New scrap and end-of-life scrap
New scrap arises during manufacture. End-of-life scrap comes from products after use and may require collection, dismantling and sorting. Their availability, composition and processing routes differ. Keep both the source category and copper content visible when comparing quantities.
Recyclable is not the same as recovered
A material’s technical recyclability does not establish an actual collection rate. Usable secondary metal depends on the collected mass, copper fraction, sorting and processing yields. Likewise, a product made from a recyclable material does not automatically carry a verified recycled-content claim.
Prepare an evidence-led circularity brief
- Define the boundary: site, product, batch or reporting period.
- Separate gross scrap mass from contained and recovered copper.
- Record impurities, quality limits and where losses occur.
- State whether data are measured, estimated, allocated or independently assessed.
Our planning tools can explain mass-balance arithmetic. They do not verify recycled content, emissions, chain of custody or product quality. Check the relevant provider’s current method and evidence before making a claim.