Davis-Standard Helibar groove feed extruder

Davis-Standard LLC, Pawcatuck, Connecticut, says the Helibar extruder creates new opportunities for customers to improve and strengthen their plastic extrusion processes. Helibar technology:

• is the next generation in its groove feeder line
• increases extruder output rates
• improves energy efficiency and reduces barrel and screw wear
• requires shorter residence time
• can process higher levels of regrind

Visit https://davis-standard.com for more information.

DustBoss DB-60 Fusion

BossTek, Peoria, Illinois, has introduced the DustBoss DB-60 Fusion, which it describes as a field-proven suppression system driven by a 25-horsepower electric motor that’s paired with a gen set featuring a heavy-duty four-cycle indirect-injection diesel engine. The unit’s generator features:

• a dual-containment fuel cell and heavy-gauge lockable enclosure
• an oversized brushless alternator for easy starting
• a Tier IV Final-compliant engine designed to reduce emissions of particulatematter (PM) and oxides of nitrogen (NOx) to near zero levels
• a touch-screen panel for controlling the unit

Visit https://bosstek.com/products/dust-control-solutions/db-60-fusion for more information.

BPS vibratory feeders

Brunswick, Ohio-based Best Process Solutions Inc. (BPS) says its feeders with vibrating troughs can be made to custom lengths and in special trough designs. The vibratory feeders:

• are designed to smoothly convey products
• feature an adjustable variable or fixed flow rate
• are available in electric or air-operated models
• are heavy-duty units designed with above-, below- or side-mounted drives that can be arranged for base mounting or overhead suspension
• can be equipped with the BPS Inertial Isolation System to eliminate the transfer of vibratory energy to support structures and buildings

Visit www.bpsvibes.com for more information.

Braidy Industries names president of Braidy Atlas

Braidy Industries Inc., headquartered in Ashland, Kentucky, has named Thomas Modrowski president of Braidy Atlas, its subsidiary that has plans to build a $1.6 billion aluminum rolling mill in Ashland. The Braidy Atlas mill has plans to open with 300,000 tons per year of capacity, producing series 3000, 5000 and 6000 aluminum sheet products.

Modrowski, who has served as executive vice president of construction for Braidy Industries since June 2017, will head Braidy Atlas’ operations, overseeing mill completion and integrated aluminum sheet production. He brings nearly 40 years of experience in aluminum and steel processing and unique experience with greenfield construction in the steel industry.

Braidy Industries CEO Craig Bouchard says, “Tom’s expertise is ideal to lead Braidy Atlas to rapid automotive qualification with our OEM (original equipment manufacturer) partners. He is a proven contributor to our executive management team and has kept us on track and on budget in our ongoing construction.”

Modrowski says, “I am honored to step into the opportunity to shepherd the Braidy Atlas mill into its next phase as the nation’s leading low-cost producer of aluminum sheet for the automotive industry. I serve alongside an incredible team of co-invested managers working toward a common goal of quality customer service as we bring first-class advanced manufacturing to Appalachia.”

Scrap recycler elected to Minnesota Senate presidency

Minnesota State Sen. Jeremy Miller has been sworn in as the youngest Minnesota Senate president in the state’s current format, with the state senator—who also is a scrap recycler—having begun his term Jan. 2. Miller is part of the Winona, Minnesota-based Wm. Miller Scrap Iron & Metal Co. business. The company was profiled in the November 2016 edition of Recycling Today magazine.

Miller says of his new senate duties, “I am constantly overwhelmed with gratitude in this job. Every day, I cherish the fact that the residents of Fillmore, Houston and Winona counties continue to trust me as their voice at the Capitol, and now I am equally grateful to my colleagues for trusting me to preside over the Senate with the respect and dignity Minnesotans deserve.”

Minnesota’s lieutenant governor formerly served as the senate president, from the state’s founding in 1858 until 1973. That year, the Minnesota Senate began electing its own presidents. While younger lieutenant governors served as senate president, at 35 years old, Miller is the youngest state senator in Minnesota history to serve as the body’s president. Miller, who was 26 when he won his first election, also became the second youngest state senator in Minnesota history.

Miller also will be on the senate’s Capital Investment Committee, the Higher Education Committee, the Rules Committee and the Taxes Committee.

BACE expands sales staff

Charlotte, North Carolina-based BACE LLC has hired Steve Martz, a recycling equipment industry veteran with more than 30 years of experience in the recycling and waste sector.

