Maryland scrap processing firm’s holdings include an auto shredder.

The Sims Metal business unit of Australia-based Sims Ltd. has purchased Maryland-based Atlantic Recycling Group (ARG), including the firm’s auto shredding plant in Baltimore.

Atlantic Recycling Group has two locations in Baltimore operating under the United Iron & Metal name, including the shredder yard, and operates a location under the Montgomery Scrap name in Rockville, Maryland.

The company’s co-founder Robert Millstone died this September, after having spent more than four decades in the scrap industry. Contacted by Recycling Today, remaining ARG principal David Caffee says under terms of the sale, he will stay with ARG for two years.

According to Sims, ARG processes and sells approximately 150,000 metric tons of ferrous and nonferrous scrap annually.

Sims says ARG is being acquired “for a total consideration of $37 million plus working capital adjustments,” with the acquisition expected to be finalized Jan. 1, 2022. “The acquisition price implies an enterprise value/EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) multiple of 4.2 on a pre-synergies basis,” adds Sims.

In its news release announcing the acquisition, Sims states, “The transaction provides operational and commercial synergies and is consistent with the company’s strategy to grow in large coastal markets which offer the potential for top tier processing facilities and bulk export optionality.”

The ARG acquisition helps Sims expand its East Coast operational footprint, with it now stretching from South Carolina to New England, “an area incorporating many of the largest markets for secondary metal generation in the U.S.A,” states Sims.

“I welcome the team at Atlantic Recycling into the Sims Limited family,” says Alistair Field, CEO and managing director of Sims Ltd. “This acquisition provides Sims Metal with entry into a complementary market and strengthens the already solid East Coast footprint in North America.”

According to the United States Chamber of Commerce, 91 percent of contractors report high difficulty finding skilled workers, and 95 percent report material shortages.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Washington, says rising costs, skilled labor shortages and lack of materials continue to create challenges for the construction industry. These issues have sent the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Commercial Construction Index down one point this quarter to 65. Contractors’ revenue expectations, a driver of the overall Index score, fell for the first time since the start of the pandemic to 58, down 3 percentage points from Q3.

“One of the most pressing issues facing our economy today is the worsening worker shortage crisis, and these findings show that the construction sector continues to face this challenge,” says Neil Bradley, executive vice president and chief policy officer for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. 

According to the Chamber, 91 percent of contractors report moderate to high difficulty finding skilled labor, up 3 points from last summer. It also reports that 62 percent of contractors experience high difficulty finding skilled workers, rising 7 points from last quarter and up 20 points from one year ago. About 45 percent of contractors report turning down work because they couldn't find enough skilled workers.

“It is critical that policymakers invest in programs to upskill and prioritize workers, pass sensible immigration reform and remove tariffs and other trade barriers so that contractors have the workers and materials they need to get the job done,” Bradley says.

This quarter, 95 percent of contractors report experiencing at least one product shortage, up 2 percentage points from 93 percent in Q3, and up 24 points year over year. Steel is the most common material seeing a shortage at 27 percent, followed by roofing material at 19 percent and lumber at 17 percent. 

The chamber says 97 percent of contractors indicate cost fluctuations have a moderate-to-high impact on their businesses, up 23 points year over year. Of those who say material cost fluctuations have affected their businesses, 43 percent day steel is their top concern.

About 47 percent of contractors say steel and aluminum tariffs will have a high degree of impact on their businesses in the next three years. A similar percentage, 49 percent, say the same about new construction material and equipment tariffs, up 5 percentage points from last quarter and up 23 points year over year, according to the chamber.

The technology will allow the plant to recycle and reuse 15,000 tons of paper per year.

Building materials manufacturer Saint-Gobain, with North American headquarters in Malvern, Pennsylvania, has announced it installed recycling technology at its gypsum wallboard plant in Silver Grove, Kentucky, through its building products subsidiary CertainTeed, which it says will allow the plant to recycle 15,000 tons of paper per year that otherwise would have been sent to a landfill.

The project was announced months after Saint-Gobain rolled out its new global Grow and Impact strategy, which includes reducing waste and increasing the circularity of raw materials at its manufacturing sites. CertainTeed invested $850,000 into the recycling equipment.

Gypsum wallboard is made from a gypsum slurry that is poured and dries between two sheets of paper, and some scrap material consisting of gypsum and paper is normally created every time a production line is started or shut down or when production equipment is changed to manufacture different sizes of wallboard.

