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What is a metal scrap yard?

  Friday, 10 November 2017

A scrap yard for metal items pays competitive fees for ferrous and non-ferrous scrap metals, as well as scrap vehicles that are no longer roadworthy.  Metal recycling is big business; it’s not only an easy way for people to make a little extra cash by selling used metal for recycling, the recycling process itself is good to the wider environment too.

If you’re unsure of how a scrap yard works, what the process of recycling scrap metal involves and what to do upon arrival at a scrap yard, this article should give you all the information you need to know to use metal scrap yards responsibly.

Who tends to frequent scrap yards?

A typical scrap yard customer will be metal merchants that buy and sell scrap metal, or tradesmen such as electricians, plumbers, builders and other contractors who may work with or come into close contact with metals on a daily basis.  Tradesmen may have scrap metal left over from a project or they may have found unused metals that can be recycled for a better use.  Additionally, some homeowners may venture to scrap yards to recycle metallic appliances, piping and cabling that may crop up following a DIY renovation such as a new kitchen or bathroom.

What happens in a metal scrap yard?

In practice, tradesmen, metal merchants and homeowners will visit a scrap yard to recycle their metal and be paid by the weight of metals they have.  Scrap yards will purchase these metals for recycling and processing into new metal products.  The typical price of each metal is largely dependent on its weight and the market value at the time of sale.

Most scrap yards will categorise their metals into three areas: non-ferrous, ferrous and electronics, which incorporate the following:

Non-ferrous metals

• Aluminium
• Copper
• Brass
• Stainless steel
• Lead
• Cable
• Bronze

Ferrous metals

• Cast iron
• Iron
• Steel

Electronics

• Platinum
• Gold
• Silver

Where are scrap yards often located?

You will tend to discover metal scrap yards in urban and suburban areas, both in close proximity to locations of heavy industry and near sizeable housing estates with easy road access for homeowners.  It’s all geared towards making it as easy and accessible as possible for tradesmen and homeowners to recycle their metals and save energy and minimise CO2 emissions into the wider environment.

As scrap yards recycle road vehicles as well as metals, the size of machinery required to store and process metals for recycling means scrap yards need to be a considerable size.

At ASM Metal Recycling, our main processing facility can be found on Griffin Lane in Aylesbury.  This is a two-acre site featuring two fully computerised 50-tonne weighbridges, a 960-tonne hydraulic shear and five 35-tonne material handling cranes.  It’s also easily accessible by road via the Bicester Road (A41) and is on the fringes of Gatehouse Industrial Estate.

Are scrap yards bound by legislation when they operate?

Put simply, yes.  At ASM Metal Recycling, we’re members of the British Metals Recycling Association as well as the Road Haulage Association.  All of our recycling sites across Buckinghamshire are fully registered and compliant with the Scrap Metal Dealers Act 2013.

In addition, we’re bound by health & safety workplace legislation.  We place the utmost importance on protecting everyone we work with and ensuring our working environment is as safe as possible to carry out our work to the highest standards.

If you want to know more about the workings of a metal scrap yard, please don’t hesitate to arrange a visit of our Aylesbury headquarters by calling 01296 33 77 11 - we’ll be delighted to show you around.

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