“Steve has a unique background that covers technical service, manufacturing, equipment repairs, preventive maintenance programs and new product development,” says Gregory Leon, BACE senior vice president of sales and marketing. “With our national service offering tripling in growth this year, we are fortunate to be able to bring in someone of Steve’s caliber and accelerate our 2019 growth plans.”

Frederick Waite, BACE CEO, says, “We exceeded our growth expectations in 2018, and I am confident 2019 will be another banner year for BACE. Significant growth requires the right leadership components, and Steve fulfills an important role for BACE. We are excited to welcome him to the BACE family.”

American Baler hires sales representative

American Baler Co., Bellevue, Ohio, has appointed Sean Gertsch as a key account sales representative.

In his new position, Gertsch is responsible for developing national and original equipment manufacturer (OEM) accounts. Prior to this position, Gertsch served as a sales representative for Hoosier Machinery Solutions, where he specialized in sales of capital equipment for recycling and material recovery facilities.

American Baler manufactures recycling balers used in distribution centers, manufacturing and recycling centers worldwide.

Steinert US adds business development manager

Sorting and separation technology provider Steinert US, Walton, Kentucky, has added Scott Jable as its new business development manager, waste materials. He has 25 years of experience in the global recycling and material handling industries, focusing on capital equipment consulting and system engineering and design.

Prior to joining Steinert, Jable’s career included key roles at some of the top recycling, waste and material handling companies in North America, where he was instrumental in establishing new territories and achieving significant revenue growth, according to a new release from Steinert about Jable’s appointment.

Sonoco names chief financial officer

Sonoco, a diversified global packaging company based in Hartville, South Carolina, has appointed Julie Albrecht as its vice president and chief financial officer (CFO), effective March 1, 2019.

The company’s previous Senior Vice President and CFO Barry Saunders announced that he would retire in March, a company news release states. Albrecht will assume CFO duties for the company’s 2019 financial year and will report to Rob Tiede, president and CEO. She also serves as a member of the company’s executive committee.

Saunders stepped up as Sonoco’s CFO in May 2011, leading the company’s financial and accounting operations on a global basis and then taking over leadership of the company’s business technology function.

Albrecht joined Sonoco in March 2017 and has served as its corporate vice president, treasurer and assistant CFO, holding responsibility for the company’s relationships with the credit rating agencies and commercial banks. She has handled financing for four acquisitions totaling about $690 million, Sonoco says. Prior to this position, Albrecht spent nearly 20 years at Goodrich Corp./United Technologies Aerospace Systems.

As president of Manitoba Corp., Lancaster, New York, Brian Shine has helped to lead the copper scrap recycling company since 1985. But that’s only one of many leadership roles that Shine holds. He also serves as vice president of finance for Utility Recyclers International, also based in Lancaster. This company, a partnership between Manitoba Corp. and Georgetown, Ontario-based Green-Port Environmental Managers Ltd., collects, transports and recycles obsolete hydro meters, gas meters, water meters and parking meters. Additionally, Shine serves as CEO of Lancaster-based Integrated Recycling Services Co. LLC, which he formed in 1994 with Peter Linder, formerly of United Alloys & Steel Corp., to provide asset management and investment recovery services.

Shine’s most recently assumed leadership role is that of chair of the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI), Washington. He began his two-year term in April 2018 at ISRI2018, the association’s annual convention and exhibition, but his involvement with ISRI dates back to the organization’s predecessors, the National Association of Recycling Industries and the Institute of Scrap Iron and Steel.

“After the merger in 1987, I started going to the ISRI convention and then soon to other meetings and serving on committees,” Shine says. “The Empire Chapter, seeing this, asked me to become a chapter officer. In 1998, I began serving successive two-year terms as secretary, treasurer, vice president and chapter president. After my service in those positions ended, I continued as a chapter board member as immediate past president and took on ISRI national leadership roles, including chair of the Audit and Membership committees, co-chair of the Copper/Brass committee and director at large on the national ISRI board of directors.”

His active involvement in ISRI led the Leadership Committee to invite him to run for the secretary/treasurer position in 2012. “I knew such an opportunity to serve would bring new challenges that would help me grow in my career,” Shine says. “Fortunately, I won my election and since then served on each of the positions in the executive committee, culminating in the chair’s role.”

As a member-driven organization, he says “the more voices and collaboration we have” within ISRI, “the stronger we will be collectively as an industry. That is one of the reasons we say, ‘One Industry, One ISRI.’”

Shine adds, “Getting involved also helps you grow. I have met many wonderful friends through ISRI and fortified business relationships. It has given me greater knowledge of the industry and information that I can use to help grow my business, much more so than if I just sat at my desk.”

