Home | Business News | Browse by Publication | R | Recycling Today

Road worthy: auto recyclers remain competitive as suppliers of components harvested from salvaged vehicles.

Article Excerpt
Auto dismantlers operate in an environment where many of their competitors as well as some of their customers are among the largest and most powerful companies in the world. The salvage and dismantling experts offer components that can compete with OEM parts made directly by the world's automakers, many of which can be found in the upper tier of the annual Fortune 500 survey.

At the same time, many of the salvaged components are purchased by auto insurance companies, several of which make appearances of their own on any "who's who" roster of corporate America.

In this land of giants, these family businesses are finding new ways to stay viable, often by sharing information, cooperating on joint marketing efforts or through the more traditional merger and acquisition route.

CONDITION STABLE. Economists are calling 2004 a slow-growth year for the U.S. economy, an assessment that many auto recyclers might agree with.

A tepid consumer economy combined with vehicles that are lasting longer can both help and hurt auto recyclers, according to Bob Hoffmann of Quality Replacement Parts (QRP), Schofield, Wis., a co-op with several dozen member companies.

Much as in the scrap industry, auto recyclers need generated material (in their case, scrapped or totaled cars) before they can have a product to sell.

Galvanized steel and greater attention to the quality of mechanical systems are giving cars longer life, Hoffmann notes. "Cars are staying...

View this article FREE - Now for a Limited Time, try Goliath Business News
Free for 3 Days!