• Feature story on MetalPrices.com: 'On the East Coast and Beyond, Adam Weitsman shakes up the scrap market'

    Feature story on MetalPrices.com: 'On the East Coast and Beyond, Adam Weitsman shakes up the scrap market'


  • AMM interview with scrap 'maverick' Adam Weitsman Reproduced with permission from American Metal Market (amm.com)

    AMM interview with scrap 'maverick' Adam Weitsman Reproduced with permission from American Metal Market (amm.com)


  • Building a company is kind of like putting together a pro base ball team. I have been trying to entice the best people in the scrap industry across the country to come here and try out and play, and even though they are mostly all very talented, most just don't fit in on the roster when they get here within the team I have assembled. Think I will change course 180 degrees and instead of trying to hire the "superstars" that might be set in their ways and not be hungry and passionate, I think ill start bringing guys up from the minors and start training and teaching and giving them a shot to make it big. Excited to see the potential of people striving to make the majors!

    Building a company is kind of like putting together a pro base ball team. I have been trying to entice the best people in the scrap industry across the country to come here and try out and play, and even though they are mostly all very talented, most just don't fit in on theread more


  • Tired of scrap yards being eyesores to the communities They operate in. My job is to make them an asset, not a detriment to the neighbors surrounding our plants. I have started bulldozing every yard I'm buying and totally redoing them. Just finished Owego NY feeder yard and Binghamton just about done. I'm going to change the whole image people and government have of our industry. My names on it so I have to put extra pride in it. No more mud, no more dust, no more ugly piles. Better for environment, better for customers, better for the community and better bottom line. Win win for everyone ...

    Tired of scrap yards being eyesores to the communities They operate in. My job is to make them an asset, not a detriment to the neighbors surrounding our plants. I have started bulldozing every yard I'm buying and totally redoing them. Just finished Owego NY feeder yard andread more


  • Business first, shareholders last: Coslov PITTSBURGH - Publicly held metals recyclers must focus on their business first and foremost and not on pleasing shareholders, I. Michael Coslov... Reproduced with permission from American Metal Market (amm.com)

    Business first, shareholders last: Coslov PITTSBURGH - Publicly held metals recyclers must focus on their business first and foremost and not on pleasing shareholders, I. Michael Coslov... Reproduced with permission from American Metal Market (amm.com)


  • Pushing extra hard for 2013. More focused and committed than ever! OWEGO -Upstate Shredding, LLC., the largest, privately owned scrap dealer on the East Coast, is projecting it will continue its fast-growing ways this year with...

    Pushing extra hard for 2013. More focused and committed than ever! OWEGO -Upstate Shredding, LLC., the largest, privately owned scrap dealer on the East Coast, is projecting it will continue its fast-growing ways this year with...


  • Upstate's megashredder vs the Eiffel Tower.

    Upstate's megashredder vs the Eiffel Tower.

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  • Upstate Shredding signs lease for NY port facility. Reproduced with permission from American Metal Market (amm.com)

    Upstate Shredding signs lease for NY port facility. Reproduced with permission from American Metal Market (amm.com)


  • Your Town: Local officials welcome new scrap recycler.

    Your Town: Local officials welcome new scrap recycler.

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  • Albany port, metal recycler sign deal for $15 million shipping center. Owego-based Upstate Shredding LLC-Ben Weitsman & Son Inc. will lease 18 acres for $22500 a month, or $270000 annually, plus pay an estimated $70000 a year ...

    Albany port, metal recycler sign deal for $15 million shipping center. Owego-based Upstate Shredding LLC-Ben Weitsman & Son Inc. will lease 18 acres for $22500 a month, or $270000 annually, plus pay an estimated $70000 a year ...

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  • Metal recycler to build $15M Port of Albany shipping center:

    Metal recycler to build $15M Port of Albany shipping center:


  • Going global Weitsman expanding scrap metal empire with $20M facility, recent company acquisitions OWEGO - When the market cannot come to you, you go to the market. A burgeoning scrap metal export market is prompting Adam Weitsman to build a $20 million facility at the Port of Albany that will help his company find new markets for recycled steel, iron and other metals. With nine scrap metal facilities in New York and Pennsylvania - most purchased in the past few years - and access to waterways, Upstate Shredding LLC, and company president Weitsman, are poised to sell scrap metal to steel mills and other customers around the world.

