Car recyclers see market rebound
After a 2011 that represented a rebound from the lows of the recession years, auto recycling industry members and suppliers are hoping for a return to stability and greater prosperity. The near future, according to interviews with executives in the field, will be driven by new markets, new technologies and the ultimate replacement of the country’s aging fleet of automobiles.
“2011 was not a record-breaking year, but it was close,” said Curt Spry, scrap sales manager at Al-Jon Manufacturing, Ottumwa, Iowa, which manufactures metal recycling and landfill compaction equipment. “And we look for 2012 to be the same.”
At OverBuilt, Inc., a maker of car crushers and baler-loggers in Huron, South Dakota, sales manager Jeff Hebbert said 2011 continued a trend from 2010 of modest recovery from the lows of 2009. “Predicting how long that’s going to last is like predicting the stock market,” Hebbert said. “But all indications are that the people in the recycling industry are very optimistic about 2012.”
