CASE STUDY No. 9626
KEY WORDS BRAKE MOLDINGS--REUSE OF REJECTS, DUST, FLYAWAYS
Ferodo America, Inc.
1112 S. 25th Street
New Castle, IN 47362
Contact: Shafaat Hussain, Engineering Manager. Tel: 317-521-3882.
Summary
Brake manufacturer reduces raw materials costs by $950,000 a year and eliminates 1,150 tons of waste by capturing and reusing rejected brakes, dust, and flyaways.
Action
Ferodo America employs 50 people in the manufacture of brake blocks for heavy duty trucks, producing about 20,000 pieces a day. During the mixing of dry ingredients, fibers, and fillers, and preforming and finishing steps, some raw material is lost because of cutting, grinding, and drilling operations; this is collected by dust collectors. Some finished brake blocks are rejected because of defects. Previously, the collected dust and rejected brakes were landfilled.
After 8 months of engineering design and testing, the company installed a material recycling system to transport dust from the collectors to a central location, weighing and recording it in the process. Dust and flyaways are screened and collected directly in a bag; rejected brake blocks are crushed, pulverized, screened, and bagged (see illustration), then fed into the mixer for blending with virgin raw materials. Approximately 12.5% of feedstock is recovered material. A Material Utilization Group appointed by the chief executive officer looks for opportunities to minimize waste in all Ferodo plants.
Payback
The material recycling system cost $475,000 and was repaid in less than a year. In
1995, for example, Ferodo's reuse of materials reduced its cost of raw materials by
$950,000. In addition, the company saved on disposal expense by diverting 1,150 tons from
the landfill. One cost increased as a result of this change: the addition of recovered
material to feedstock has shortened the life of certain drills and grinders. Normally
these milling tools are good for 3,000 brake blocks, but they now have to replaced at
about the 2,700-piece level. Performance characteristics of the brake blocks are
unchanged, however.