Aluminium Casthouse Technologies (ACT) won the Best Import-Export Company of the Year award at the UK business event BizX 2026.
The awards were hosted by TV presenter and sports anchor Kirsty Gallacher and attended by over 1,000 companies from across the UK and EMEA.
The British family firm manufactures products in Canada and China that improve aluminium production quality.
The company won over judges by keeping global stock deliveries of its eco-friendly fluxes and other casthouse solutions moving efficiently in a volatile political climate, which was further hindered by tariffs on imports to the US.
By having stock available at short notice at warehouses across the world, and developing new markets away from the US, ACT has seen profits increase over 700% in the past year.
ACT Director John Courtenay, a former Technical Director at Foseco Aluminium, said: “The US tariffs did create difficulties for suppliers like us.
“However, what it did do is force us to shift our focus toward markets that are not subject to such harsh restrictions, Brazil, South America, and the Far East, which resulted in significant growth for us.
“Additionally, our import-export model meant we have had effective measures in place to counter freight issues such as the problems in the Strait of Hormuz, with global stocking facilities to limit the effect of volatility.
“We’re always looking to update our import-export model to make it work better for our customers, and we are thrilled to win this award.”
ACT’s mission is to reduce waste and poor-quality material in aluminium casthouses and ensure better quality finished products across the board.
ACT’s products include the Refinal HAL F7 flux for removing very fine oxides in the melt, bone ash-free Casiflux launder coatings, and the BatchPilot furnace weight measurement system for preventing aborted casts.
The company also works closely with research institutions, such as BCAST at Brunel University London, to create new industry solutions.
