According to APTA, in the US, people boarded public transportation 34 million times each weekday in 2019. In the same year, according to the American Community Survey (ACS), 46.3% of all public transportation travelers, about 3.6 million people, affirmed to use buses as their primary commuting mode!

A life of a bus, in the US, usually lasts 12-15 years or 250,000 miles, but the condition of the vehicle determines its end of use. When the bus is deemed too old for public transportation, it makes its last journey to a metal scrap yard.

In January, Sims Metal in Pennsylvania, welcomed 50 old buses that, at the end of this last journey, will get a brand new life as something else.

The new journey of these buses officially starts here. Every single bus makes its way to Sims Metal scrap yard, carried on a hauling truck.

Once the bus is delivered, it is inspected for hazards such as fluids, gases, catalytic converter, batteries, radiator, fire extinguishers and also the tires, which are all safely removed. The bus is now considered depolluted and is safe to move on to the next step.

This is where the fun begins, the bus is now ready to be crushed with a crash crane!

The crushed material is ready to be shredded. Through the shredding process, the crushed material is reduced into smaller pieces which will go through a very sophisticated separation process to recover the ferrous and non-ferrous metals and also the other materials such as plastics and foam.

Once the steel, aluminum, plastic and all of the other materials are recovered from the buses, it is now time to prepare the materials for further recycling!

Shipped nationwide and worldwide, recycled metals will be reintroduced as raw materials in the manufacturing process, which means thousands of new goods coming to life. What seemed to be the end of 50 buses is, instead, the start of thousands of new beginnings.

Learn more about our processing capabilities.

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Here are 5 steps to get more money for your scrap metal while disposing safely and responsibly:

• Identify the metal. Ferrous or Non-Ferrous?This is the first step, try to understand if your scrap metal is a ferrous or non-ferrous metal; if it is a ferrous metal it will contain iron and if it is non-ferrous it will not. You will need a magnet for this step; if the magnet sticks to your scrap, it is likely to be ferrous metal. Note: non-ferrous metals are usually the more profitable ones!
• Clean your metal. Try to remove, wherever it is possible extra attachments on the metal, such us other metals or other materials like plastic, for example. If your scrap metal has other materials attached to it, it may be downgraded.
• Sort your metal by type. If you have different metals, separate them and put them into different containers. If you bring mixed metal to a scrap yard, you may only get paid for the value of the least valuable metal in your container. Your aluminum, copper, iron, steel scrap need to be separated!
• Find a local scrap yard. Look no further for this. Visit our location page to find the closest Sims Metal site to you.
• Ask for a quote. Get in touch with us. Provide us with all the information about you and your scrap by completing the enquiry form.

Pro Tip: To get a more accurate quote, upload as many pictures as possible and provide us with an approximate weight of your scrap metal. The more information you provide us with, the better we can make our service fits your needs. In some instances, for example, you won’t need to come visit our site, but we’ll collect the scrap metal from you!

… And it’s done! Once you get in touch with us we’ll connect with you to answer any questions and provide a quote.

What are you waiting for?

Go grab your magnet!

Download the infographic below as a reminder when scrapping your metal items with us!

The post Get More Money for Your Scrap Metal in 5 Simple Steps appeared first on Sims Metal.

A Debris Interceptor is a collection system designed to capture floating debris from storm water conveyances and outfalls before contaminants reaches waterways. At Sims Metal, the Debris Interceptor collects and traps debris in a channel adjacent to our operations facility positioned to prevent debris from entering the river.

What an incredible technology! We asked Scott Krempel, Director of Operations at our Jersey City facility, to tell us more.

Scott handles all works on waterways in New York – New Jersey. He collaborates with teams throughout Metro to understand challenges in different locations and operations.

Scott has been working for Sims Metal for 23 years. He started his career on vessels as a Foreman/Machine Operator in 1999 at our Port Newark facility, progressing to become Terminal Manager. After this, he moved to Claremont to handle all maritime movements and vessel works. Scott is now Director of Operations, responsible for locations on waterways that handle vessels and barge works: Claremont Terminal, Long Island City Terminal, Bronx Terminal and Albany. 

How does the system work?

There are floating booms set up that use wind and tide to capture debris. The booms guide the materials using power from currents and winds. “The Trap” allows debris to freely flow in but not out.

What makes this system unique?

The system does not require an external power source; it is solely powered by winds and tides. And, above all, there is no need for skimmers or boats to collect the debris.

