Nadine Bloxsome

Editor, Aluminium International Today | Event Director, Sustainable Industrial Manufacturing

Nadine Bloxsome graduated with a BA (Hons) in Journalism from the University of the Arts, London. After completing her degree, she gained work experience as a news correspondent for ITV, before taking on the role of Editorial Account Manager for Springer Science and Medicine, working across a number of ballistic medicine and surgery publications.

In 2011, Nadine began her career with Quartz Business Media on the Glass International portfolio, before being appointed Editor of Aluminium International Today and Furnaces International.

Nadine has worked to cover all areas of the aluminium value chain in the magazine, while bringing new publications like the 'Safety Guide' to the forefront. She developed the Future Aluminium Forum into an integral industry event, which is designed to work with aluminium processors and suppliers towards building smarter manufacturing solutions.

More recently, Nadine helped launch the Greener Aluminium Online Summit, to highlight sustainability solutions for aluminium manufacturers.

Her experience in these areas has lead to the development of the Sustainable Industrial Manufacturing Event Series, which will form a collaborative approach to achieving net zero targets across the glass, aluminium, steel, cement and chemical sectors.

Five minutes with...Nadine Bloxsome

What would you say are the main focus areas for building a sustainable supply chain?

The aluminium industry is already positioning itself as a leader when it comes to sustainable manufacturing processes. The Aluminium Stewardship Initiative is a driving force behind this and works with the whole sector to ensure sustainability and human rights principles are increasingly embedded in aluminium production, use and recycling.

Recent developments in inert anode technology, traceability projects, low carbon aluminium products and closed loop recycling schemes also show how the sector is working across the supply chain to encourage a truly circular economy.

What do you hope the SIM conference will provide aluminium manufacturers with and why is this important?

It is my hope that the SIM conference will provide manufacturers from across these five main sectors, and even beyond, with examples of applied solutions and industry projects, as well as highlight areas for potential collaboration. I think it is important to showcase best practice across these industries and show what is working and what isn’t. Where the challenges are and how these challenges might be addressed differently. How we can learn from other sectors in order to all reach the same goal – ultimately, ensuring a cleaner future for generations to come.

What kind of sustainable technology examples would you like to see presented to manufacturers during the conference and why?

I would like to see examples of Pilot Projects from across these sectors and see how these are being implemented, as well as the plans for scaling up or rolling out. I would also like to see how these sectors are implementing new technologies through retrofitting plants or building new facilities. I think it is important for participants to hear from manufacturers as well as solutions providers when it comes to implementing new technologies and the reality behind these projects.
I am also interested to find out what support is out there for these sectors when it comes to developing standards and accountability around achieving certain targets. It is very important that these sectors are all working towards similar standards and are able to share these to be able to produce sustainable products across the board.

In your opinion, how important is it to build a collaborative approach across these hard-to-abate sectors when it comes to sustainable industrial manufacturing processes?

I think it is incredibly important that these industries come together to form a global manufacturing support network. If the past year has taught us anything, it is not to underestimate the amazing potential for rapid scientific advancement when we have a clear mission and strong incentives for collaboration. Every sector, business, and manufacturer must play its part to meet the challenge head on.

Where in the supply chain do you think requires the most attention/is the most challenging when it comes to sustainable practices?

The aluminium sector is pinning a lot of focus on reducing the heavy, energy-intensive production process and this is a huge step that needs to be taken. However, I also believe that more needs to be done further down the chain when it comes to recycling of materials and ensuring we are working with customers and consumers to truly understand the importance of recycling.