Road Rules

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) will begin enforcing safety regulations for transporting crushed cars. The impact this will have on scrap recyclers who ship or receive the material is uncertain.

No one contests that transporting material on the nation’s roads should be done safely. However, some recyclers, along with other groups, are wondering if the safety regulations will help solve potential problems.

The regulation, issued by the Department of Transportation, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FCMA), was introduced Sept. 27, 2002. The regulation is titled "Development of a North American Standard for Protection Against Shifting and Falling Cargo. It was developed in concert with Canadian administrators. The plan’s goal is to develop a cohesive, consistent method of shipping various materials on flat-bed trailers.

In particular, a portion of the regulation concerns recyclers who rely on crushed automobiles as raw material for their yards.

The need to develop a best practices concept brought transportation officials from the U.S. and Canada together out of a concern that some loads were unstable.

While the intentions were noble, the result is less certain. Mike Mattia, director of risk management for the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries Inc. (ISRI), Washington, says the group’s goal was to develop a harmonized way to secure cargo.

According to the Federal Register report on policy hearings, ISRI expressed caution about the new policy. In written comment, ISRI notes that recycling "companies that process and load flattened and crushed cars for transport to recycling facilities must follow stringent practices to prevent loose material from falling from these loads . There are several different ways by which junked cars are flattened or crushed. Each practice includes processing controls and numerous inspections of the car to detect and remove loose material that could fall from the load during transport."

The plan to harmonize the transportation method is, in theory, a wise idea. With representatives from the U.S. and Canada weighing in, the notion of consistency in transportation was considered important. "They were writing from scratch," Mattia says. There wasn’t any type of policy or standard ahead of time to base the new policy on, making it a tough issue to address.

In conclusion, ISRI states that these crushed and flattened vehicles could easily be inspected by law enforcement officials.

In support of its stance, the FMCA notes that while acknowledging ISRI’s procedures would greatly reduce the likelihood of loose material falling off the vehicle, none of the evidence provided by opponents was convincing enough for the FMCA to change its stance.

"We believe that having loose parts is inevitable given that the process of compressing the car will undoubtedly do more damage to the car than the events that resulted in the car being turned over for recycling," the FMCA report reads.

The final register also notes that visual inspections would not be sufficient for making a determination whether portions of the load would vibrate or shake loose while traveling on public roads.

"Very few types of transport vehicles are suited for the safe and profitable loading, transporting and unloading of these (crushed) motor vehicles," the ARA writes. "Flat bed trailers are a preferred vehicle for the transporting of these motor vehicles. This is especially true when there is a significant distance between the origin point and the location of the shredding operation. Operators of flatbeds will transport a load of crushed motor vehicles because of the general availability of a flatbed compatible backhaul load following the delivery of the motor vehicles. Three-sided trailers are used, in some instances, mainly for local hauling of crushed motor vehicles.

"No one is arguing that maintaining the safety of the roads shouldn’t be adapted. However, the implementation of this securement procedure is adding a significant cost factor to many companies."

The ARA also notes that because of the relative low value of shipping crushed automobiles, backhaul load following the delivery must remain viable.

The ARA also states that the industry believes it has addressed the issue of shifting and falling loads.

Despite ISRI and the ARA weighing in on the issue, the final notice did not appear to be changed in response to their comments and, in fact, may have imposed a somewhat more restrictive approach.

The company, while noting it operates a number of auto shredding facilities that take in a significant amount of crushed autos, adds that "like others in our industry, we are committed to conducting our business in a safe, efficient and environmentally sound manner in all respects. We are aware of the fact that a trade association of which we are a member, ISRI, along with the Steel Manufacturers Association, has commented on the proposed rules and prepared a presentation which purports to demonstrate that the proposed containment barriers are not needed to prevent the shifting and falling of cargo as it relates to flattened cars.

"Those comments are directed at attempting to mitigate the proposed standards requiring either four- or three-sided trailers for transport of flattened cars with other containment requirements. ISRI and SMA have taken the position that these cars can be safely transported on a flatbed without walls.

"We strongly disagree. Hugo Neu Corp. began using three-sided trailers over 10 years ago and we have had a consistent corporate policy of moving toward that type of transportation for all our flattened automobiles. That does not mean that our suppliers or competitors apply the same standards. Opposing uniform, consistent containment standards is very shortsighted and not in the public interest. Requiring trailers with sides is clearly a safer means of transportation. ISRI and the SMA have taken the position that imposing these rules could jeopardize the recycling efforts and the movement of automobiles to shredders. We disagree with that position as well," the company’s statement reads.

