Auto Recycling eNewsletter AutoSalvageConsultant.com

 

For immediate release – November 2010

Written and published by Ron Sturgeon, autosalvageconsultant.com, email to rons@autosalvageconsultant.com.  To register for future free issues, visit http://www.autosalvageconsultant.com.  Don’t forget to watch for our management articles monthly in Recyclers Power Source Magazine, or posted at our web site.

 

This Month’s News

 

Two Manufacturers Ban Recycled Parts – Automotive Recyclers Association Fights Back:  American Honda and Hyundai Motor America have both banned the use of recycled automotive parts in repairing their vehicles, saying the use of these parts will void the warranty.  After its yearly meeting held in Austin, TX, the Automotive Recyclers Association (ARA) fought back with a letter to the Federal Trade Commission.  The ARA’s letter highlights that providing recycled auto parts is a $22 billion-per-year industry employing thousands of people and that recycled parts are often identical to original parts used in these automobiles.

 

“Neither manufacturer has provided any evidence that parts unaffected by an accident become inadequate once reused, which begs the question why their use is not supported by either company,” CEO of the ARA, Michael Wilson, said in the appeal to the FTC. “Following the logic held by these companies, as soon as a new Hyundai, Honda or Acura drives off the lot, its parts are unsuitable for use as replacement parts in another vehicle, implying that the parts are unfit for use as soon as the car drives off the lot.”  Read more here.

 

Upcoming Peer Benchmarking Group for Recyclers Led by Ron Sturgeon: In recent years, the economy has been hard on a lot of businesses, but for auto recyclers, an economic downturn can mean an increase in business. 

 

“Being a successful business owner is about weathering the hard times and growing like crazy during the good times,” says Ron Sturgeon. “That’s why I’m leading a peer benchmarking group for recyclers.  We’re allowing one business for each market area to avoid competition, and we can all learn from one another’s experiences.”

 

Learn more about how peer benchmarking can help make 2011 your best year yet. The next group will be on May 14, 2011.  Register now.

“Title Washing” Scam Results in Five Indictments: Five people have been indicted for selling salvaged or parts cars with incorrect titles.  The scheme allegedly involves three Texas men, a Philadelphia man, and a New Jersey man, who the FBI says took advantage of title transfer loopholes from state to state.  The FBI probe focused on several businesses, including United Auto Title, a San Antonio business run by Babauk Omeed Harizavi, one of the men charged.  According to the indictment, Harizavi charged about $250 to provide clean titles for cars that had a salvage or parts designation.

Jerry Edward Weaver, who owns JW Auto Group in Rowlett, TX, was also included in the indictment.  Weaver pleaded “not guilty” and maintains that he sold old government vehicles that had been wrongly identified as parts cars.

“I have not defrauded anybody in my life and never will,” Weaver said. “This guy deceived me.”  Read the rest of the article here.

Significant Increase in New Shredders Planned: According to Recycling Today, there was a significant increase in the number of auto shredders between 2006 and 2008. In 2006, there were 220 shredders.  In 2008, this number went up to 250, representing a 13 percent increase over two years.  There are 290 shredding plants now identified for 2010, representing another significant increase of 16 percent over two years.  However, it’s not all good news.  According to the article, many small recycling operations feel they need a shredder in order to compete.

“We are just a minnow in an ocean of whales and some sharks, just little bitty guys,” says Jason Shipman of Scrap N in Farmington, MO.  Shipman says the decision to add a shredder was an important part of controlling the destiny of his business and staying competitive.  He’s increased his monthly average by about 1,500 tons to accommodate the shredder.

This strategy isn’t working for all businesses according to the article.  Many shredders are standing idle, and even more aren’t operating at capacity.  Read more here.

Mobile Scrap Processing Gets International Attention:  One German recycling company may have just invented the next big thing in auto recycling.  Hammel Recyclingtechnik showed off its latest product at an auto recycling show in Germany this month.  The company calls the product a “mobile scrap processing plant,” and it is capable of processing car bodies, engine blocks, and other products into a marketable end result.

The machine includes a magnetic drum, designed to sort ferrous material out from non-ferrous parts.  This and other features of the machine were demonstrated during the auto recycling show, and Hammel Recyclingtechnik also showed off the machine at a customer site.  Learn more about this development here.

Jailer Hides Buries Money in Junkyard: Auto recyclers know that there’s plenty of buried treasure in the average junkyard, but this treasure rarely takes the form of cold hard cash. However, Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services pretrial deputy commissioner Benjamin F. Brown is accused of stealing more than $12,500 from prisoners and hiding much of the money in a nearby junkyard.  The money was contaminated with blood and other body fluids.  Brown admitted to taking some of it but also maintains that there was no protocol in place to guide disposal of the contaminated cash.

 

“You can’t take it to the bank because it’s contaminated,” said Brown’s attorney, Creston P. Smith. “Our position is that his supervisors wanted answers. He didn’t have the answers, so he disposed of the money.” Read the rest of the story.

 

 

 

 

How’s Business?

“The person who gets the farthest is generally the one who is willing to do and dare. The sure-thing boat never gets far from shore.”

Dale Carnegie

AutoSalvageconsultant.com was formed in 2001 to help recyclers improve their businesses. The group has become THE definitive source for recyclers’ management and training needs. The founder, Ron Sturgeon is past owner of AAA Small Car World.  In 1999, he sold his six Texas locations, with 140 employees, to Greenleaf.  In 2001, he founded North Texas Insurance Auction, which he sold to Copart in 2002.  In 2009, his book Salvaging More Millions from Your Small Business was published to help small business owners achieve significant success. Ron consults, speaks, and writes about issues key to successful entrepreneurship. Reach Ron at 817-838-8477 8# or contact him on www.autosalvageconsultant.com.