We catch up with Shine as he closes in on the midway point of his chairmanship with the association and updates us on his priorities for the industry.

Recycling Today (RT): What ISRI initiatives have been among your top priorities during your time as a national officer and why?

Brian Shine (BS): The top priority is continuing to enforce safety as a core value in the industry. ISRI has a number of great safety training programs, useful resources and knowledgeable staff. However, there is also an opportunity to redefine, streamline and improve our delivery of safety services to create the best value and return for the benefit of members.

I look to reinforce the One ISRI initiative, which means forging a stronger bond between each of the 21 chapters and ISRI. We want to make sure members are getting the most of their membership at both the chapter and national levels.

"One of the things I love most about our industry is its resiliency and its ability to evolve.” – Brian Shine, ISRI chair and president of Manitoba Corp.

A third initiative that I believe in is encouraging the younger generation of recyclers to get more involved in ISRI. This includes putting more of a focus on ISRI’s Young Executive Program and leadership training efforts. I’m also a big believer in the powerful combination of youth and experience. ISRI recently introduced a Century Club for industry veterans whose age and years in the industry combine to equal at least 100 years. I would like to find more ways, such as through the annual convention, to bring these two groups together. I think it will be a real benefit not only to the individuals involved but to the association and industry in the long run. We’ve already begun this with an event at last year’s convention, but I would like to continue to expand on it. (The Century Club/Young Executives Session will be Tuesday, April 9, from 10 to 11:15 a.m. at ISRI2019.)

Finally, ISRI is known as the Voice of the Recycling Industry. It is a priority of mine to continue to amplify that voice, particularly on the world stage. As we have seen things develop in China, and changing policies in other countries, ISRI has an important role to play in representing the interests of the industry and educating people on its importance. ISRI is already really the best in doing so, and I want to make sure we continue to take full advantage as industry leaders to create business opportunities for everyone.

RT: It’s been a tumultuous time with the import restrictions that China has introduced. What has been foremost among ISRI’s efforts to help its members navigate these changes?

BS: As the Voice of the Recycling Industry, ISRI has been the one recycling organization representing the industry both in the U.S. and on the international stage. ISRI was the first one to identify the issue and alert its members and other industry stakeholders. And ever since last summer, it has continually met with members of Congress, the [Trump] administration and the U.S. Embassy to provide resources and information on the impact this issue is having on our industry. ISRI has also traveled to China and met with the government there. We have offered a wide range of resources to the Chinese government, including ISRI specifications and best practices for improving their internal recycling infrastructure. We have been in constant communications on both sides of this issue.

In addition, we have put resources in identifying new market opportunities for ISRI members, both domestically and internationally. This comes in the forms of both the geographic location of market opportunities as well as technology to improve the quality of the recycling stream. ISRI’s involvement in programs such as the U.S. Department of Energy’s REMADE (Reducing EMbodied energy And Decreasing Emissions) initiative is one such example. (The REMADE in America Institute’s first goal is to focus on driving down the cost of technologies needed to reuse, recycle and remanufacture materials and aims to achieve a 50 percent improvement in overall energy efficiency by 2027.)

There is also a strong public relations element to ISRI’s work. This includes an aggressive media relations effort to educate mainstream media on what is happening in China, why it is happening and the impact it is having on our industry. It also involves informing them of what the public, brands, municipalities and recyclers are doing and can be doing in the aftermath of China to change how we operate. Part of this effort includes the A Better Bin campaign ISRI started to help inform these different sectors on exactly the things they can do to make a difference.

And maybe most importantly has been the work of our MRF Council in uniting stakeholders. This culminated in the first-ever MRF Summit that we co-hosted with SWANA (Solid Waste Association of North America) in August [2018]. It brought together recyclers, brands and MRF (material recovery facility) operators to identify key challenges in the residential recycling stream and ways in which we can all better work together toward a common goal. We will be continuing this dialogue with a Residential Recycling Summit at ISRI2019.

RT: Given the changes that China has introduced, what is your outlook for the red metals sector in the year ahead?

BS: China continues to reshape the global markets for copper and copper alloy scrap, and that is likely to continue well into 2019. In particular, China’s increased demand for higher quality packages of bare bright and No. 2 copper may contribute to tighter market conditions for those commodities, while lower quality scrap commodities may see more balanced market conditions. But with so many uncertainties heading into 2019, including the ongoing trade wars, rising interest rates and increased volatility in commodity, foreign exchange and equity markets to name just a few, the outlook for [this] year is far from clear.

