Flumroc, a stone wool specialist based in the St.GallenBodenseeArea, has put on stream the world’s largest electric melting furnace. According to a press release, the furnace will run entirely on electricity from hydropower, reducing the company’s CO2 emissions by 80 per cent, or 25,000 tons, each year.
The electric melting furnace has been put on stream after a two-year construction period, with investment costs totaling over 100 million Swiss francs. It was designed specifically for Flumroc’s production facilities and has the capacity to melt 150 tons of rock. Flumroc uses the melted rock to produce stone wool for insulating materials.
“This is the world’s largest electric melting furnace and represents an outstanding technological innovation for us,” says Damian Gort, Managing Director of Flumroc. “It will enable us to massively improve the ecological footprint of our stone wool and make a further significant contribution to an energy-efficient, sustainable building stock.”
At the inauguration of the furnace, which was attended by 100 guests from the political and business spheres, Federal Councillor Albert Rösti said: “Projects like this are important for both energy efficiency and the environment, because the new furnace will have lower CO2 emissions.”
