Circular building: Old windows get new life ... as windows

Sustainability and circularity are hallmarks of our society. For building element manufacturers, the sustainability story is therefore crucial. At Hydro, SAPA's parent company, they therefore not only think sustainably, but have also been working sustainably for some time. For example, only Hydro CIRCAL 75R post-consumed material with extremely low CO₂-footprint. 

The manufacturer's R&D department is also working hard on new developments that not only score better in terms of insulation and wind and water tightness, but should also make life easier for the processor. 

Post-consumed aluminum

Hydro is one of the largest producers of primary aluminum and a major European supplier of extruded products, including to customers in the construction industry. The parent company of the SAPA brand consciously chooses not to use materials that are harmful to the environment and has invested heavily to reduce CO₂-emissions during the production process significantly. For the production of SAPA's windows and doors, sliding windows and curtain wall systems, from 2022 only Hydro CIRCAL 75R will be used, specifically aluminum that consists of at least 75% of post-consumer scrap and has a footprint of only 2.3 kg CO₂ per kg of aluminum has.

"Circularity is an important theme in our society, also in the construction industry. Especially in the Netherlands people have been working on this for years, but recently we have started to catch up in Belgium," says Roger Cremer, country manager Benelux for the SAPA brand. 

"Aluminum is ideal as a circular material. After all, it can be used endlessly without loss of quality and properties. Thanks to the revolutionary treatment of the delivered scrap, the quality of the Hydro CIRCAL 75R post-consumed material is identical to that of primary aluminum. We already use this aluminum for the NGY 62 and Elegance 52 curtain wall systems and the sliding windows of the Confort Smartline and Confort 160 series, but it is becoming the new standard for the production of all our products. And that is unique in the market. Old windows and doors get a new life ... as a window or door system."

Focus on the processor

At SAPA's R&D department, by the way, they also continue to work daily on optimizing existing products and developing new innovative solutions. In order to meet the increasingly stringent energy performance requirements, window systems must also score ever better in terms of insulation, wind and water tightness. 

"However, we also attach great importance to the easy processing of our systems. This is why we decided to invest heavily in the development of new solutions in the coming months and years, which will make the processor's life considerably easier," Roger Cremer states. "At Polyclose we are therefore unpacking the new Tental 50 curtain wall system as a replacement for the current Elegance 52 and the successors to the Avantis and Avantis Smartline window and door systems Soleal NEXT, Ambial and Tigal. These not only excel in performance, but are also revolutionary in terms of processing."  

Visit us at Polyclose booth no. 1300.