CertainTeed captures and recycles most of the gypsum in this scrap material at all its gypsum plants, including Silver Grove, but the scrap paper in this process could not be recycled through traditional means because it was coated in gypsum. The new equipment in Silver Grove grinds the scrap gypsum and paper to finer particles, allowing the plant to capture and internally recycle both the gypsum particles and paper particles, which are then sorted and reintroduced to the production process at the plant.

“This project allows us to reduce our waste and reduce our production costs in Silver Grove while also empowering us to increase the efficiency of our use of natural resources,” says Jay Bachmann, vice president and general manager of CertainTeed gypsum. “We will continue to look for ways to minimize our environmental footprint while maximizing our company’s positive impact for our customers and the communities where we do business.”

The CertainTeed facility in Silver Grove is the largest gypsum wallboard plant in North America and one of the largest in the world. The recycling project at the facility follows several investments in environmental sustainability this year, including renewable energy and sustainable manufacturing and construction initiatives.

EAF steelmaker says demand and margins for finished steel remain healthy.

Charlotte, North Carolina-based Nucor Corp., in guidance issued for its fourth-quarter earnings, says it expects the highest quarterly earnings in Nucor history, surpassing the previous record of $7.28 per diluted share that was set in the third quarter of 2021.

The scrap-fed electric arc furnace (EAF) steel producer says it expects earnings for the quarter in progress, which will end Dec. 31, to be in the range of $7.65 to $7.75 per diluted share.

“Steel mills segment earnings in the fourth quarter of 2021 remain robust and are expected to be comparable to the third quarter of 2021 despite lower volumes caused by year-end seasonality,” states Nucor. “We expect the steel products segment to generate increased earnings in the fourth quarter of 2021 as demand in nonresidential construction markets remains strong.”

Regarding its raw materials segment, which includes the nationwide network of scrap yards operated by Cincinnati-based David J. Joseph Co. (DJJ), the firm says earnings in that business unit are “expected to decrease in the fourth quarter of 2021 as compared to the third quarter of 2021.” Nucor, however, does not cite the scrap market as the reason.

Instead, the steelmaker says that unit’s earnings drop will be “primarily due to margin compression at our direct reduced iron (DRI) facilities.” Although Nucor does not mention it, DRI production is natural gas-intensive, and prices for that fossil fuel have risen steadily this quarter.

“As we approach the end of the most profitable year in Nucor’s history, demand continues to be strong in most of the end markets we serve,” concludes the steel producer, which refers to itself as “North America’s largest recycler.” Adds the firm, “We are confident that 2022 will be another year of strong profitability for Nucor.”

Scrap Expo offers more than 10 acres of live outdoor demonstrations of scrap handling equipment coupled with a curated educational program.

Recycling Today Media Group has announced the launch of Scrap Expo. Scheduled for Sept. 13-14, 2022, in Louisville, Kentucky, the expo is unlike any scrap industry event. Attendees can expect acres of live operating scrap processing machinery, indoor exhibits and a robust operations-oriented program.

The expo will take place at the Kentucky Exposition Center, which is well-positioned to offer a vast outdoor demonstration area. Machines and materials will be on-site to give the feel of a working scrap yard. Operators will have the opportunity to grab the joysticks and get a feel for how different machines respond and operate, all in one location.

“For years, industry suppliers have asked us about coordinating roadshows to demonstrate equipment. At the same time, many of our readers are continually looking for machinery to streamline and improve their operations. Scrap Expo combines these two needs into one event that will be accessible to all companies operating in the metals recycling supply chain,” says Jim Keefe, group publisher.

From scrap identification classes to machine-specific technical sessions, attendees can benefit from education adjacent to the indoor exhibit hall during both days of the expo.

Scrap Expo will kick off Tuesday, Sept. 13, with live demos and the exhibition area from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. and continues Wednesday, Sept. 14, from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Louisville is an ideal location for Scrap Expo. It’s within a seven-hour drive of 60 percent of the U.S. population and is located adjacent to the Louisville airport. Whether you drive or fly, it’s convenient and easy to access.

Registration details are coming soon. Sign up here to be notified as soon as registration is open. For information regarding sponsorships and exhibits, please contact your sales representative. Because of the nature of this event, space may be limited.

Details are being added to the website frequently. Visit www.ScrapExpo.net for more information.