To the left, Clayton Ellis, manager of public affairs for NYSEG and RG&E commences a check presentation on Thursday of nearly $70,000, which is the second installment of the $133,633 grant for electricity infrastructure upgrades to Adam Weitsman, CEO of Upstate Shredding – Weitsman Recycling in Owego, N.Y. From the left, is Ellis; Weitsman; Daniel Carden, key account manager of the Binghamton and Oneonta Divisions of NYSEG and RG&E; and Carl Taylor, vice president of customer service at Iberdrola USA, NYSEG’s parent company. The presentation took place at Upstate Shredding in Owego. (Photos by Wendy Post)
Adam Weitsman, CEO of Upstate Shredding – Weitsman Recycling in Owego, N.Y., shakes the hand of Carl Taylor, vice president of customer service at Iberdrola USA, NYSEG’s parent company, during an economic development grant presentation on Thursday held at Weitsman’s Upstate Shredding facility in Owego, N.Y. Standing between them is Daniel Carden, key account manager of the Binghamton and Oneonta Divisions of NYSEG and RG&E.
Upstate Shredding – Weitsman Recycling is the East Coast’s largest privately held scrap metal processor, operating 19 locations throughout New York, Pennsylvania and Canada. Pictured, is Upstate Shredding located in Owego, N.Y.
On Sept. 17, Upstate Shredding’s facility received a nearly $70,000 economic development grant award from New York State Electric and Gas (NYSEG). With NYSEG and Rochester Gas and Electric (RG&E) representatives on hand, the presentation was held at the Upstate Shredding facility located on Recycling Drive off of Route 38 in Owego, N.Y.
Carl Taylor, vice president of customer service at Iberdrola USA, NYSEG’s parent company, presented the second installment of the $133,633 grant for electricity infrastructure upgrades to Adam Weitsman, CEO of Upstate Shredding – Weitsman Recycling on Thursday.
“We are very thankful to NYSEG for their continued commitment to our growth as we continue to supply jobs and opportunity here in the Southern Tier and beyond,” said Weitsman in a press release distributed prior to the grant presentation.
During the presentation on Thursday, Weitsman was able to thank NYSEG and expressed his gratitude for all of their assistance over the years.
Weitsman took a look back into the late 1990’s, and noted that they didn’t have access to electric, and they were using natural gas motors. “We were at the darkest time of our company,” said Weitsman.
NYSEG, he added, got people together in a moment’s notice and had everything together for us in months. “NYSEG contributed to the company’s growth,” said Weitsman.
Taylor, from Iberdrola, stated he was privileged to be at the presentation on Thursday.
“Grant initiatives like these are the driving force in trying to help our communities grow,” said Taylor. And Weitsman agreed.
“This helps to create more jobs, and helps us to grow,” said Weitsman.
“NYSEG and RG&E have a decades-long history of supporting growing businesses through our robust economic development programs,” echoed Mark S. Lynch, president and CEO of NYSEG and RG&E.
Lynch added, “Recognizing the benefits this project brings to the region, we are pleased to support Upstate Shredding.”
Earlier this year, Upstate Shredding installed a new $1.7 million, 9,000 horsepower motor to its mega shredder. The motor was part of a $3 million project that has allowed the company to add jobs, increase production by 30 percent and increase annual sales by $10 million.
In June 2013, Upstate Shredding earned a NYSEG economic development grant of $359,207 for electricity infrastructure upgrades for the company’s newly constructed ASR wire chopping plant. This facility processes insulated automobile and appliance wire into copper, aluminum and plastic products, which are sold domestically and internationally. This process turned an expense into a revenue stream while also keeping additional waste out of the landfill.
One of the projects that is underway at Upstate Shredding is the development of a new plant using state-of-the-art processing technology to further process “zorba,” a shredded mix of non-ferrous metals consisting primarily of aluminum. Upstate Shredding estimates that in 2016 it will process 110 million pounds of zorba through the new plant from its Owego, N.Y. and New Castle, Pa. shredder (currently under construction and expected to open later this year).
The equipment will be housed in a new 20,000-square-foot building that will be constructed at 1 Recycle Dr. in Owego, and the technology was purchased from Wendt Corporation of Buffalo. According to the earlier press release, it was stated that, “All machinery for the new facility has been purchased in New York State and all labor on the project will be local.”
Upstate Shredding – Weitsman Recycling is the East Coast’s largest privately held scrap metal processor, operating 19 locations throughout New York, Pennsylvania and Canada.
The company will process more than 1 million tons of ferrous and 250 million pounds of non-ferrous metal in 2015. Upstate Shredding – Weitsman Recycling was recently honored as 2015 Scrap Company of the Year by American Metal Market as well as 2014 top scrap recycling company in the world by Platts, a division of McGraw-Hill and the premier resource for metals and mining worldwide.
For more information on the company, visit www.upstateshredding.com.
