00:00A few buttons and it's up and running.
00:03This machine produces wood components wrapped in plastic film.
00:07The main customers of BMU are the furniture and construction industries.
00:12The family-run business in northwestern Germany employs 150 people.
00:17It was founded over 40 years ago and some of the machines are starting to show their age.
00:22Buying new ones is expensive,
00:24so managing director Klaus-Tieter Brinkmann decided to completely rebuild the old machines instead.
00:30A process called retrofitting.
00:34We decided to go with retrofitting because it offers several advantages.
00:40For one, it allows us to integrate custom solutions.
00:45We can also raise the energy efficiency of an old system to the level of a new one.
00:54In Germany, industrial machines typically last between 15 and 25 years.
01:00A lot can change in that time in terms of efficiency and sustainability demands.
01:05And high energy prices are currently putting pressure on many businesses.
01:13This machine is about 30 years old.
01:16The green paint itself gives away its age.
01:19Here you can see it has completely inefficient, outdated motors.
01:23The units are in serious need of an overhaul.
01:26The whole machine just isn't up to today's energy standards.
01:30So it'll be completely gutted.
01:32The units will be fully refurbished.
01:35The valuable part of the machine is the steel framework.
01:38That's what we'll reuse.
01:40Mechanical engineering is one of the most resource-intensive industries.
01:49It consumes large amounts of metals like steel, aluminium and copper.
01:53Industrial production also uses a lot of energy and water.
01:57In 2024, industry accounted for around 44% of electricity consumption in Germany.
02:04The government wants to reduce raw material usage by one third by 2030.
02:13Retrofitting plays an important role in that, says Roman Dmitrescu from the Fraunhofer Institute in Paderborn.
02:20He's an expert in product development and digital engineering.
02:24The big advantage is you don't have to go back to the start of the chain like mining iron ore.
02:31You can reuse materials that have already been processed.
02:35So you don't release more CO2 during production and you avoid supply issues for materials that might not be available.
02:44So the sustainability aspects alone are incredibly valuable.
02:48BMU's machines are being modernised just a few kilometres away from their headquarters by another company.
02:55The machines arrive here dirty, worn out, some have been in use for 20 or even 30 years.
03:04We take out all the cables and the pneumatic systems.
03:09Then we have the processing units.
03:13These are the parts that actually handle the materials.
03:16And here you can see those units are removed and refurbished.
03:21In the workshop, one of BMU's old machines is in the middle of a full rebuild.
03:30It's already been freshly painted and almost all its components have been replaced or overhauled.
03:36Right now we're halfway through the retrofitting process.
03:41Like all BMU machines, it started out green.
03:45We've completely taken it apart, stripped out all the units, everything.
03:50We're keeping the heavy-duty metal structure, which is the valuable part.
03:55All the units are now in our workshop being refurbished.
03:58Once they're ready, we'll reinstall them, add new covers and then the machine will run like new.
04:06Wehrmann is part of a used machine dealership.
04:09It's a global business, says Gindermack CEO Benedikt Roof.
04:14Machines here in the factory are waiting to be resold.
04:19We determine the market value and advertise the machine globally.
04:23Once we have a buyer, we handle the export.
04:26Used machinery is a multi-billion dollar industry and usually involves overseas shipping, like to Asia.
04:34And that's exactly where this machine is likely headed.
04:37To meet the growing demand for equipment in Asia's expanding industrial market.
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