CRRA 2023 Conference and Trade Show

President

Susan Collins is President of the Container Recycling Institute and has worked on recycling and sustainability issues for over 30 years. She leads CRI’s research and works with environmental organizations, activists and governments around the world to educate on the benefits of packaging recycling. Collins has testified before 12 US state and territory legislatures and has been quoted in multiple newspapers. She is a former board member and Treasurer of the National Recycling Coalition and the California Resource Recovery Association. She holds degrees in Manufacturing Engineering from Boston University and Business Administration (MBA) from the University of California, Los Angeles.

Improving Efficiency and Sustainability in Aluminum Beverage Can Recycling

This year, the Container Recycling Institute commissioned the first published comprehensive analysis of the cost of contamination in the recycling of empty aluminum beverage containers (known as used beverage containers, or UBCs) in the United States. This report documents, step-by-step, how aluminum cans are lost from the U.S. recycling system and how these losses can be alleviated, paving the way forward for true circularity for UBCs.

CRI's groundbreaking report covers the following topics:

1. The recycling process for aluminum UBCs, from the point of collection to the point of use in a new manufactured product.
2. Material loss identification at each stage of the recycling process and quantify costs incurred to isolate and remove contaminants.
3. Best practices and potential solutions to recover high quantities and high quality of aluminum cans for recycling, as well as to achieve greater processing efficiencies that result from reducing contamination.
4. Demonstration on how cost savings can be achieved in the recycling process while simultaneously improving material quality and total quantities collected.
5. Education and outreach to stakeholders on which aspects of recycling systems are responsible for the greatest costs, and which practices or technologies can best reduce or eliminate those costs.
   

Join Susan Collins to discuss how this comprehensive data and analysis could inform discussions about how to achieve recycling cost savings at each stage in the process for municipalities, processors and manufacturers; ensure maximum reuse of material in new products with minimal waste, cost and environmental impacts; and demystify sorting requirements for the recycling public.

Executive Vice President of Strategy

Rising to the Challenge: The Surging Demand for Can Sheet

Sr. Director Metal Operations and Director Recycling Strategy

Gary Tucci is the Sr. Director of Metal Operations at Novelis in North America.  He’s been with Novelis for over three years and has been within the Aluminum industry over 13 years holding positions in Finance, Procurement, and Operations.  His current role focuses on purchasing and maximizing recycle content within Novelis’ North American facilities. Gary is based in Cleveland, Ohio and outside of work his interests include coaching youth sports, reading, and hiking.

Aluminum Can Recycling: Novelis' Sustainability Journey

Gain a deep understanding of Novelis’ commitment to recycling and go behind the scenes in the aluminum beverage can recycling process. Dive deep into how recycling aluminum saves energy and the critical role used beverage cans play in achieving Novelis’ ambitious sustainability objectives. The presentation will also discuss some significant upcoming investments in which used beverage cans will play a significant role and some activities in motion to increase recycling rates.

Environmental Services Manager