Digital transformation in the Nordic scrap industry
The Nordic scrap and metal recycling industry is at a historical breaking point. Between the years 2024 and 2026, we see how a sector that for decades relied on analog traditions is now merging with AI, IoT and Digital Product Passports.
This transformation is driven not only by technological curiosity, but by an urgent need to meet the EU's tightening regulatory requirements and industry demand for traceable, circular raw materials. In this rapidly changing landscape, Scrotify It has emerged as one of the most important digital players.
From opacity to total transparency
Historically, scrap pricing has been a closed process, often based on local price lists and subjective judgments. Through platforms such as Skrotify Portal The industry has now been democratized.
By integrating data directly from leading commodity exchanges, users can follow world market fluctuations in real time directly on mobile. This transparency creates trust between buyers and sellers.
Key features of market intelligence:
- Price Coverage: Automatic alerts when a metal reaches a specific price level.
- Index Coupling: Prices that rest on transparent market indices rather than arbitrary lists.
- Real-time data: Direct access to current world prices for copper, aluminium and iron.
The introduction of smart logistics: IoT at the heart
Logistics is one of the biggest cost items in the industry. In the period 2024—2026, we see a paradigm shift in which static routes are replaced by demand-driven collection via IoT sensors.
The Skrotify Portal serves as the central hub where logistics managers can see the exact fill rate in their containers via ultrasonic sensors.
Through this technology, the business can achieve significant CO2 savings then fuel consumption decreases as unnecessary “empty” runs are eliminated. The system also serves as a powerful solution for Asset Management, where GPS tracking protects against theft of both containers and valuable precious metals. Everything is handled via Real-time monitoring that sends push notifications when it's time for pickup, allowing both emptying and exchanging to be done at the touch of a button.
Digital Product Passports (DPP) — A Regulatory Revolution
Likely the most important milestone for 2025—2026 is the introduction of Digital Product Passport (DPP). The aim is for each product to carry with it a digital identity that reveals the material content and recycling instructions.
“For metal recyclers, this solves one of the industry's oldest problems: the lack of information about incoming materials.”
Here, Skrotify plays a crucial role for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). While industry giants build closed systems, Skrotify offers a Open and accessible platform enabling smaller players to remain relevant in a value chain that requires full digital traceability.
AI and Machine Vision: Sorting the Future
While the flows are being digitally optimised, a revolution is taking place at the heart of the sorting facilities. Traditional methods are replaced by sensor fusion — a combination of:
- RGB Cameras for visual identification.
- NIR Sensors (Near-infrared) for material determination.
- XRF (X-ray) for chemical analysis at the molecular level.
These data flows are organized via the Skrotify ecosystem, enabling the profitable extraction of critical metals such as cobalt and lithium from complex electronics scrap.
Want to know how Skrotify can digitize your business?
Read more about Skrotify Portal here
