the French National Railway Company (SNCF).

Aluminium’s benefi ts in high-speed train car bodies are its light weight, and its uniform and smooth surface – there are no "waves" in the metal, as with steel. Furthermore, assembly in modular fashion is more

cost eff ective in the overall cost picture, compared with smaller and heavier components. In this respect, the train industry is following the automotive industry.

On the fast trackP

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Sapa's responsibility G Complex/structural extru-sions (up to 19 meters, or 62 feet, in length)

G Machining (short length and long length)

G Kitting (assembling items in ready-to-ship kits)

G Just-in-time deliveries, with shipment in special long-length trucks

SHAPES • 1.20156 SHAPES • 1.20156

MATERIAL DEMAND

1.2015 • SHAPES 7

Role model

Ever since an automated hydraulic bender crushed one of his hands and severed several fi ngers 20 years ago, Michael Traxler has waged a personal fi ght against workplace accidents.

He lost the upper part of his fi ngers, but it could have been worse. “I told the doctor I didn’t want to lose my fi ngers,” he says. “I cried like a baby when I woke from the operation and they had been reattached.”

A video of his story has been made to encour-age employees to follow safety processes and report near-misses – incidents that do not result in injury, illness or damage, but which could. “I learned after the accident that the same thing that happened to me nearly happened to one of my colleagues just a couple of weeks before,” says Traxler. “That made me furious.”

If the near-miss had been reported, his hand might have been saved.

When Sapa President Svein Tore Holsether saw the video, he asked Traxler to come to Sapa's management conference and speak to 200 delegates. Mike's open-hearted story made a strong impact, leading to many further speaking engagements. “There is a lot of activity,” Traxler says. “The focus on safety at Sapa is as great as I have ever seen.”

Today, Traxler, a Sapa customer service representative, often spends time on the shop fl oor talking to colleagues about safety. He also conducts speaking engagements across the company.

Safety crusaderMichael S. Traxler’s heartfelt message about workplace safety has reached a wide audience, including Sapa’s top managers.

Michael S. Traxler

Age: 47.Occupation: Customer service representative.Work location:  Delhi, Louisiana, USAFamily: Wife of 21 years, Anita, and daughter, Kristen, 18.Years with Sapa: 26 years.Hobbies: Speaking with young children in his church, shopping with his family, wood-working, the outdoors.

TEXT DANNY CHAPMAN PHOTO JOSHUA SMITH

Europe’s

starrising

ShapeS • 1.20158

Outlook Poland

Poland’s consumers are making more money, and spending it too. TEXT KEVIN WIDLIC PHOTO DaVID LuNDmarK, IstoCKphot o

P Oland Has finisHEd its first decade in the European Union, one in which it avoided a recession while Europe stood still economically. Poland’s gross domestic product per

capita is 25 percent higher than in 2008, accord-ing to the New York Times, with imports and ex-ports increasing each year.

Since 2004, the EU has sent the country 130 billion euros in financial aid, and another 106 bil-lion euros is earmarked by 2020. Poland also has received more than 100 billion euros in direct for-eign investment since joining the EU, according to the Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency.

Poland offers a growing economy, rising pro-ductivity and low wage rates compared with its Western neighbors. Industry and infrastructure are benefiting.

“Polish people used to think foreign products were always better, but that is no longer the case,” says sales director Paweł Chyziński of Zakład Obróbki Aluminium (Zobal), a producer of furni-ture products and home accessories.

In 2011, the Polish government adopted a 10-year program to increase the share of innovative and high-tech investment and create productive jobs. Several big-name global companies have followed.

Volkswagen, Toyota and General Motors have built facilities in Poland. So have 3M, Google, Amazon, Dell and Procter & Gamble. Most of the products that Ikea sells in its European stores are produced in Poland. But investments from local businesses, from companies like Zobal, are driving the growth.

Zobal was founded 19 years ago by Krzysztof Zakrzewski, who left the aluminium extrusion industry to become an entrepreneur. Besides its aluminium processing competence, the company has repeatedly invested in specialized, techno-logically advanced equipment and production.

1.2015 • ShapeS 9

“We sell service, not production,” says market-ing manager Paweł Wojniusz. “Customers can or-der one piece, choose their own color and size, and we will produce it piece-anodized. The market wants everything, but not everyone can provide it. This is what we do.”

Zobal is located in Trzcianka, about an hour from Poznan and 250 kilometers east of Berlin. The company works with wholesalers: indus-trial customers and producers of furniture and furniture services. “Wholesalers know their customers better than we do – we listen,” says Chyziński.

