Recycled F-150 Aluminum Can Produce 30K Bodies
Photo courtesy of Ford
Ford recycles as much as 20 million pounds of aluminum stamping scrap per month, which could produce the equivalent of 30,000 F-150 bodies each month, according to Ford.
The scrap is used to create parts to build F-150s at Ford’s Dearborn Truck and Kansas City assembly plants.
The recycling is conducted at Ford’s stamping plant in Dearborn, Mich. by way of a closed-loop system, according to the company.
Weight savings from aluminum alloy helps F-150 reduce its lifetime emissions compared to the previous steel-body version. Between 30% and 40% of a typical aluminum coil is turned into scrap in the stamping process, which is recycled into new metal for the truck.
Recycled aluminum avoids 95% of the greenhouse gas emissions associated with primary aluminum production, and it uses significantly less energy and water.