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Making History

Tonawanda, N.Y.-based Wendt Corp.’s 130 Heavy Shredder has been featured on The History Channel’s "Modern Marvels" series in the episode titled World’s Strongest 2.

Sturgis Iron & Metal of Elkhart, Ind., purchased the shredder, which Wendt bills as the world’s largest automobile shredder. It is driven by an 8,000-hp AC motor and is capable of processing up to 400 tons of steel per hour.

Tom Wendt, executive vice president, says "We experienced very steady growth for the first 27 years of our existence, but business has simply exploded in recent years.

"We are never satisfied with status quo and continue to aggressively introduce new products that allow our customers to be more productive and successful in growing their business. The 130 Heavy Shredder is a great example of how we continue to serve as a leader in the automobile recycling industry," Tom says.

"Today, many steel mills are looking to gain better control of their raw materials," he adds. "As a result, a large portion of our business has evolved from supporting independent shredder operations to now working directly with steel mills and high-volume scrap processors both domestically and internationally."

World’s Strongest 2 premiered May 23 on The History Channel.

Emerald Honors

The Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio (SWACO) has honored the Columbus, Ohio, Coca-Cola syrup plant as well as the Anheuser-Busch Columbus Brewery and Rockwell Automation with its 2007 Central Ohio Emerald awards.

The Emerald awards honor green leadership in Central Ohio.

"There is an excitement in how these leaders have grasped the idea of going green," SWACO Executive Director Mike Long says. "They understand the importance of a sustainable world and they understand that growing our community and protecting the environment do not have to be at odds."

Business Partnership Emerald winner Anheuser-Busch has found a way to recycle 66,000 miles of plastic label wrapping. In partnership with Faith Group Inc. and the Packaging Corp. of America, Busch has found a way to recycle what was once thought of as waste. Making the story greener, Busch has managed to turn the venture into a money maker with a positive cash flow of $50,000.

Rockwell Automation in Westerville, Ohio, is a Business Leadership Emerald winner, with a 12 percent increase in waste reduction in 2006. Recycling everything from wooden pallets to foam packaging, Rockwell has realized an impressive overall diversion rate of 85 percent. In another example of "going green growing green," the Rockwell Automation facility in Westerville saw business revenue increase by 22 percent.

Also receiving an Emerald award for Business Leadership is the Columbus, Ohio, Coca-Cola Syrup plant. In 2006, the local Coke operation recycled 731,000 pounds of cardboard, 76,000 pounds of wood, 12,000 pounds of plastic wrap and more for a 58 percent drop in what was sent to the landfill.

The Central Ohio Emeralds are sponsored by SWACO, which provides consumers recycling opportunities throughout Ohio’s Franklin County through more than 60 recycling drop off-locations, at major sporting and entertainment venues, in Columbus Public Schools, Port Columbus International Airport and other locations, in addition to operating the Franklin County Landfill, three transfer stations and other programs.

Mountain Dew Does Aluminum

Mountain Dew has launched a limited-edition series of aluminum bottles it’s dubbed Green Label Art that features designs created by a number of artists, from a professional skateboarder to an apparel designer to a singer.

The Green Label Art series bottles are being released from May through October in select markets. According to Pepsi-Cola, Purchase, N.Y., this marks the first time a carbonated soft drink has been packaged in an aluminum bottle in the United States.

A multi-media micro-Web site at www.greenlabelart.com features the artists’ portfolios as well as related material. Green Label Art is also asking consumers to design bottles, providing all of the tools needed through an interactive platform on the Web site. Visitors to the site can vote for their favorite consumer-designed bottles. The winning artist will receive $10,000 and be part of the next wave of Green Label Art designs.

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On The Waterfront

July 2007
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