Two of its largest customers are the German companies Häfele and Hettich. Zobal exports up to 50 percent of its products, and Germany is its largest export market.

“GErmany Has bEcOmE the equal of Italy in design and new products in this business,” says Chyziński. “But we try to find inspiration from all around the world when it comes to product development.”

Zobal created nearly 100 products the last year, from handles and furniture legs to LED glass panels, construction profiles and its flexible new “wall system.” The common denominator is aluminium.

“Aluminium is perfect for designing modern and attractive furniture,” says Zakrzewski. “It is what customers want.”

Zobal's techno­logically advanced production line has broadened the company's range of surface finishes and improved ser­vice in anodizing.

WE SELL SERVICE, NOT PRODUCTION.

Paweł Wojniusz, marketing manager, Zobal

Zobal G production in siedlisko and an-odizing in trzcianka

G products include furniture fronts, legs, bases and accessories, as well as systems for partitions, shelving and sliding doors, and an innovative wall system

G products are used in kitchens, bathrooms, living rooms, ward-robes, shops and offices

ShapeS • 1.201510

Outlook Poland

EnTrEPrEnEur GabriEl GarufO estab-lished Ledxon in 2005, when his son Benjamin challenged him to return to “pioneering mode” and take on the growth in LED lighting. Today, the German company is quadrupling production at its plant in Masów, Poland.

With its companies Ledxon Modular GmbH and Ledxon Replace GmbH, Ledxon has two busi-ness areas – LED components with LED modules and LED strips, as well as LED replacements. Ledxon Modular GmbH develops tailored light-ing solutions for industrial applications, while Ledxon Replace GmbH sells LED replacements for electrical wholesalers in Germany.

The company was the first to substitute LED systems for halogen lamps in Germany’s whole-saler market. Companies like Philips and Osram have since followed.

Garufo started his first company, Garufo GmbH, in 1986. He was a pioneer in the LED sec-tor with the invention of the first LED traffic light, which led the way to new products and patents for road, rail and air traffic applications. He sold the company 15 years later, but he has never left the business.

An LED lighting pioneer looks to aluminium for its thermal management properties and attractive appearance.

“We’ve tried to come up with good application technology – not the LED itself – because com-plete units were not available at the time,” he says, citing food industry lighting as an example.

“Food lighting is specialized,” he says. “When you go into a bakery and can see the texture of the bread, you will buy more. Cheese lighting is differ-ent – they all are, and this is just the food industry. As a company, we need to be as flexible as an auto-motive supplier, with just-in-time delivery and as a developer for the next generation. We are part of the material chain, not just a supplier.”

lEd sysTEms rEquirE good thermal man-agement, drivers and optics. Most systems use aluminium rather than copper and ceramic, due to its thermal management properties. An addi-tional benefit, says Garufo, is that aluminium looks good.

“Aluminium is a technical part of the lamp, so it needs to fulfill all the specifications,” he says. “When I look ahead at improvement possibilities, maybe we could develop a slimmer structure, with thinner walls, and even better thermal manage-ment. But the design should always look good.”

Bright future for Ledxon

What’s LED?LED, short for light-emitting diode, is a two-lead semiconductor light source. LeDs are smaller, use less energy and last longer than incan-descent light sources. They are used in applications from aviation lighting to traffic signals, automo-tive headlights, general lighting and camera flashes. The devel-opment of LED technology has caused their efficiency and light output to rise exponentially. Re-placing lights that spend the most time lit makes the most savings.

Ledxon systems are lighting the production hall at Sapa’s extrusion plant in Trzcianka, Poland.

Gabriel Garufo established Ledxon in 2005.

1.2015 • ShapeS 11

London's CrystalIN ADDITION TO serving as the workplace for Siemens’ team of multi-disciplinary urban experts, The Crystal houses the world’s largest exhibition on the future of cities, focusing on possibilities for sustainable mobility, building technologies, power and water supplies, and health care.

Aluminium is the building material of the modern age. It has manufacturing fl exibility, a broad range of fi nishes, and an excellent strength-to-weight ratio. It is also fully recyclable and gives architects the ability to create solutions pleasing to the eye.

SHAPES • 1.201512

the picture

Hollow-section aluminium extrusions in doors make it

easy to install locks and other furnishings, while providing

lightness and rigidity.