Bob Kaplan, with H. A. Kaplan’s Metals Reduction Co. Inc., a St. Paul, Minn., auto salvage and wrecking yard, says the company has ordered some new trailers to ensure the company complies with the new standards. However, often the systems may cost tens of thousands of dollars, a sizable amount of money for something that offers no direct price improvement.

"It’s tough to justify the cost," Kaplan says. Despite this, he adds that there is a need to ensure that material that is hauled to scrap yards does not fall off a flat bed truck.

To this end, Kaplan says that the company has purchased a trailer from Benlee Inc., Romulus, Mich., that will give the small company the ability to legally shuttle crushed vehicles to their destination.

While the cost to his company for one trailer is significant, Kaplan wonders about some companies faced with the dilemma of upgrading or replacing several dozen trailers. While some companies are opting to retrofit their trailers, other companies are contemplating purchasing either new trailers or equipment that will prevent them from being fined for transporting material without adequate protection.

SOLUTIONS. Steve Doughty, sales manager for Benlee, which makes trucks and truck trailers, notes that his company is seeing an increase in the number of inquiries from companies looking for a method to ship crushed automobiles.

Doughty says Benlee’s trailers can be built from 45 feet to 53 feet. Additionally, adding that the truck trailers comply with federal weight requirements. With the specially designed trailers a company only would need two straps to ensure the cargo remains in place.

Another company that has begun marketing its products to this segment is InterNet Inc., a Minneapolis, Minn., manufacturer of netting. Tom Brandt, marketing manager for the company, says InterNet has a mesh netting that can be used as an inexpensive way for haulers of crushed automobiles to ensure that debris will not be scattered on the road. Brandt says that the plastic mesh had earlier been used for scrap dealers looking to ship ferrous scrap on gondola cars.

Now, with the deadline approaching, the company has begun gearing the product to the crushed car side of the business. The biggest advantage of the crushed car netting is the relative inexpensive cost of the netting. The cost of the netting can be as little as $.01 per square foot, making the overall cost to one shipment of crushed cars less than $10.

The product, Brandt says, is disposable, and the biggest problem is finding space to store the netting. However, the significant savings with the netting would make it worth the effort.

Additionally, no significant extra time is required to secure the crushed cars. Finally, any tears in the netting will not result in the unraveling of the full net.

Accu-Tek Inc., Shrewsbury, Mass., displayed a product at the 2003 ISRI Annual Convention in Orlando that is designed to meet the new rules. The company’s trailers feature a swinging-gate fourth side that is locked into place once cargo has been loaded.

While a number of companies are weighing whether to purchase new equipment to make sure they will be within the enforcement standards next year, other companies have been retrofitting their existing equipment.

Benlee’s Doughty notes that securing the load is an important subject. "Obviously, the load must be secure to protect the public from crushed cars falling on the roadway, the containment part of the law deals with parts of cars falling off. The liability is the carrier’s responsibility in transporting these crushed cars." While the new standards will not be enforced until Jan. 1, 2004, Doughty says the company has been getting a tremendous number of inquiries from companies looking for alternative means to ship crushed automobiles.

Tony Faust, vice president of Viking Auto Salvage, a Minnesota-based auto dismantling yard, says that his company moves a significant amount of material from its yard to auto shredding operations in the area, including North Star Steel.

He notes that Viking routinely ships around 6,000 automobile hulks from its site to North Star every month. He echoes the argument that ISRI and the ARA stated in their opposition to the securement policy. While securement is inherently a good idea, parts rarely fall of crushed automobiles.

Be that as it may, he worries that the new rules may be reduce the number of vehicles that can be put on a flat bed trailer. While typically a company could put 14 vehicles on a truck for shipment, under the enforced policy, some haulers could end up shipping one or two fewer. This decline would increase the per-ton cost to ship the material.

While a modest decline, the reality is that the profit margin in shuttling crushed automobiles to a shredder is very thin, and any reduction in the amount of material could further erode it.

With even slimmer margins, Faust says that some companies could opt out of hauling crushed automobiles, concluding that the added cost would be difficult to justify.