The lubricant manufacturer often packages metalworking fluids and lubricating greases in reconditioned drums that can be reused up to 10 times. Now, it has succeeded in consistently raising the proportion of this environmentally friendly steel packaging to more than 50% for the first time.
Contribution to CO2 reduction
Requiring almost 40,000 drums per year, the company has steadily increased the proportion of reusable reconditioned drums in recent years. These drums are filled with product, delivered to customers and then collected by a specialised service provider after each use. This service provider washes the drums, beats them out, paints them to customer specifications, and checks that they are leak-tight.
Since metalworking fluids can be classified as hazardous materials, reconditioned drums approved according to the UN standard are subject to stringent safety requirements as part of a comprehensive regulatory framework that is intended to facilitate international transport while also ensuring consistent safety. Rhenus Lub therefore only uses top-quality drums, whose life cycle concludes with a process of metal recycling.
Rhenus Lub procures its reconditioned drums exclusively within a 250-kilometre radius of Mönchengladbach in order to further reduce its corporate carbon footprint. Given that this environmentally friendly packaging is produced and reconditioned in the region, and thanks to its reusability and subsequent recyclability, it contributes to a circular economy that is beneficial not only to Rhenus Lub and its customers but also to the environment. The company is actively working to further increase the proportion of reusable packaging.
Plastic packaging is also becoming more sustainable
When it comes to plastic packaging, the manufacturer is also making greater use of even more environmentally friendly solutions. Recycled plastic materials represent a key step towards a more sustainable way of doing business. Their use in the production of packaging reduces demand for new plastic and therefore has a positive impact on resource consumption and the environment.
In the future, at Rhenus Lub, plastic packaging made from recycled plastic materials will primarily be used in the form of post-consumer recycled (PCR) cartridges, intermediate bulk containers (IBCs) and blow-moulded packaging made from partially recycled plastic materials in a wide range of sizes.
Rhenus Lub’s aim is to bring the proportion of recycled plastic materials per unit up to more than 30%, thereby exceeding the proportion of over 25% required for the EU Ecolabel. Rhenus Lub assumes that packaging with the EU Ecolabel and/or UN approval will be commercially available within the course of 2023.
“We’ve championed environmental and climate protection, as well as a sustainable way of doing business, for years,” explained Michael Bartsch, head of procurement at Rhenus Lub.
“Within this context, we’re committed to numerous projects along the entire value chain – right through to the packaging of our products. By using reusable reconditioned drums and recycled plastics, we make a key contribution to sustainability efforts.”