PHOTO TREVOR PALIN

1.2015 • SHAPES 13

Aluminium windows require less maintenance

than wood and are not aff ected by moisture.

Sections for facades and curtain walling can be built thinner and deeper with aluminium and still achieve desired strength

and stiff ness.

and curtbuilt thwith aluachieve

an

Arequ

thaaff

Here shines the brideTHIS SPARKLING wedding dress made out of a patented woven aluminium fabric by Ayse Byzanz was nominated in the Design & Lifestyle category for the European Aluminium Award 2014. Byzanz says the shiny aluminium foil creation can be worn all day and owes its fairy-tale sheen to the way the material refl ects light.

The German fashion and art designer scooped an honorable mention at the prestigious awards for her Future Fashion Wedding Dress. Byzanz says: “I have a special relationship with aluminium; my nickname is actually the Aluqueen. I create everything from shoes and furniture to business cards in aluminium.”

Aluminium has 200 percent the conductivity of copper on

a weight basis.

Something new: Ayse Bysanz’ aluminium foil Future Fashion Wedding Dress is designed to make brides sparkle on their big day

ALUMINIUM IN USE in buildings around the world is expected to remain in tip-top condition much longer than initially thought, re-searchers have found. A study led by renowned architect and professor Michael Stacey has recommended a 40-year warranty for coated alu-minium used in buildings. It also rec-

ommended an 80-year service life for aluminium used in window frames – an upward revision of 40 years. The study, conducted on behalf of the International Alumin ium Institute, examined buildings ranging from Cribbs Causeway Retail Park in Bris-tol, England, to the Financial Times Printworks in London.

SAPA HAS HELPED to develop the Thule Group’s new trailer-hitch-mounted bike rack, the Thule EasyFold. The rack is fold-able, making it easy to store and transport, and can carry loads of up to 60 kilograms.

Anders Sjödell, chief engineer at Thule Rear Mount Systems, says, “Our demands on design and detail have always been huge, and Sapa gave us the utmost support throughout the entire process.”

The bike rack consists of two extruded aluminium profi les: a 40-centimeter wing profi le and a central profi le that serves as the hub of the design.

The winged bike rack

Study: Longer life for aluminium

PERCENT

SHAPES • 1.201514

News

Homage to British history

WITH ITS PATENTED fl exible unisex frame, the Streetbike bicycle can be ridden by most riders between 160 and 188 centimeters tall. The frame is made of anodized extruded aluminium profi les that are CNC-milled and assembled using screws instead of welding. Streetbike, produced by David Larsson Design in Sweden, will be produced in an exclusive limited edition of only 25 bicycles.

Light from above

A sumptuous arrange-ment of overlapping aluminium circles covers the facade of the Library of Birmingham in England. The building, designed by the Dutch studio Mecanoo Architecten, was built at a cost of 193 million British pounds (302 million US dollars). Interlaced circles in two diff erent colors cover the facade's upper fl oors. The black circular

profi les measure 5.4 me-ters in diameter, and the under lying silver-colored rings measure 1.8 meters.

“The circular pattern is an homage to Birming-ham’s industrial history and the many skilled metal working craftsmen,” says Francine Houben, an architect at Mecanoo Architecten.

AMERICAN ARTIST Jeff Koons’ artwork Play-Doh looks like a 4.5-meter-high pile of soft clay. Who would have guessed that the sculpture consists of poly-chromed aluminium? Play-Doh is Koons’ newest sculpture and took 20 years to complete. A ret-rospective of the artist’s work will be shown at the Guggen-heim Museum Bilbao, in Spain, in June 2015.

Work of artPhilips OneSpace Lumi-nous Ceiling is a made-to-measure ceiling panel that transforms the interior of a room into one cohesive space with homogeneous LED light that eliminates shadows completely. The aluminium components are extruded by Sapa Trzcianka in Poland.

Limited-edition StreetbikeWcTaSp

1.2015 • SHAPES 15

SHAPES • 1.201516

Profile BESS KRISTOFFERSEN

Bess Kristoffersen

Hometown: Copenhagen

Age: 59

Family: Married, one son.

Education: Degrees in

textile design from the

Danish Design School,

1984, and in precious

metals design from the

Institute of Precious Met-

als, 1994.

Clients: Blå Form, Den-

mark; Forms+Surfaces,

USA; Bang & Olufsen,

Denmark; Georg Jensen

Damask, Denmark; Kvad-

rat, Denmark.