RT: What do you think the U.S. recycling industry will look like in a decade given the changes brought about by China’s present attitude to scrap imports?

BS: One of the things I love most about our industry is its resiliency and its ability to evolve. We have witnessed this already in the U.S. as a result of China’s actions. I think over the course of the next 10 years, you will see a lot of investment in U.S. recycling infrastructure so that there is a lot more material being processed here. I think this will especially be the case in the residential recycling stream. Municipalities are beginning to realize that they will need to invest in infrastructure and revamping their programs to meet new and developing markets.

“… ISRI is known as the Voice of the Recycling Industry. It is a priority of mine to continue to amplify that voice, particularly on the world stage.” – Brian Shine, ISRI chair and president of Manitoba Corp.

An increase in communications is also already taking place among brands and the recycling industry, and ISRI is a large part of facilitating the discussion. I think this will increase awareness among manufacturers and brands about the recycling industry’s challenges and capability. Hopefully, this will increase the number of products in the marketplace that can be accepted into the recycling stream.

RT: What are you most looking forward to about ISRI2019 in Los Angeles?

BS: Just like every year, there is so much, and it is hard to name just one thing. As always, it is great to see old friends in the industry and see the latest technology and trends on the exhibit floor. What stands out most this year, though, is the team really has put together some new things we’ve never done before at an ISRI convention. You will literally have networking opportunities from morning to night, with an early morning exercise program and late-night parties, it really will be nonstop this year. We are also adding a track devoted to workforce development, a sales training course, ISRI member-only programming and a residential recycling program. This year’s convention will look very different than previous years and I think attract many more segments of the industry.

RT: How has your company benefited from membership in ISRI throughout the years?  

Brian Shine, president of Lancaster, New York-based Manitoba Corp., is chair of the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI), Washington, and can be contacted at bshine@manitobacorp.com.

When it comes to creepiness, a product destruction job Rick Possumato performed more than a decade ago tops the scale.

His mobile shredding and destruction company, now called IntelliShred LLC, was hired in 2003 to destroy more than 2,000 stuffed animals after an overseas subcontractor for Gund—the Edison, New Jersey-based maker of teddy bears and other stuffed animals—printed the wrong fill material on the labels.

Gund worried that parents, not knowing what kind of fiber was really inside the stuffed animals, would buy bears, giraffes and lions to which their children were allergic.

“It was sad,” says Possumato, managing partner of IntelliShred. “These stuffed animals, a product that normally brings good feelings to people, especially children, had to be destroyed, and no one would ever experience joy from them. But I understood the potential risk from Gund’s perspective.”

Luckily, the shredding was fast and smooth, despite the lightness of the toys. Normally, IntelliShred’s shredders need weighty materials for the blades to pull them in. But in this case, the blades easily caught hold of the cloth animals.

The stuffed-animal destruction contract was not a typical assignment for IntelliShred, a privately owned company headquartered in Frenchtown, New Jersey, that serves central New Jersey, southern New York state and southeast Pennsylvania. About 65 percent of the firm’s revenue, which Possumato says ranges from $1 million to $2 million annually, comes from regularly scheduled document destruction jobs.

Another 33 to 34 percent of Intelli- Shred’s revenue is generated by document purges, and about 1 to 2 percent comes from destruction of products that include data tapes, hard drives, uniforms, disposable hearing aids, DVDs, license plates—and stuffed animals.

Possumato says IntelliShred, which has been in business in one form or another for 20 years, has more than 1,000 clients in its database and has grown by 15 to 17 percent annually in revenue over the past four years or so. Customer service is the key to its growth.

IntelliShred owns two STAK 33 trucks from Kitchener, Ontario-based Alpine Shredders (recently acquired by Lynx Equity Ltd.). These trucks can shred up to 7,500 pounds of material per hour and have a payload of up to 12,750 pounds. For smaller jobs, the company has two ST-25 trucks from Shred-Tech, Cambridge, Ontario, which can destroy up to 3,000 pounds per hour and hold 10,000 pounds.

Customers are invited to watch the shredding themselves. Each truck features two externally mounted video screens showing the shredding chamber and the end product in the compacting compartment.

Entrepreneurial partners

Possumato and his IntelliShred partner, John Manzi, have been friends since the third grade. As kids, neither dreamed of careers in document destruction.

In the late 1990s, Possumato was an accountant for Chubb Insurance Co., and Manzi was a mechanical engineer. At the time, only a handful of secure destruction firms existed.

