Tool upcycling Using tool upcycling to escape the tungsten price spiral

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Since 2025, the global market price for APT has risen by more than 500 per cent – and the trend is still upward. Together with the special tool experts at Müller Präzisionswerkzeuge, an automotive supplier has found a way out of the price spiral: tool upcycling.

Cemented carbide is essential for the production of tools for industrial applications. As cemented carbide usually consists of around 90 percent tungsten carbide and about 10 per cent cobalt, rising raw material costs for APT have a direct impact on tool prices. This price spiral affects the entire value chain: from carbide suppliers and tool manufacturers to metalworking companies. All of them are faced with the challenge of producing efficiently and sustainably in order to withstand increasing cost pressure. In particular, price stability and the availability of raw materials and tools across the entire chain are being severely affected by strong market fluctuations. To find a way out of this price spiral, the consistent use of tool upcycling is becoming increasingly important.

Tool upcycling as a strategic lever against rising raw material prices

Tool upcycling describes an approach in which worn tools are not simply disposed of or recycled, but used as the starting point for new tools. While new tools require new and expensive cemented carbide, tool upcycling uses the existing substrate of a worn tool. This not only reduces dependence on volatile raw material markets, but also ensures significantly greater price stability.

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Practical experience shows that, on average, up to 30 per cent of demand for new tools can be covered in this way. Depending on the application, process stability and tool range, rates of up to 50 per cent are even realistic. At a time of soaring tungsten prices, this represents a considerable economic advantage.

From old to new: the process behind tool upcycling

Even state-of-the-art coated precision tools are subject to natural wear during use. Initially, they can be reground and recoated. However, once the geometry no longer allows this, the end of the tool’s service life has been reached. This is exactly where tool upcycling comes in.

The process is clearly structured: the worn tool is returned to Müller Präzisionswerkzeuge. There, the unusable cutting section is removed, while the remaining intact cemented carbide body is reused. It is first prepared, cylindrical ground and then ground into a new, application-specific geometry. Finally, the tool is coated – and is ready for use again.

The result is a fully functional tool with the same performance, tool life and quality as a new tool. At the same time, the use of a new carbide blank is avoided. This creates a decisive price advantage in a challenging raw material environment.

Practical example: an international automotive supplier as a pioneer

The example of a leading international automotive supplier shows just how effective tool upcycling can be in practice. The company specialises in high-precision components.

The production of safety-relevant components requires maximum precision and process reliability. Special tools from Müller Präzisionswerkzeuge are used for this purpose, specifically tailored to the respective machining processes.

These tools are characterised by particularly long tool lives – a decisive factor for efficiency in machining. Every tool change means downtime, setup effort and potential quality fluctuations. Thanks to customised geometries and innovative coating solutions, tool life has in some cases even been doubled compared with standard tools.

Yet the same applies here: even the best tool will eventually wear out. After several regrinding cycles, the original geometry can no longer be restored. This is the point at which a new tool would normally have to be purchased.

Together with Müller, the company decided to rethink this point. Instead of discarding worn tools, it established a systematic tool upcycling process.

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Tools that can no longer be reground are collected, analysed and used as the basis for new tools. The procedure follows the process already described: removing the worn section, preparing the remaining cemented carbide, creating a new geometry and applying a new coating.

This approach creates a closed material cycle in which the cemented carbide used remains in service for significantly longer. This not only reduces the need for new raw material, but also greatly increases resource efficiency. Originally, the aim of tool upcycling was to reduce CO₂ emissions in the supply chain, as the production of carbide blanks is highly emissions-intensive.

Measurable benefits: costs, availability and sustainability

The introduction of tool upcycling brings several measurable benefits for the company. Since no new carbide blank is required, the production costs of upcycled tools are significantly lower. Especially when tungsten prices are highly volatile or rising sharply, this effect has an immediate positive impact on operating costs.

The volatility of raw material prices becomes less relevant, as a large proportion of the material comes from the company’s own cycle. This ensures greater planning security and more stable purchasing prices.

As the material base is already available, delivery times are shortened. Companies can therefore reduce the risk of machine downtime and increase production reliability.

One decisive point for practical use is that upcycled tools offer the same tool life and performance as new tools. These tools can also be reground again, further extending their life cycle.

A particularly impressive effect can be seen in the area of sustainability. The production of one kilogram of cemented carbide generally causes between 30 and 50 kilograms of CO₂. By avoiding the use of new material, the practical example described was able to save up to 14 tonnes of CO₂ per year.

Maximising resource use through extended life cycles

Another advantage of tool upcycling lies in the consistent use of existing material. Depending on the original length and geometry of a tool, several new tools can be created from a single cemented carbide body, each adapted to different applications.

With each upcycling cycle, the overall length of the tool is reduced. However, the life cycle only ends once the remaining material is too small. Until then, the maximum value is extracted from the raw material used – without compromising on quality or performance.

This consistent extension of the life cycle stands in direct contrast to the traditional linear use of resources and is a central component of modern, sustainable production strategies.

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Tool upcycling as a competitive advantage in uncertain times

The combination of rising raw material prices, growing cost pressure and increasingly high sustainability requirements is forcing companies to rethink their approach. Tool upcycling offers a holistic solution that combines economic and ecological benefits.

Especially in the current market situation, in which tungsten has become a critical and expensive raw material, tool upcycling is developing from an optional approach into a strategic competitive factor. Companies that adopt this concept early benefit not only from lower costs, but also from more stable processes and an improved CO₂ balance.

From cost driver to opportunity

The drastic rise in tungsten prices poses major challenges for the tool industry. At the same time, however, it also opens up new perspectives. Tool upcycling clearly shows how a crisis can be turned into a sustainable competitive advantage.

By intelligently reusing cemented carbide, companies can reduce their dependence on raw material markets, lower costs and make an important contribution to climate protection at the same time. The practical example from the automotive supply industry demonstrates that this concept is not merely theoretical, but is already being successfully used in everyday industrial practice.

This makes one thing clear: tool upcycling is far more than a short-term response to rising prices – it is a forward-looking approach for more resilient, efficient and sustainable production.

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