Next challenge: To con-

struct a spacious design

studio and workshop

close to the family s

house in the woods near

Tystrup Lake, about 100

kilometers southwest of

Copenhagen.

THE METAL’S

INNERMOSTSELF

TEXT LARS ÖSTERLINDPHOTO ALASTAIR PHILIP WIPER

Danish designer Bess

Kristoff ersen fi nds

her main inspiration

in nature.

IN THE EARLY 1990s designer Bess Kristoff ersen had an assignment to combine textiles with cop-per. But the toxic chemicals involved in dyeing the metal suggested the use of another material: aluminium. “It was really just a coincidence, but I soon realized that this was the right material for me,” she says. “The techniques were similar to the ones used for textiles, and since aluminium is a relatively new material, there are still undiscov-ered territories to explore.” To learn more about metals, she took a degree in precious metals in 1994, complementing her degree in textile design from the Danish Design School 10 years earlier.

For Kristoff ersen, structure and planning are necessary to make way for chaos and creative work. “It’s important for me to allocate a long pe-riod of uninterrupted time so that I can be nerdy and totally focus on the material,” she explains. She describes the process of creating something new as a long investigative journey. Through countless experiments she takes the material to its limits. She treats the metal surface with chemi-cals, heat and electricity. It is anodized, ground and stained. She tests the material’s refl ections in daylight and at night. “I can’t force the process toward a certain goal,” she says. “It matures. One thing leads to another, often as a fl ow.”

1.2015 • SHAPES 17

A crystallization

project aimed to

fi nd the very core

of aluminium.

It has an outstanding capacity to reflect light.

Bess Kristoff ersen about aluminium

SHAPES • 1.201518

Profile BESS KRISTOFFERSEN

Although her background is in textile design, Kristoff ersen likes to work with many types of ma-terials: aluminium, steel, glass, paper and wood. “Tactility, color and luster are relevant param-eters for all kinds of materials,” she says. She applies discover-ies from her metalwork to other materials, and vice versa. “It’s important to respect each material’s individuality,” she says. “I don’t try to make aluminium look like textiles, but when I work with the surface to make it refl ect light in a certain way, it’s a process similar to the one for textiles and how the threads are woven in the fabrics to refl ect light.”

Kristoff ersen gives herself new assignments all the time. She is especially pleased with the out-come of a crystallization project on which she col-laborated with Professor Andy Horsewell at the Technical University of Denmark. The purpose was to fi nd the very core of aluminium. “We man-aged to control how the aluminium crystallizes, which creates a very elegant pattern,” she says.

HER DESIGNS ARE SIMPLE, organic and contemporary. The work ranges from small aluminium pins and woven tapestries to large metal partitions. For her latest exhibitions at Kunsthal Nord in Ålborg and at Rundetårn in Copenhagen, she worked with embroidered linen and stained and burned wood.

Aluminium is her favorite material. “It’s very versatile,” she says. “I can create numer-ous fi nishes, and it has an outstanding capacity to refl ect light.” She uses anodizing to create a durable surface and to stain the metal. For most of her aluminium work she does the anodizing herself in her small workshop, where she keeps a 10-liter anodizing plant in which the aluminium is immersed.

Kristoff ersen’s main inspiration comes from nature. Besides the apartment in Copenhagen, she and her husband own a house in the country-side an hour’s drive from the city. “I have always found inspiration in nature,” she says. “It’s an integrated part of my life and the way I think. You can see in my art that I cooperate with na-ture.” Another source of inspiration is her trips to Morocco, Egypt, the United States, Japan and England, where she studied patterns and what she

calls pleasant decay. “The challenge of aluminium is the lack of pleasant decay,” she says. “It doesn’t age nicely or oxidize in iridescent colors as most other metals do. I’m impressed with how the Japa-nese integrate aging in objects and appreciate the beauty in natural wear.”

The commercial assignments vary as much as the materials. She has made a limited series of hand-decorated phones in aluminium for Bang & Olufsen, bed linen for Georg Jensen Damask and metal surface designs for Forms+Surfaces. One of her strangest projects was to create two toilet seats in aluminium for Pressalit. “It was a fun as-signment, although they were just showpieces and not meant for serial production,” she says. “I favor assignments when I can cooperate with manu-facturers to produce surfaces on sheet aluminium or other objects.”

Danish designer Bess Kristoff ersen fi nds inspiration in nature and from overseas trips. Aluminium is her favorite material, and her commercial assign-ments have ranged from phones to toilet seats.

