Eldan says the shredder can produce clean-cut chips from car or truck tires.

Eldan Recycling, based in Faaborg, Denmark, has launched a new twin-shaft clean-cut (TSCC) shredder for production of clean-cut tire chips from car or truck tires.

The company says two frequency converters ensure a "very flexible" operation, i.e., individual setting of RPM, overload protection, auto reverse at overload, high torque and up to 50 percent power saving.

“The Eldan twin shaft clean-cut shredder has just been launched to the public and we are excited to see the response,” says Eldan Recycling Product Manager Jan Kjær. “It is the optimal machine for recyclers who want to go from complete tire into 50 or 100 millimeter clean-cut ships in one go.”

Kjær adds the solutions designed for the Eldan shredder are patented. The company says the shredder can produce clean-cut chips from car or truck tires at up to 6,000 kilograms per hour or clean-cut 100 millimeter chips at up to 9,000 kilograms per hour.

Scrap prices drop $30 to $40 per ton based on surveyed pricing.

Surveyed ferrous scrap pricing for the January buying period conducted by Fastmarkets AMM have shown drops of from $25 to $40 per ton (depending on the grade and region). Scrap recyclers contacted by Recycling Today point to unseasonably dry weather as a noneconomic factor in the decrease, but economic concerns might also be part of the picture.

“We kind of count on snow as a factor to keep supply short and prices higher in months like January and February,” says a Great Lakes region recycler. As of mid-January, he said many metro regions had not yet experienced their first major snowfall.

The same recycler, whose company does considerable business with the automotive sector, also says that industry’s notorious seasonal cycles are less of a factor than they used to be.

Auto assembly and engine plants increasingly avoid complete December shutdowns, shifting instead to a “rolling” schedule that may shut down one line within a facility, but not an entire plant.

With this new technique adopted by auto companies and their first- and second-tier suppliers, “We might see busheling drop by 20 percent in volume in December, rather than, say, 50 percent or 70 percent in some of the former business models,” he says.

While the American financial press seems to be on alert for a recession, the Great Lakes recycler and another in the Great Plains region say they and their customers do not see blatant warning signs.

“Even during the Christmas season, there were no big slowdowns,” says the Great Lakes recycler. He says a regional customer running a stamping plant has engaged in a recent building expansion but still runs the risk of having to turn away work because of an overflowing order book.

The Great Plains recycler says mid-to-late December did produce a lull—“the phone just stopped ringing,” he remarks—but business resumed in January and both his suppliers and his consuming customers foresee an active first quarter of 2019.

The same recycler does express concern, however, about a “self-fulfilling” prophecy cycle if the financial media continues to anticipate a recession. He says some smaller scrap dealers are already holding onto material and seem “afraid of market changes.”

The Great Plains recycler adds, “The good news is our larger suppliers and buyers have ramped back up in January, and small businesses overall in the United States continue to be doing pretty well.”

The same recycler also notes, however, that vehicle sales and home sales are stalling nationally, which likely fuels some of the recession concern. A scrap buyer in the Southeast says the construction sector in his region remains strong, but the demolition sector there (a leading indicator for construction) has grown quieter. “It’s cyclical,” he remarks.

A survey of U.S. and global economic forecasts conducted by Milan-based Gianclaudio Torlizzi of T-Commodity points to some of the factors that have economists wondering if a slowdown is in the offing.

Torlizzi cites London-based Barclays as saying concerns over 2019’s economic outlook helped cause a sell-off of metals and other asset classes. From early December 2018 to early January, copper prices slid 8 percent, and the Jan. 4, 2019, London Metal Exchange (LME) close of $5,775 per metric ton is down 21 percent from a 2018 high of $7,333 reached in June, he writes.

Globally, Torlizzi writes, “Chinese demand indicators remain a concern in the short term, [and] we expect Chinese demand for metals to weaken through the first half of 2019, although we also expect government stimulus to lead to a gradual recovery in demand later this year.” (A longer recap of Torlizzi’s early January comments can be found here. )

Backeye360 monitor designed to prevent injuries caused by truck blind spots or trucks moving in reverse.

The Backeye360 on-board camera system has been designed by United Kingdom-based Brigade Electronics to provide truck drivers with a complete 360-degree view from their vehicle in a single image.

According to Brigade, the system combines images from ultra-wide-angle cameras, resulting in a bird’s eye view of the vehicle and surrounding areas and eliminating blind spots.

Radar systems, such as Brigade’s Backsense radar sensor system (BS-8000), also are designed to help eliminate blind spots. Backsense works by emitting a continuous-wave radar that is faster than pulsed-radar products, according to Brigade.

Continuous-wave radar protects against false alerts, , which can lead to frustration for the driver, resulting in genuine alerts being disregarded, according to the firm. When a moving or stationary object is detected, the driver is given an in-cab visual display plus an audible warning. Unlike cameras, says Brigade, radar systems will continue to function at optimum levels even in harsh conditions, such as rain, fog and snow.