What system was in place before this?

We were using skimmer boats and labor with nets. This system was very costly and difficult during winter months.

What are the benefits of this system for both Sims Metal and the environment?

For Sims Metal, the system has resulted in an ease of operation because it enables us to clean the waterway in a safe and cost effective manner.

For the environment, it allows the capture of debris all year round, 24/7, with a reduction of machine power and, as a consequence, of carbon emissions!

Any plans for similar projects in other Sims Metal locations in the future?

In April we will start a trial of our new Pixie Drone in Queens provided by Searial Cleaners. The Pixie Drone will be a beneficial tool for yards that handle light debris (small plastics, fluff and bottle caps) because it will allow us to maintain a clean waterway remotely from the dock while keeping our employees at a safe distance away and dry.
The next step in our evolution will be introducing the InvisiBubble (Bubbly Curtain) in our shredder canal at Claremont in place of booms to track debris to our Interceptor (we affectionately call it “The Trap”).

The Debris Interceptor is a safe, clean and cost-effective system that allows Sims Metal to capture debris using wind and waterway currents. It allows us to isolate the area with booms, using the tide cycle and currents to move any debris into the collection system; it saves our facility between 40 to 60 hours a week in labor/machine hours!

The debris interceptor system, with all the others mentioned, helps Sims Metal keep its employees safe, water cleaner, and pursue its goal of reducing carbon emissions by 23 percent by 2025 and be carbon neutral by 2042.

Thank you, Scott, for answering all our questions.

Stay tuned to find out about Sims Metal next projects!

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Metal recycling offers numerous benefits for both the economy and the environment. By scrapping old metal items, everyone plays a part in making the world a better place. In particular, we believe there are 5 key reasons why you should recycle scrap metal.

1. Preserve Our Planet

The first and most important reason: metal recycling preserves natural resources by reducing the need to extract virgin raw materials and, as such, is effectively fighting climate change. Recycling scrap metal allows us to use less energy, which also means less greenhouse gas emissions. According to the EPA, “recycling steel and tin cans saves between 60 and 74 percent of the energy used to produce them from raw materials” and “recycling one aluminium beverage can save enough energy to run a 14 watt CFL bulb (60 watt incandescent equivalent) for 20 hours, a computer for 3 hours, or a TV for 2 hours”!¹

2. Create and Support Job Opportunities

Scrap metal recycling is a labor-intensive industry. Recycling creates new jobs and supports other jobs by suppling the industry with goods and services such as equipment, energy, trucking etc. According to ISRI, in 2021, 159,640 jobs were directly supported by recycling and brokerage operations.

3. Support Manufacturing

By collecting and recycling scrap metal, and other materials, Sims Metal transforms waste into new resources that are reintroduced into production and manufactured into new products.

According to ISRI, 70% of materials processed by the recycling industry in the United States every year are used in American manufacturing!

4. Save and Earn Money

According to the Business Innovation Observatory, recycled materials are a cheaper and easier source for manufacturers and producers. By using recycled material in the production of metal goods both the costs of mining for virgin raw materials and the cost of production are reduced because producing goods from recycled sources is less energy intensive.²

Moreover, by selling scrap metal, derived from a manufacturing process, to a scrap metal recycler like Sims Metal, a company can profit from its own waste. Not just manufacturers, but any company and the general public that owns scrap metal waste (such as vehicles, copper or aluminium cables, machineries, jobsite scrap, and much more) can sell it to a scrap metal dealer and earn money! 

5. Help Reach Your Company’s Sustainability Goals

Metal recycling helps companies satisfy the recycling industry standards and meet the sustainable development goals (SDGs), also known as the Global Goals, adopted by the United Nations in 2015 as a “universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that by 2030 all people enjoy peace and prosperity”.

Scrap metal recyclers play a vital role in the recycling industry and in the circular economy. By collecting, sorting, recycling and shipping recycled products all over the world, we make the creation of new goods in the most sustainable way possible. We can’t make it happen without your help. Recycle your scrap metal to create a world without waste to preserve our planet with us.

_¹ https://archive.epa.gov/epawaste/conserve/smm/wastewise/web/html/factoid.html

² European Commission. Business Innovation Observatory. Sustainable Supply of raw materials. Optimal Recycling. Case Study 60. Internal Market,. Industry,. Entrepreneurship.