NO LIMITS

“Aluminium is a highly recy-

clable metal. With an accumulated

aluminium product inventory

since 1888 estimated at 600 mil-

lion metric tons, the availability of

aluminium scrap is not a constraint.

And producing recycled aluminium

requires just 5 percent of the

energy required to produce the

primary metal.”

REGIONAL HUBS

“Asia Pacifi c is the leading

manufacturing hub for recycled

aluminium, with 45 percent of

global production in 2013. Produc-

tion in Brazil, China and India is

rapidly increasing.”

MAJOR MARKETS

“End-use sectors such as

transportation, construction, pack-

aging and steel production are the

major recycled aluminium markets.

Total global recycled aluminium us-

age by end-use sectors will reach

26.5 million metric tons by 2023.”

KEY DRIVERS

“Used beverage can recycling

will be a key factor in the usage

and growth of recycled aluminium,

as will awareness programs like

the American Action to Accelerate

Recycling.”

KEY CONSTRAINTS

“Global availability of

aluminium scrap for domestic in-

dustries, particularly in some West-

ern countries that are increasingly

exporting to Asia, is a worry. Scrap

grades that contain impurities also

pose problems.”

trends for recycled aluminiumRecycled aluminium conserves resources and helps the environment, says Yang Cao, senior aluminium analyst at Metal Bulletin Research. Shapes asked him to elaborate.TEXT DANNY CHAPMAN ILLUSTRATION CHRISTIAN MONTENEGRO

1.2015 • SHAPES 19

trends

TEXT KEVIN WIDLICPHOTO KJELL RUBEN STRØM

A new HVAC&R manual

helps smooth the switch from

copper tubing to aluminium.Manual transmission

Sapa’s Precision Tubing Technical Center has its hub in Karmøy, Norway.

SHAPES • 1.201520

Development

Who should read the manual?“Engineers, designers and purchasing professionals from companies that are manufacturing copper-based heat exchangers but considering aluminium solutions. And beginners.”Who did the background work?“Sapa’s Precision Tubing Technical Center and other technical experts throughout the company and across the world.”Is the information valid for the HVAC&R industry in all markets and regions?“Yes.”

S APA’S HVAC&R APPLICATIONS Manual is the fi rst in the industry with documented test results and technical argumentation supporting aluminium as the preferred metal to meet the future demands and

regulations of the heating, ventilation, air condition-ing and refrigeration market.

The objective of the 88-page manual is to educate the manufacturers of HVAC&R heat exchangers in the correct use of aluminium solutions and the metal’s basic material properties. The manual covers all the important topics, such as corrosion, alloys, products and coating solutions, and is a follow-up to the 2012 publication Aluminium System Solutions for HVAC&R Applications.

“I have checked the manual, and there is very im-portant information inside,” says Sandro Ortolano, senior technical customer support manager of the Italian company ThermoKey SpA.

3 questions for Thierry Guillaume:

The HVAC&R Applications Manual is based on relevant knowledge about aluminium heat exchanger technology and corrosion resistance.

The 88-page manual is the fi rst in the industry with documented test results.

One conclusion from the manual is that moving from copper to aluminium can be done with great suc-cess, but that it is not as easy as selecting an alloy. It requires design work, learning and testing.

“It demystifi es aluminium as a material for HVAC&R application and sets the record straight in the basic principles and techniques for aluminium heat-exchanger design,” says Thierry Guillaume, technical manager at Sapa, who gathered the informa-tion and wrote the manual.

He says the knowledge refl ected within the book has been accumulated over many years. “It is based on 30 years in automotive and more than 10 years in HVAC&R,” he says.

THE MATERIAL COMES from test results, develop-ment projects, fi eld-failure analysis and controlled testing in Sapa’s research and development labora-tories. The technologies presented are continuously updated and show state-of-the-art solutions today.

The most easily executed design change is to sub-stitute copper round tubes with aluminium round tubes. This like-for-like substitution provides an immediate advantage in material cost savings. Ad-ditional benefi ts include immunity to formicary cor-rosion, reductions in size and weight, the need for less refrigerant and 100 percent recyclability.

The manual concludes that moving from copper heat exchanger technology to all-aluminium heat exchanger technologies is benefi cial and not diffi cult to achieve. But it also underlines the importance of adhering to the guidelines in order to prevent easily avoidable product errors and failures.

