News / 08.23.2021

The Impact of Fluid Recovery

The Impact of Fluid Recovery - Image

Is the cost of cutting fluid cutting into your profits? Some manufacturers have already found the solution. Fluid recovery services can save five gallons per machine per day, dramatically reducing both waste and costs. 

The more cutting fluid is recovered and reused, the more your costs go down. Early adopters of this practice have noticed other significant advantages, including increased industrial sustainability and rising ESG scores. What are the myriad ways that industrial fluid recovery in metalworking can help your bottom line?

What Is Fluid Recovery in Manufacturing?

Let’s cover the basics first. How does fluid recovery in manufacturing work and…what is it? Fluid recovery services help manufacturing operations reclaim a portion of cutting fluid used for machining, stamping, and other metalworking processes. Also known as cutting oil, this fluid is essential to the process of stamping metal, washing parts, and lubricating pieces, but it can be difficult to contain.

Depending on the operation and the machinery, these coolants and lubricants include: 

  • Oils
  • Oil-water emulsions
  • Petroleum distillates
  • …and more

Fluids lost as a result of the metalworking process must be replaced, which drives up the cost of the operation and further shrinks the bottom line. Improper or illegal metalworking processes fluid disposal could potentially also pose environmental hazards, adding to the negative consequences of fluid loss. End-to-end fluid recovery services capture, treat, and reuse cutting fluid to offset the cost of cutting fluid replenishment and disposal. 

In order to collect the fluid itself, a bypass pump diverts and collects the used cutting fluid. The cutting fluid recovery system then captures used oil from swarf waste bins and pumps it back upstream to the metalworking machinery. Because these types of systems can be installed on most lathes and CNC machines, they offer advantages to all types of operations of various sizes.

Benefits of Fluid Recovery for Manufacturing Operations

Most manufacturing companies pursue fluid recovery programs for the cost savings. Simply put, recovering fluids that would otherwise go to waste and recycling systems can be reused onsite, reducing the needed cost of raw materials. Most manufacturers save roughly five gallons per day for every machine with a fluid recovery system. This equates to +/- $500 in savings per month, or roughly 5X ROI on a $100-per-month fluid recovery pump rental fee. 

This enables employees to remain focused on revenue-related tasks instead of manually emptying oil from swarf bins. A decrease in disposal costs often accompanies an uptick in productivity. The swarf bins (and the pieces of metal waste inside them) naturally stay cleaner when the cutting fluids are removed, which then further improves the value of your recycled materials.The costs of cutting fluid recovery are generally limited to the relatively small rental fee for the pump, which more than pays for itself as it frees up employees for other tasks. 

In terms of operating cost, the oil pump is powered by the machine’s internal pump, so there is no need for an additional power supply. The decision to engage cutting fluid recovery services already makes sense financially and operationally, so the positive impact on ESG scores is only an added bonus. 

Fluid Recovery Boosts Your ESG Score

Today’s manufacturing operations are judged on their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance. Some practices that boost the ESG score also produce immediate material gains (such as saving money with fluid recovery and keeping materials out of the landfill). But the biggest benefits of raising the ESG score come from improving public perception of your business.

Customers are becoming increasingly aware of an organization’s environmental impact, enough that it influences their purchasing decisions. Investors like to put their money toward companies with high ESG scores, and individual consumers choose products that help reduce their environmental footprint. 78% of consumers are more likely to purchase a product if it has been labeled as environmentally friendly.

Manufacturing operations often face tough choices related to raising their ESG scores. Increased industrial sustainability helps strengthen the brand, but some sustainability efforts also raise operating costs or introduce new challenges. In the case of fluid recovery services, manufacturers have an opportunity to bolster industrial sustainability and cut costs simultaneously. 

Manufacturing operations with cutting fluid recovery programs in place often see a reduction in regulatory oversight. Because the oils used are hazardous to the environment, they must be disposed of properly. Recovering and reusing the oil reduces the burden of recycling and waste management, and potential agency involvement.

Getting Started with Cutting Fluid Recovery Services

Cutting fluid recovery experts from Shapiro will work with our customers to develop innovative methods to collect, eliminate, and reprocess liquids. Whether it’s as simple as finding the right fitting kit or as complicated as creating a custom solution for your machine, our team will help you establish a cutting fluid recovery program. 

Our services have been thoughtfully designed to provide you with benefits in production, disposal, and the reduction of government oversight through superior industrial sustainability. 

The opportunity to satisfy consumers, government agencies, investors, and other financial stakeholders at the same time is a rare one. Shapiro Metals can help you seize it. 

Contact us at your convenience for a fluid recovery consultation.