Contributing Writer
- FMA
- The Fabricator
- FABTECH
- Canadian Metalworking
Categories
- Additive Manufacturing
- Aluminum Welding
- Arc Welding
- Assembly and Joining
- Automation and Robotics
- Bending and Forming
- Consumables
- Cutting and Weld Prep
- Electric Vehicles
- En Español
- Finishing
- Hydroforming
- Laser Cutting
- Laser Welding
- Machining
- Manufacturing Software
- Materials Handling
- Metals/Materials
- Oxyfuel Cutting
- Plasma Cutting
- Power Tools
- Punching and Other Holemaking
- Roll Forming
- Safety
- Sawing
- Shearing
- Shop Management
- Testing and Measuring
- Tube and Pipe Fabrication
- Tube and Pipe Production
- Waterjet Cutting
Industry Directory
Webcasts
Podcasts
FAB 40
Advertise
Subscribe
Account Login
Search
Absolute Control: Implementing a master control system for hydraulic press lines
- By Paul Sulikowski
- September 26, 2002
- Article
- Bending and Forming
Companies are beginning to realize the importance of practical recycling, efficient use of space, employee safety, and profit recovery. As a result, many companies today are compacting their stamping scrap by chopping it into small pieces.
Scrap choppers are designed to stand alone where they can be hand-fed, despool material off reels, or integrated inline with a stamping operation. The chopper pulls the scrap into the machine and directs it into the chopper anvils. Using one stationary anvil and at least one rotating anvil, the chopper cuts the scrap into short lengths as it passes through the anvils and drops it into a container, where it is safely stored until it's ready to be removed.
Choppers can be customized to chop material into different lengths through a variety of knife configurations. They can accommodate material up to 10 in. wide and can handle many thicknesses, depending on the type of material, hardness, and tensile strength of the scrap.
Practical Recycling
Of course, stampers can find many reasons to recycle, including environmental benefits, but the bottom line is that businesses must be profitable to keep their doors open. When a company disposes of less scrap, it requires fewer dumpster pickups, which leads to savings in disposal fees and increased bottom-line profit.
Scrap disposal for stampers can be especially wasteful. Odd-shaped stamped scrap is awkward and bulky; companies that ship this type of scrap for disposal are shipping containers that are one-quarter full of scrap and three-quarters full of air. Chopping the scrap into small cut lengths compacts the scrap, allowing more to fit into a container; in some instances, a reduction of 20-to-1 is possible in the amount of space the scrap consumes in a container.
Use of Space
Storage of uncompacted scrap takes up plant floor space that could be used for production. Regardless how much a stamper pays for property, it can't afford to waste floor space on scrap storage.
For instance, a typical 30-yard dumpster occupies 160 square feet. Even if that area costs only $1.50 per square foot, thousands of dollars a year could be saved by chopping the scrap and using a smaller dumpster.
Employee Safety
Safety is a concern for any company dealing with unwanted scrap. Everyone is interested in reducing on-the-job injuries; fewer workplace accidents and fewer threats of litigation result in lower workers' compensation insurance premiums.
Scrap that collects in bins or winds onto reels can pose a potential threat to employees. Every time employees have to unload a winder of stamping scrap or move scrap from a bin into a dumpster, they are at risk for cuts and back injuries.
Chopping the scrap as soon as it is generated, whether by hand, despooling from a reel, or in a chopping line, can reduce the chance of employee injury. Once the scrap is chopped, it drops into a container, where it is safely stored until the company ships it out or the scrap dealer picks it up.
Profit Recovery
Dealers pay more for uncontaminated, ready-to-process scrap than for material that must be chopped or separated into various elements. Scrap dealers almost never buy loose scrap and often charge to pick it up; they are more likely to purchase and pay for chopped scrap.
Of course, all recyclable materials are commodities, so their values fluctuate. For this reason, a recycling program should be based on cost avoidance rather than potential revenues. Money received from selling scrap should be a perk of a recycling program instead of the reason for implementing one.
Scrap compaction can be one way to reduce dumpster and transportation fees, use space efficiently, contribute to employee safety, and recover profit, all of which affect a company's profits.
About the Author
Related Companies
subscribe now
The Fabricator is North America's leading magazine for the metal forming and fabricating industry. The magazine delivers the news, technical articles, and case histories that enable fabricators to do their jobs more efficiently. The Fabricator has served the industry since 1970.
start your free subscription- Stay connected from anywhere
Easily access valuable industry resources now with full access to the digital edition of The Fabricator.
Easily access valuable industry resources now with full access to the digital edition of The Welder.
Easily access valuable industry resources now with full access to the digital edition of The Tube and Pipe Journal.
Easily access valuable industry resources now with full access to the digital edition of The Fabricator en Español.
- Podcasting
- Podcast:
- The Fabricator Podcast
- Published:
- 03/26/2024
- Running Time:
- 67:51
This week on The Fabricator Podcast, Jason Becker, host of the Arc Junkies Podcast and owner of Underground...
- Trending Articles
USS Midway’s tuition-free welding program a win-win
San Diego landmark becomes floating classroom for student welders
K&S celebrates 50 years in business
Guiding metal fabrication’s automation transformation
Increasing revenue by applying production concepts to sales and marketing
- Industry Events
Coil Processing Workshop & Tours
- April 2 - 3, 2024
- Corpus Christi, TX
GOLF4MFG South
- April 15, 2024
- Charlotte, NC
16th Annual Safety Conference
- April 30 - May 1, 2024
- Elgin,
Pipe and Tube Conference
- May 21 - 22, 2024
- Omaha, NE
World-Class Roll Forming Workshop
- June 5 - 6, 2024
- Louisville, KY