Another innovation claimed by Brigade is a truck reverse gear alarm system that assists workers operating in a busy environment, including those who may be wearing ear defenders. Brigade’s back-up alarms harness high-spec broadband sound frequency, emitting a wide range of white sound frequencies. These enable workers to locate the direction of the sound instantly, says the company.

Rather than emitting a beeping noise, Brigade’s bbs-tek White Sound back-up alarms create a “ssh-ssh” sound that dissipates quickly. This means the alarm can only be heard in the danger zone, so there is a better chance of alarm-weary workers paying attention, says the company. The broadband frequency also gives workers wearing ear protection devices a better chance of hearing the alarm, according to Brigade.

According to Brigade, each day in the United States, on average, two construction workers die of work-related injuries. Struck-by incidents involving heavy equipment are a significant cause of fatal and nonfatal injuries in the sector, and the incidents frequently involve vehicles or earthmoving equipment and their drivers’ blind spots.

Brigade Electronics was founded in 1976 by Chris Hanson-Abbott, who the company says introduced the first reversing alarm to Europe. Brigade’s product portfolio includes the Backeye 360º camera monitor systems, bbs-tek white sound reversing alarms, ultrasonic obstacle detection, radar obstacle detection and mobile digital recorders.

The company challenges participants to develop packaging innovations that reduce unrecyclable waste.

Smurfit Kappa, a containerboard producer based in Ireland, launched a Better Planet Packaging Design Challenge for 2019. According to a Smurfit Kappa news release, the company is calling on designers, engineers, inventors and creative thinkers both inside and outside of the company to develop sustainable packaging solutions of the future.

The competition aims to reduce the amount of nonrecyclable packaging waste that is generated every day, which the company reports is one of the biggest challenges facing the packaging industry today. Through the Better Planet Packaging Design Challenge, Smurfit Kappa wants participants to develop an alternative for the plastic stretch wrap that is used around pallets and to develop a fully paper-based parcel with thermal protection for chocolates to use in the e-commerce sales channel.

Applicants can submit an idea to address one or both of the design challenges. The competition is open until March 29. The winner of each design challenge will receive a prize of 8,000 euros and their ideas will be showcased at the Smurfit Kappa Innovation event in May 2019. 

According to a company press release, the challenge is part of Smurfit Kappa’s Better Planet Packaging initiative that started in 2018.

“Packaging design has an essential role to play in reducing the amount of waste generated in day-to-day life, and in delivering a more sustainable future,” says Arco Berkenbosch, vice president of innovation and development at Smurfit Kappa. “Our Better Planet Packaging Design Challenge aims to inspire the world’s design community to work on concrete problems in sustainable packaging design. We are looking forward to seeing the applications and discovering the first winning innovations of the Better Planet Packaging Design Challenge.”

Interested applicants can visit Better Planet Packaging Design Challenge for more information on how to apply. 

Electronics recycling, sorting lines and material handling equipment for sale in Jan. 24 online auction.

Bids are now being accepted for a live online auction Jan. 24 of well-maintained electronics recycling, glass sorting, crush and CRT separation and sorting lines; as well as warehouse, material handling and other equipment from an electronics recycling facility formerly owned by ECS Refining, Mesquite, Texas.

Headquartered in California, the national e-scrap processor serviced companies like AT&T, Bayer Healthcare, Comcast, DWS (Disney), Samsung and Walmart. ECS was also involved in state recycling initiatives, at one time receiving 41 percent of the material collected through Oregon’s program. ECS Refining Inc. filed for bankruptcy April 24, 2018.

 According to a press release, the assets may be previewed Jan. 22 at the Texas facility.

 “A variety of specialized assets and materials handling and other equipment with universal applications will be offered at competitive, hard-value prices during this event,” says John Coelho of Tiger Group, which is selling the assets.

The facility’s electronics recycling line includes an SSI Model M160 60-inch x 72-inch dual rotor shredder with a 50-inch in-feed conveyor; an International Baler auto tie, two ram series baler with 100-horsepower hydraulic pumping system; as well as various other shredders, a Bivi-Tec rubber screen classifier, numerous belt conveyors, two Javelin Eddy Current Separators, and dust collection systems.

A glass sorting and crush line features six glass break stations with bottom sort conveyor, a 40-horsepower Ross Cook CE18-40 vacuum, a Donaldson Torit 40-horsepower dust collection system, an American Pulverizer D7264 glass crusher and more.

A CRT separation and sorting line, a CRT 100-foot power belt conveyor with hood, a 100-foot Lewco plastics transfer conveyor and an Excel 63 hydraulic horizontal baler are also up for bid.

Warehouse and material handling assets and a maintenance shop with welders, tooling, supplies and replacement parts will be offered.

An SSS T15 specific gravity separator, No. 28 and 43 model Cumberland solid rotor granulator chambers and vertical and horizontal balers are also up for sale.

For information on the assets, click here.