Michigan’s Auto Recycling Industry

Recycling automobiles is big business in the state of Michigan. Quite appropriate when you think of how much money has been made in manufacturing automobiles in this state. Not only is the automobile recycling business profitable, it turns out to be a necessity as well. Once a car has reached the end of its usefulness on the road, what is the process it goes through to be recycled and why is the recycling process so important? That's what this article is about.

First, let us look at how an automobile ends up at auto recycling facility. This may occur several ways. An automobile may be involved in some type of collision and the insurance company may determine that the amount of money to repair the vehicle exceeds its value. In this scenario, once the owner has been compensated for the loss of the automobile, the insurance company takes possession of it. In order to recover some of the money they lost on the claim, the insurance company then sells the now salvage vehicle to an automobile recycling facility. Another way for an automobile to wind up at a recycling facility is for the owner to decide that the vehicle has out lived its usefulness, if the vehicle needs repairs that are again more costly than the worth of the vehicle then the individual can also sell it to an auto recycler. Some automobiles are simply abandoned by the owner on vacant lots or along the side of the road, in this case, the city may impound the vehicle and if it is not claimed then the automobile goes to an auto recycling facility. In this way, automobile recyclers provide a valuable service to the communities they serve. Instead of ugly eyesores that choke up empty fields and clog roadways, these vehicles are taking apart and the steel is recycled into new vehicles.

Once the automobile reaches the recycling facility it is drained of hazardous fluids and any dangerous materials are removed. It is then accessed for all the parts that are still in good working order. Once these parts have been removed, the remained of the vehicle is then flattened for removal to a scrap metal recycler. The shredder facility in turn prepares the metal for deliver to a furnace that melts it down so that it can be recycled into a new car or vehicle.

The Automotive Recyclers of Michigan reports that in Michigan and around the country, auto recyclers have acquired 4.7 million vehicles for the purpose of recycling. That is enough metal to create 13 million new cars and trucks. Talk about going green, auto recyclers in the state of Michigan were going green before the saying even existed.

It is clear these days that the automotive recyclers around Michigan are playing a vital role in making sure that our children and grandchildren have something more than just a landfill to inherent. Michigan automotive recyclers are hard at work protecting the environment and supporting responsible recycling.