A long history with scrap Laurel Machine & Foundry Co. (LMF Co.) in Laurel, MS, is actually several smaller businesses rolled into one — a steel fabricator, machine shop, mill supplier of industrial hardware, a steel service center, and a foundry. “Not only do we create a lot of scrap due to the fact that we cut a lot of material to length, but we also purchase a great deal of scrap for our foundry,” says Gene Mulloy, CEO of the company. “This buying of scrap is done because the scrap we generate does not work well in our iron foundries. Though we sell all different grades of metal, we “I don’t think our business is alone in saving remnants to keep using until they’re unusable. We need to have one grade going hang on to gates or fence panels that, for whatever reason, didn’t work, and keep them around into our foundry that will to either sell to ‘Joe Schmoe,’ who comes in off the street, or to someone who happens to have work — and one grade only. an appropriate opening that those parts would suit.” That’s something we can’t —Chantal Francisco mix.” The company is very parsteel. And when these get filled, there this is one way to give our clients a litticular about what they buy. But, as are several salvage companies in the tle bit of a discount on what they’ve Mulloy points out, they pay a premiarea that will pay the by the pound of paid for their project.” um for that better quality metal. “I scrap, pick it up, and give them a Corner has noticed the demand for pay a lot more for my scrap than I check. recycled metal has definitely been receive for it,” adds Mulloy. “We prob“That’s basically the only recycling higher in the last three or four years. ably sell close to 40,000 pounds of that we do,” says Rich Corner, owner. “It is economics driving things now scrap per month, though we’ll also “We don’t necessarily try to recycle it from what I can see,” he says. “I used buy three to four times that much ourselves. We do large residential to have someone pay to remove the each month.” metal projects such as railings, gates, scrap. Now, they pay me if they can That scrap material comes from a and fences. We don’t have any sort of come and pick it up.” supplier in north Mississippi who, in facilities for melting down scrap metal and placing the melted product in forms.” LMF Co. On some of the larger projects, the actually customer will actually ask for the probuys ceeds from the recycled waste scrap. three-to“Most recently for a big project, we four times as scaled down some big metal stairs,” much as adds Corner. “The client then asked the for a check for the salvaged scrap 40,000 waste, which, at that time, amounted lbs. of scrap it to approximately one dollar per generpound for the stainless steel. ates and “Obviously at different times and sells with different market cycles, the scrap each month. is more or less valuable. The trick is to contact a few different companies, see which one is paying the most, and then you take it from there. We figure 22
Fabricator
March/April 2008