In a significant step towards sustainability, Moddex, a leading manufacturer of prefabricated modular handrail and balustrade systems, has transitioned to locally sourced, lower-carbon aluminium from Capral Aluminium.
This strategic decision underscores Moddex’s commitment to environmental responsibility and aligns its operations with the critical goal of decarbonising the built environment, and increasingly stringent sustainability requirements of commercial, industrial and infrastructure projects.
Lower-carbon aluminium for a sustainable future
Capral Aluminium’s LocAl® Green boasts carbon emissions of just 8kg CO2e/kg Al, with LocAl® Super Green achieving an even lower footprint at 4kg CO2e/kg Al. These figures position them among the lowest-carbon aluminium options available globally.
The adoption of these lower-carbon aluminium products represents a major milestone in Moddex’s sustainability journey. While acknowledging the well-known benefits of aluminium – its durability, corrosion resistance, light weight and strength – Moddex also recognises the environmental impact of its production process.
“Aluminium is a versatile and widely used material in construction, it’s well suited to our products and has many benefits: it’s durable, corrosion resistant, light and strong,” Moddex Sales Director Joe Rowland said.
“However, it’s also known for its energy-intensive production processes, which can result in substantial carbon emissions.”
As such, transitioning to more sustainable materials, such as lower-carbon aluminium, is paramount in mitigating the environmental impact of the built environment. By partnering with Capral – who has also recently been certified against the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI) Performance Standard V3 and Chain of Custody (CoC) V2 – and utilising LocAl®, Moddex helps do just this while ensuring product quality.
“Our product is often specified for commercial, industrial and infrastructure projects, which have stringent sustainability and environmental stewardship requirements,” Joe said.
“Capral’s ASI certification enables us to communicate that the aluminium we are supplying has been responsibly sourced from the very start of the aluminium value chain from mining and refining to the extrusions, which are custom manufactured for our systems.”
Moddex leading by example
As the urgency of climate change intensifies across businesses in various sectors, Moddex’s proactive approach serves as an inspiration for others. By demonstrating the feasibility and benefits of sustainable practices, Moddex aims to create a ripple effect, encouraging wider adoption of sustainable practices across industries.
“Innovation goes to the very core of our business,” Joe said.
“By embracing Capral’s LocAL®, we are just innovating another way, making it easier for architects and engineers to achieve a compliant, durable, robust and flexible solution for the project, which also ticks the boxes on sustainability and responsible procurement.”
