By Jill Nagy
Consolidation, environment cleanup,
a general streamlining of operations,
and a fragile prosperity have characterized
the scrap metal recycling industry
in recent years, according to the people
operating two Glens Falls area companies
in that industry.
One company, R. Cohen Recycling of
Glens Falls, was purchased two and a
half years ago by N.H. Kellman of Cohoes.
The other, Eastside Metals and
Recycling of Kingsbury, will complete,
probably in early fall, its sale to Upstate
Shredding-Weitsman Recycling of
Albany.
Upstate Shredding-Weitsman Recycling
is purported to be the largest
privately held scrap metal processor
and recycling center on the east coast.
In both cases, the consolidations have
meant an infusion of new capital, the
creation of new jobs, and changes in the
way the companies operate. The owners
of the smaller companies have stayed
on to manage and their employees have
kept their jobs.
Peter Kudan, manager of R. Cohen,
said he was completely bought out of the
business, but added, “they [Kellman]
have done wonders for the company.”
Inventory doesn’t stay around as long,
he said. The building and facility have
been upgraded since the sale and the
entire operation is more efficient.
“The business is definitely different
because it’s part of a larger organization,”
Kudan said.
For example, much of the processing
is now done in Cohoes. The company gets
most of its materials from three sources:
private households, municipalities, and
industrial and commercial facilities.
The amount of private-source material–
largely automobiles and household
appliances–has tripled in the past
three years, Kudan estimated. The
amount of industrial and commercial
waste has declined due to the decrease
in the amount of heavy industry in the
area.
The demand side has been boosted
because of economic and environmental
pressures and, as a result, prices have
increased as well. While prices for selling
the scrap have gone down since their
recent peak, “they are still very comfortable
and livable numbers,” according to
Kudan, who remembers when there was
almost no profit margin in the scrap
metal business. The business is now in its 89th year.
Eastside expects to follow in Cohen’s
footsteps as soon as it completes a major
cleanup of their facility. The work is
about 75 percent completed, according
to Anthony Marro, who runs the facility.
He said he expects the deal to close
within a month. When the work is done,
Eastside “will be a nice clean presentable
facility, instead of an eyesore.”
More than the looks of the building
will change, he said. For one thing, the
automobile-crushing facility, a remnant
of Eastside’s original business in Kingsbury,
will close. Instead, the company
will process and bale the automobiles
and ship them to a shredder.
“The area needs change and expansion,”
according to Marro, and the sale of
Eastside “represents a very big change.”
Among other changes, the number of
employees is expected to double. Like R.
Cohen, Eastside is finding good quality
scrap metal harder to come by, while
demand, both domestic and overseas,
increases. Turkey is a big market for the
company, Eastside’s Marro said.
In the past 10 years, the metal recycling
business has seen a great increase
in the number and complexity of rules
and regulations, mainly designed to
protect the environment, Marro noted.
On the other hand, the recycling of
electronics, such as computer parts and
television sets, is a fast-growing segment
of the industry in the last couple of
years. Eastside dismantles the machines
and ships them to a mill to be melted.
Used electronics are mined for their copper,
aluminum, brass and precious metals–
platinum, gold and silver primarily.
R. Cohen does not handle electronics.
Despite the value of the materials on
hand, Marro has not had “anything out
of the ordinary” in the way of theft from
his facility. Inventory is tracked by computer.
“Potential thieves know they will
be caught eventually,” he said.
Weitsman will invest some $6 million
in the Kingsbury business, according to
press reports. It will mean new equipment,
extended hours, and better customer
service, according to Ben Weitsman.
The purchase is one of several the
company is making to better utilize a
new port facility in Albany.
The future of the industry looks
bright, at least in the short run, according
to R. Cohen’s Kudan. “Metal is
so recyclable.”
The energy savings over new material
are significant and that increases
demand. At the same time, consolidation
is a big trend in the industry.
Photo by Tyler LaPan