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THE I SR I SCRAP YEARBOOK
2016
INSTITUTE OF SCRAP RECYCLING INDUSTRIES, INC.
10
What’s important to remember is that, unlike waste, scrap
is a commodity, processed into tradable and highly valued
specification-grade products that manufacturers use as
raw material inputs to make new products. There are two
major sources of scrap supply.
Obsolete scrap
comes from a
wide range of used products
including end-of-life cars and
trucks, old newspapers and
magazines, used appliances,
demolished buildings, used
beverage containers, consumer
goods, and much more.
In addition, scrap generated by the
manufacturing process, also known as
prompt, prime, or new scrap
, comes
in a variety of forms including metal
clippings, stampings, and turnings, to
name just a few. Because new products
are continually entering the marketplace, scrap recyclers
need to be extremely innovative in order to keep up with
commodity and end-use market developments. Broadly
speaking, scrap can be grouped into categories including:
ferrous scrap, which includes items made from iron and steel
like old automobiles and machinery; nonferrous scrap made
of other metals such as aluminum, copper, lead, zinc, nickel,
and tin; electronics scrap including used TVs, computers, cell
phones, and other electronic equipment; and nonmetallic
scrap such as recovered paper and fiber, plastics, rubber and
tires, glass, and textiles.
What is Scrap and Where Does it Come From?