WENDT Corp. has installed a small nonferrous plant at Dartmouth Metals Ltd., the companies announced July 27. The June installation is part of Dartmouth’s plan to recover a greater percentage of nonferrous metals, opening additional markets for the valuable material.
Dartmouth, Nova Scotia-based Dartmouth Metals is a third generation, family-operated business that has served the recycling industry since the 1960s. With 40 employees, Dartmouth focuses on developing relationships with customers and staying at the forefront of the recycling industry.
Dartmouth’s nonferrous plant features a WENDT Tumbleback Feeder, Trommel, Fines Eddy Current Separator, J-Box, and WENDT/TOMRA FINDER.
The plant incorporates the Dartmouth’s two previously existing eddy current separators. Dartmouth operates a small shredder and was running its automobile shredder residue through eddy current separators, leaving valuable nonferrous metals uncaptured.
“We were shipping away our nonferrous materials to a friendly local competitor, but we knew what we were missing,” says Dave Giberson, Dartmouth Metals Owner & Manager.
After getting its product sampled several times, the company found it was only achieving 6% metallic recovery with the original setup when it should have been getting 11–14%.
“We were missing half of the material we could have been recovering,” Giberson says. “When the door closed for shipping our fluff material without sorting it properly, we knew it was time to invest.” Dartmouth expects to recover the last 6–8% of metals—Zorba fines, Zurik, and copper wire—with the new system.
The company attributes the new system with increased labor savings and attracting high levels of talent. “The WENDT system modernizes our yard and has made it a more appealing place to work,” Giberson says. “We have saved in labor because of the advanced technology but have also added higher level positions to operate and maintain the equipment. People are familiar with WENDT equipment, and it has attracted additional talent to my company because of it.”
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NDT works to develop solutions that fit customers’ requirements from single pieces of equipment to small recycling processing plants to the largest plants in the world.
“WENDT had a lot of ideas from the start and systematically took their time to make sure I was happy with the layout and that it would fit my current operation,” Giberson notes.
“We discussed what their goals were to grow his business and what available assets he wanted to reuse,” says Bill Close, WENDT nonferrous business development manager. “Together we collaborated to develop a solution unique to their needs.”
Dartmouth moved the nonferrous plant into a 45-year-old existing building. “The WENDT team engineered the system to maximize space and fit in our existing building,” Giberson adds. “They were flexible and practical with the layout to account for the equipment, as well as the handling of material.”
Photos Courtesy of WENDT CORPORATION.
