SEFPRO, innovation for decarbonization

October 12, 2023 was a day of celebration at SEFPRO’s refractory ceramics plant in the Pontet, southern France. To mark the 50^th anniversary of the launch of Cruciforms^® solution, we inaugurated, in the presence of our customers, the launch of the construction of a new innovative and flexible production line. Compared with traditional furnaces, its energy requirements are reduced by 65% in comparison to current technology standards.

By reinjecting combustion fumes into the glass melting process, Cruciforms^® refractories have already enabled glass manufacturers to reduce their emissions in terms of scopes 1 and 2 (direct emissions or indirect emissions linked to energy consumption). "To implement our vision, we have just drawn up a new sustainability roadmap," explains Valérie Miramont, SEFPRO's Sustainable Development Director. "It puts customer support at the heart of our approach. And this effectively begins with the transformation of our operational processes.”

In this area, SEFPRO has demonstrated its ability to achieve very ambitious targets. Compared to 2017, in 2023 we have already reduced our CO₂ emissions linked to our scopes 1 and 2 by 38%, our water consumption by 40% and our ultimate waste production by 77%. To achieve this, we have transformed our furnaces, digitized and optimized our curing processes, rebalanced our energy mix, increased the number of closed circuits for water and used more and more recycled raw materials, in close partnership with Valoref.

In India, for example, the Perundurai factory now consumes the photovoltaic electricity from its roofs. Like the Palakkad plant, which also consumes biogas from its organic waste. The Buckhannon plant in the United States has redesigned the ergonomics of its workstations to eliminate waste, while increasing employee safety. Its furnaces, now "intelligent" thanks to digital technology, consume about 20% less natural gas than the previous year. The Mezzocorona plant in Italy, for its part, has obtained ISO 14064 certification to measure its CO₂ emissions with the utmost precision. More generally, by the end of the year, all our SEFPRO plants will have been EcoVadis-assessed, with the aim of achieving the PLATINIUM level by 2025. Finally, all SEFPRO products will have an EPD - an assessment of the environmental impact of products validated by a third party - by 2026.

On the offensive with its operational processes, at SEFPRO, we have not forgotten the other axes of sustainable development. In addition to the aforementioned Cruciforms^® checkerpack, the offering is designed to improve the customers' environmental performance. Our services - SEFPRO Guard for monitoring, and SEFPRO Care for emergencies - enable glassmakers to optimize the operation and extend the life of their furnaces. When their furnaces reach the end of their useful life, we recommend Valoref's intervention for successful dismantling and recycling. Finally, we are working on our own purchasing and supply chain, which account for 60% of our CO₂ emissions. Several initiatives are underway with suppliers to help them decarbonize their products, while retaining all their technical qualities…