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Reusing and recycling has been a part of our history for centuries. People were reusing their possessions because they didn’t have much of a choice, everything was handmade, making new items from scratch meant time and effort, so reusing was usually the preferred option.

In the pre-industrial economy, there wasn’t much waste  to handle and what wasn’t reusable was mainly buried. When Western Europe and North America became industrialized the trash produced increased considerably and there wasn’t enough space to continue burying it, so garbage was thrown into rivers or dumped into streets making cities dirty and disease-ridden. In 1885 New York City introduced the first incinerator ever built.  Still waste was buried or burnt, not recycled or reused at that time.

Sometime after, the perception of garbage changed and there was value to reusing waste. Gradually people realized that they could make newspapers from old ones and aluminum could be infinitely recycled. By 1904, aluminum recycling factories made their first appearance in the US. It was a few years later, in 1917, that Albert G. Sims started his scrap metal recycling business in Sydney, Australia!

Although, Metal recycling is claimed, by some, to have been invented by patriots in 1776 when a statue of King George III was melted down to make 42,088 bullets, during the war for American independence from the British.

However, not everyone agrees! Archeologists, in fact, claim that metal recycling was a popular practice in 400 BC, during times of distress. Biblical verses also refer to metal recycling practices by mentioning conversion of plowshares into swords and swords into plowshares!

World War II, in particular, had a huge impact on metal recycling. In fact, during World War II, we saw the first nationwide campaign encouraging metal recycling. Any metal was considered valuable; pots, pans, metal toys, car bumpers, farm equipment, Civil War cannons and iron fences, were all melted down for a “better future”. The Government recycled these scrap metal items to build ships, airplanes and other equipment to fight the war.

The concept of recycling has always existed, so we cannot establish a starting date for sure. Humans have always reused things to alleviate the scarcity of resources, the idea that something was broken and therefore garbage is the result of our consumer society.

What has changed nowadays and evolved is its motivation. Historical recycling was almost exclusively an economic matter, the focus has moved onto the environment only in recent years.

In fact, in the 1970s the largest environmental movement furthering the modern concept of recycling began and the strong narrative closely linked to recycling: preserving resources to save the environment actually started to spread. This was later established as the first Earth Day!

Sims Metal has more than a 100 years of experience in metal recycling. We provide scrap metal recycling services to businesses, other recyclers and the general public. Each year we divert millions of tonnes of secondary materials from landfill to generate maximum value and minimal waste. By doing so we reduce the need to extract virgin raw materials and, by keeping resources in use as long as possible, we are an enabler of the circular economy.

Text Sources:

Byers, A. (2017). Reuse It: The History of Modern Recycling. United States: Cavendish Square Publishing LLC. Retrieved 25 January, 2022

Fishman, K. (2015, January 15). Scrap for Victory! The Library of Congress. Retrieved 25 January 2022

Zimring, C. A. (2005). Cash for Your Trash: Scrap Recycling in America. United Kingdom: Rutgers University Press. Retrieved 25 January 2022

Bobick, J. E., & Balaban, N. E. (Eds.). (2014). The handy science answer book ([Enhanced Credo edition]. 4th, Ser. The handy answer book series). Credo Reference. Retrieved February 4, 2022

Photo Sources:

1. Header. Photo credit: Leslie Jones/Boston Public Library.

2. Poster for the Philadelphia Salvage Committee encouraging scrap drives to aid the war effort. Prints and Photographs Division

3. Barclay, McClelland. Save your cans: help pass the ammunition: prepare your tin cans for war…, poster, 1943; [Washington, D.C.]

4. Government & Geographic Information Collection, Northwestern University Libraries. (2). Wanted for victory: waste paper, old rags, scrap metals, old rubber: get in the scrap

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According to the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI), 70 percent of materials processed by the recycling industry in the United States each year are used in American manufacturing, and 70 percent of all steel and stainless steel produced in the United States is made from scrap!

Using recycled metal, versus newly mined metal, significantly reduces the consumption of both natural resources and energy. Sims Metal helps manufacturers be more efficient and achieve their sustainability goals by recycling their manufacturing waste and preparing it to be reused. Nonferrous metals do not degrade or lose their chemical properties in the recycling process, so if they are kept out of landfills they can be recycled an infinite number of times.

Manufacturing and metal recycling go hand in hand. For this reason, we are very pleased to join ISRI in celebrating National Manufacturing Day! Find out more about how Sims Metal helps companies reach their sustainability goals and contributes to our purpose: create a world without waste to preserve our planet.   

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