EMR adds electric material handler to its Becker, Minnesota, operations

EMR’s Becker, Minnesota, auto shredding facility has invested in a 895e electric material handler from Sennebogen LLC, Stanley North Carolina, which it commissioned in November 2023. The electric material handler is a recent addition to the site, located in a U.S. state famous for its waterways, rural economy and the diversity of its natural landscapes, that EMR Site Manager Jake Hansen and his team have developed to run on 100 percent renewable energy, producing zero emissions to air and water.    

“By continually and objectively evaluating how we work, we find ways to reduce our environmental impact,” Hansen says. “It’s about looking at our business through the lens of sustainability. If we want to make really substantial improvements to our facility’s sustainability, technology can play an important role.”   

He adds that the company has estimated it is saving more than 250 gallons of diesel monthly with the electric crane.

The entire facility has been fully enclosed, further reducing the chance that pollutants can run off of material into the soil in the rain, contaminating the water table, EMR says. Being fully enclosed also means the site can operate at negative air pressure, treating the polluted air and stopping it from leaving.  

“For people driving past, it may be hard to image that there is such a complex and powerful network of cutting-edge machinery operating inside the warehouse building,” Hansen says. “And for our team—most of whom live within a few miles of the site—it is, obviously, important that their employer is doing all it can to protect their community and the area’s natural beauty.”  

EMR, which is headquartered in the U.K., has invested $2.5 million in a new rail line at the site to ensure the recycled metals produced there can be transported sustainably throughout the continental United States.   

“We are continuously exploring ways to reduce our carbon footprint and investing in new technologies that allow us to accomplish our sustainability goals,” Hansen adds.