HVAC&R APPLICATIONS

SAPA ALUMINIUM SOLUTIONS

PRECISION TUBING

1.2015 • SHAPES 21

TEXT ULF WIMAN ILLUSTRATION REINERTSEN

W ITH ITS BLUE FJORDS, steep coastline and snow-tipped mountain backdrop, Norway’s west coast is the stuff that sce-nic routes are made of. It can

also be a huge infrastructural challenge.In 2010 the Norwegian Public Roads Adminis-

tration (NPRA) was commissioned by the Norwe-gian Ministry of Transport and Communications to investigate fi xed-link alternatives to the seven remaining ferry crossings along the 1,100-kilome-ter E39 highway route between Kristiansand and Trondheim.

The NPRA was to investigate the impact of dif-ferent alternatives on trade and industry, regional employment and settlement patterns, as well as the technological challenges and whether the bridge structures could be used to generate power from renewable sources.

Sognefj ord, Norway’s longest and deepest fj ord – 205 kilometers long, 1,300 meters deep and 3,700 meters across – was chosen for the fea-sibility study. Based on the initial studies, three concepts were presented in 2012: a fl oating bridge, a submerged fl oating tube bridge (SFTB) and a suspension bridge.

After the feasibility study, a consortium con-sisting of the companies Reinertsen AS, Dr.techn.Olav Olsen AS and Snøhetta Oslo AS, partly fund-ed by the Norwegian Research Council, presented a concept consisting of a fl oating bridge with an

Instead of using direct seabed mooring, the concept of fl oating bridges uses a Reinertsen-patented artifi cial seabed with pretensioned pipes moored to each of the shores, stretching across the fjord at a water depth of 30 meters.

Dr. Marit Reiso, marine constructor and project leader at Reinertsen.

SFTB at midspan. “We combined our respective competences to develop a new solution,” says proj-ect leader Marit Reiso, marine constructor, Rein-ertsen. “The main challenges were how to moor the structure and how to facilitate ship traffi c.”

GIVEN THE DEPTH of the fj ord, the concept has no direct seabed mooring. “This is a proven technol-ogy in the off shore oil and gas industry, which has been adapted to a new application, but it is probably the fi rst time it is used for a bridge,” Reiso says.

“We’re not material experts,” she says, “but the automotive industry uses aluminium, and we thought that it could be an interesting alternative. We contacted Hydro, which led us to Sapa, both of which are now part of the consortium.”

Building bridges to the futureNorway’s deep and wide fj ords may see

fi xed-link crossings, with aluminium

playing a major part.

SHAPES • 1.201522

Green Solutions FIXED-LINK CROSSING

Investigations are currently under way regard-ing the use of aluminium in the ship barriers that shelter the SFTB from ship collisions. Reiso says aluminium may increase the investment cost compared with other materials, but from a life-cycle perspective it could even out. “Aluminium is ductile and light, which simplifi es construction,” she says. “It has advantages over other materi-als with respect to corrosion resistance, which reduces maintenance costs. It can also be reused, which is good from a sustainability standpoint. There are also aluminium factories nearby, which reduces transport costs and emissions.”

Only time can tell how and when the fi xed link E39 will be completed, but so far the project has seen the birth of some very innovative solutions.

ALUMINIUM IS DUCTILE AND LIGHT.

Dr. Marit Reiso, Reinertsen

Three questions for Jonas Bjuhr director product development, Sapa

What is Sapa’s role in the project?“Together with Hydro we investi-gate how aluminium can be used in the ship barrier that will protect the bridge to tube bridge transi-tion. We will also investigate other uses.”

How do you do it?“Our internal R&D center is engaged, combining existing knowledge and basic research. We also collaborate with the Norwegian Univer-sity of Science and Technology.”

From Sapa’s point of view, what is most exciting?“This is a cutting-edge project where we collaborate actively with our partners to broaden the use of aluminium in a new application.”

Ship barrier to protect the zone between the fl oating bridge and the submerged fl oating tube bridge

Ship passage

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1 .2015 • SHAPES 23

Adding value in LED lighting

Aluminium extrusions have become important in shaping lanterns and fi xtures in the fast-growing market of LED lighting. In addition to its aesthetic advantages, aluminium off ers thermal properties together with myriad possibilities for built-in functions, thereby

facilitating assembling and mounting.

detail

Cooling fi ns. Dissipate the heat from the LED circuit board.

Channel for cables. Used as ducts for electrical wiring

Led circuit board surface. The LED printed circuit board is mounted onto this surface, either screwed or glued.

Screw pockets. In assembly, for sealing the ends with plas-tic or cast end caps.