Document Destruction Company Receives Second State Grant

Ripped to Shreds, a mobile document destruction company formed only last April, received its second $50,000 grant from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs.

The company, headquartered in Mt. Vernon, Ill., has been able to capture a significant amount of business working from its rural settings. Mary Burgan, the owner of the company, used the first $50,000 loan as part of the start-up costs for the operation. Equipment used to start the company were a truck, shredder and some containers. According to the Illinois DCCA, total start up costs were around $200,000.

The second $50,000 grant, which the state announced last Friday, Jan. 25th, will allow the company to purchase a baler from American Baler, said Burgan. In addition to owning and operating Ripped to Shreds, she is actively involved in her family’s scrap metal company, Shapiro Brothers, also located in Mt. Vernon.

The new baler, already on order, will allow the company to move from the antiquated baler the company presently operates, to one that is more fully automated.

“We’ve grown by leaps and bounds,” she said, poring over some recent paperwork. “We used to ship out one tractor-trailer once a month filled with recyclable (shredded and baled) paper. Now we’re sending one out every three or four days. It’s just been incredible.”

Ninety customers all over Southern Illinois are clients of Ripped to Shreds.

RSI estimates it will divert about 1,600 tons of paper waste annually from disposal in Southern Illinois landfills.