One day, Possumato’s wife, Joanne, arrived home and said a shredding company, charging $3.95 per minute, had been destroying old documents at her family-owned collections firm. Possumato quickly realized the company was making good money at that rate, so he called Manzi about starting their own document shredding company.

“I had to sell him a little on the idea,” Possumato says. “It was a little crazy, a financial risk.”

Manzi says Possumato didn’t have to twist his arm too much.

“It seemed like the idea had potential,” Manzi says. “I trust Rick’s judgment. And our relationship is such that we never have to worry about the other person pulling his own weight.”

Making their business a mobile operation was a no-brainer.

“In the New Jersey area, customers want to see their documents shredded with their own eyes,” Possumato says. “It provides another level of comfort.”

Initially, Possumato and Manzi considered becoming franchisees of a certain large document shredding company. They visited the company’s headquarters but learned that just to tour the plant they would have to promise not to establish their own independent destruction business for at least five years.

Possumato and Manzi were unable to make that commitment, so they turned to a sales rep at Shred-Tech for insight and advice. Then they bought a single truck, with a handfed shredder, for $140,000 and established their business, MobileShred, in 1999.

Starting & restarting

Drawing customers was an uphill task at first. Potential clients, while interested in shredding, didn’t think they needed a shredding firm. Possumato finally found some success by charging customers by the amount of material they shred instead of by the hour.

A 2001 scandal changed the entire industry. The energy company Enron tried to hide illegal accounting practices by shredding documents as investigators closed in.

“That’s what brought shredding to the forefront,” Possumato says. “If you have a records-retention plan, where records are destroyed after a certain number of years, the legal system respects that. But at Enron, they were shredding to beat the authorities.”

To maintain a competitive edge, IntelliShred focuses on service, providing same-day response to customers.

Suddenly MobileShred was securing accounts from companies that had never shredded before. Possumato and Manzi bought a second, state-of-the-art truck, this one with a robotic arm that lifted containers to dump material into the shredder. They progressed from shredding 1,000 pounds an hour to 6,500 pounds.

MobileShred caught the attention of Cintas, the maker of uniforms, first-aid supplies and fire-protection products. Seeking to add services, Cintas purchased MobileShred in 2004. Possumato and Manzi continued to run the business for Cintas.

However, life under a corporate umbrella didn’t agree with Possumato’s boutique-style approach to business. He and Manzi struck out on their own again, forming IntelliShred in 2007.

“We had to start over, but we had more capital and cushion after the Cintas purchase,” Possumato says. “But the industry had further developed by that time. The public was educated and knew they needed shredding, so we had a flood of competitors.”

To gain a foothold, IntelliShred focused on service, providing same-day response to customers.

‘Chain of security’

IntelliShred promotes its tight “chain of security,” which is reflected in service-representative uniforms that resemble those of security guards.

“We’ve even had service people walk into Dunkin’ Donuts and get offered free coffee because they think they’re the police,” Possumato says. “We like them to view us like that because we take our job seriously.”

Security starts with IntelliShred’s secure containers, in which customers deposit documents they want shredded. The containers resemble cabinets and blend into any office environment.

An IntelliShred service rep visits regularly and opens the locked containers. Using a hand-held electronic device, he or she scans a bar code inside the container that identifies it. The service rep then records in IntelliShred’s system how full the containers are.

The service rep empties the containers into a 95-gallon wheeled cart, relocking the smaller container. The larger container also is locked and then wheeled to the shredding truck.

After shredding, the service rep prints a certificate of destruction, which provides official confirmation that the documents were destroyed in case the customer is audited by a governing body.

IntelliShred itself is certified by the National Association for Information Destruction (NAID), Phoenix, which examines everything from hiring practices to creditworthiness to workflow. NAID auditors even follow IntelliShred’s trucks to make sure drivers lock their doors and don’t leave document containers unattended, Possumato says.

Looking ahead

Possumato says he attended a trade conference a few years ago where an expert predicted that large shredding and product destruction firms would gobble up smaller ones. A few smaller data destruction companies would survive as niche players.

“That’s exactly what happened,” Possumato says. “But now bigger companies are buying each other, and that’s giving new life to the small independent. And as bigger companies get bigger, there will be fewer competitors.”

Possumato says businesses use less paper, but few have gone paperless so far and he doesn’t see paper going away.

As for IntelliShred, Possumato says he has no plans to sell, despite interest from larger secure destruction firms.

“I’m 56,” Possumato says. “We sold out once and we went back in. The prospects of selling a second time are not as appealing as they were the first time.”

The author is a freelance writer based in the Cleveland area and can be contacted at rsandrick@yahoo.com.