Delivering in DeLand

Since taking over operations of Central Florida Recycling, based in DeLand, Florida, about 20 years ago, Danny Gennaro has sought to improve the scrap yard’s efficiency while also making it more environmentally friendly.

Open seven days per week, the 7-acre scrap yard accepts a range of materials including tin, steel, stainless steel, aluminum sheet and extrusions and batteries. It also processes approximately 30 and 40 end-of-life vehicles per week.

Central Florida Recycling also has been Green Yard-certified for a decade, having completed the Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s best management practices. Green Yard is an industry-friendly program designed to encourage facilities to go above and beyond environmental compliance through the use of best management practices and pollution prevention strategies.

Gennaro, Central Florida Recycling’s owner and CEO, upgraded operations with the purchase of an Atlas 350 MH material handler from Raleigh, North Carolina-based Linder Industrial Machinery Co. in December 2023 and says it has made a major difference in the months since.

“It’s very good,” he says. “I’ve been referring this machine to people, to other big companies, to tell them how good it is.”

Linder, which has 18 locations across Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina, is part of the dealer network of SMH Group U.S., a Concord, North Carolina-based specialized equipment solutions provider for ports, recycling, scrap metal, demolition, waste and other applications.

Germany-based Atlas GmbH has been manufacturing equipment for more than 100 years. For recycling applications, its material handlers can be equipped with undercarriages configured with four outriggers for stability and high lifting capacity or with two outriggers and dozer blade for yard cleaning.

Handling business

Gennaro says the amount of time between his purchase of the 350 MH and its startup at Central Florida Recycling was about two weeks. Once it was inside the facility, a Linder technician had it up and running in short order.

The new machine joined the yard’s other two material handlers and was strategically sized to be slightly larger than those existing machines.

“It was a quick turnaround,” says Joel Latorre, a material handling specialist at Linder who facilitated the machine’s sale to Central Florida Recycling. “It was pretty much recommended based on the application and what [Central Florida Recycling’s] volume was.”

Gennaro says his facility fills about 15 semitrailers with scrap metal per week in addition to helping customers unload, and the Atlas 350 MH has played a crucial role in that production. It primarily has been used for loading vehicles and heavy materials, such as cast iron spindles from foundries and rotors, Nos. 1 and 2 steel shred, vehicles and more.

“It’s got a good counterweight, and it can pick up everything,” he says.

The breakdown

Atlas’ 350 MH has helped Central Florida Recycling streamline its process with its numerous user-friendly features.

The machine features a maximum reach of nearly 60 feet and an approximate operating weight of 80,000 pounds. It is designed to perform in demanding environments as it efficiently handles tasks such as scrap loading and wood processing. The 350 MH’s standard features include an automatic idling system, engine stop, cold start assistance and an engine monitoring system.

One detail that has impressed Latorre and Gennaro is the machine’s newly designed elevating cabin, which features an advanced climate control system, increased space and visibility, a quieter operating environment and a user-friendly control panel for easier operation.

The 245-horsepower material handler also includes the AWE 5 hydraulic system and high-performance pump to ensure fuel-efficient flow-on-demand control. It is complemented by a sophisticated swing assembly and robust undercarriage for optimal mobility and durability, Linder says.

“The cab has a better view than other machines,” Gennaro says. “When you go up in the air, you can see everything.”

Latorre says that with the 350 MH, Gennaro has everything he wants.

“It’s a workhorse for that size machine; it’s one of the strongest ones,” Latorre says. “[Atlas’ cabins] are very visible, very comfortable, and anyone that can use a [video game system] can operate it. It has that ease of operation.”

The right fit

Gennaro has enjoyed the 350 MH so much so that he is its sole operator.

“I’m so picky with it that I’m driving it myself,” Gennaro says with a laugh. “I haven’t handed it off to my own people yet. It’s like a Cadillac. … I run it, but I haven’t let [other employees] run it yet. I let them run the [older material handlers]. I want to take care of it.”

Central Florida Recycling had never used an Atlas material handler prior to its purchase of the 350 MH late last year, and Gennaro says that purchase wouldn’t have happened without Latorre and Linder’s dedicated approach to customer service.

“It’s been awesome,” Gennaro says of the service he’s received from Linder. “And Joel has been the best. If it wasn’t for him, we wouldn’t have gone through the process of financing and everything. He really made it happen. He was on top of everything and was one of a kind.”

The author is associate editor of Recycling Today and can be reached at cvoloschuk@gie.net.