    Upstate Shredding's facilities are on schedule to process one million tons of ferrous materials - steel and iron - and 200 million pounds of non-ferrous - all other metals - by 2014, Weitsman says. "Its a great time in this business," said Bill Johnson, director of political and public affairs for the Washington-based Institute for Scrap Recycling Industries Inc. "There's a lot of historical scrap out there." Because commodity prices are high, people are more likely to bring scrap to a recycling yard because they are paid near record-high prices for the material that, in the past, might have been left lying around. Customers bring all types of objects to Weitsman's 11 facilities, including automobiles, steel, batteries, copper, aluminum, brass, wire and other items. Some items - like automobiles — need to be put through the company's Owego shredder before being sent to a steel mill, while other things can be shipped from any of the facilities after being processed, Weitsman said. "We make more scrap than we can possibly consume domestically," said Johnson. As a result, scrap metal dealers nationwide are trying to find foreign markets to take the surplus material. Scrap metal is a $100 billion business annually, with 40 percent of the material going overseas. Turkey, India and China are the world's largest scrap metal customers. When his Port of Albany facility is operating, Weitsman will contract with shippers to move his products to domestic and international customers. "You need a lot of scrap to make the port a viable venture," Weitsman said. "This is my dream project and the company is really coming into its own." It's been a business dream for 10 years, he said, but he needed to bide his time while he purchased enough facilities to collect the amount of scrap he needed. With facilities in Binghamton, Owego, Syracuse, Jamestown, Rochester, Buffalo, Liberty, Ithaca and Scranton, Pa., Weitsman said he now produces more than 10 times the amount of scrap he used to, giving him the ability to make the new port facility a wise investment. Each ship can haul 30,000 tons of scrap. "Our goal is to do $1 billion per year in sales and this port will help us to reach that level," Weitsman said. Upstate Shredding is in the midst of a turnaround over the past five years, Weitsman said. With about 30 employees and massive debt, an improved outlook in metal recycling led to improved conditions for the business. Weitsman divested himself of investments in other businesses to focus on recycling and paying off debt. The company went from 30 employees and two facilities, to 300 employees and 11 scrap metal locations. The new port facility will mean another 100 jobs, 60 to work at the port and 40 truck drivers, Weitsman said. "We're growing the company with very little debt," he said, noting many purchases are largely made with available cash reserves. Upstate Shredding is currently ranked 18th in tons of material processed among scrap metal companies, both public and private, in North America, according to Recylcing Today. "We have the potential to be one of the largest scrap companies in North America," he said. "I'd like to see us in the top 10 and the port will allow us to do that."

    Going global Weitsman expanding scrap metal empire with $20M facility, recent company acquisitions OWEGO - When the market cannot come to you, you go to the market. A burgeoning scrap metal export market is prompting Adam Weitsman to build a $20 million facility at the Port ofread more


  • American Metal Market feature story! Scrap firms set to battle for Albany port. Please click on the photo to read the full article! Reproduced with permission from American Metal Market (amm.com)

    American Metal Market feature story! Scrap firms set to battle for Albany port. Please click on the photo to read the full article! Reproduced with permission from American Metal Market (amm.com)


  • Upstate Shredding acquires Ferromet site. Reproduced with permission from American Metal Market (amm.com)

    Upstate Shredding acquires Ferromet site. Reproduced with permission from American Metal Market (amm.com)


  • We are trying to expand the company every single day!

    We are trying to expand the company every single day!

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  • Exciting news!!! We just purchased at a bankruptcy auction today the old Ferrotech scrap yard in New Castle, PA on the Ohio border right directly adjacent to Elwood Quality Steel!!! We've done a lot of other locations but I'm most excited about this one!!! Ben Weitsman of New Castle will be opening in approximately 6 months, can't wait!!!

    Exciting news!!! We just purchased at a bankruptcy auction today the old Ferrotech scrap yard in New Castle, PA on the Ohio border right directly adjacent to Elwood Quality Steel!!! We've done a lot of other locations but I'm most excited about this one!!! Ben Weitsman of Newread more


  • Was at the Scrap Institute Meeting last night in Weehawken New Jersey. Kim asked me to go get her a drink at the bar and when I got thru the crowd I realized I was stuck right dab in the middle of 40 Big Older mean looking Sims, EMR and Metalico guys right on their own turf ! (Those are my competitors who hate me more than life itself). I felt like that guy Owen Wilson in that Horrible movie "Behind enemy lines". I made it out safe, Kim got her tasty drink and I have lived to fight them all another day ..........

    Was at the Scrap Institute Meeting last night in Weehawken New Jersey. Kim asked me to go get her a drink at the bar and when I got thru the crowd I realized I was stuck right dab in the middle of 40 Big Older mean looking Sims, EMR and Metalico guys right on their own turf !read more


  • So tomorrow I finally start building my Export port in Albany New York after 14 long years of working on it. Very nervous as this is my largest project to date and now that the time is here I'm kinda freaking out lol. I realized last night that I have no Clue how to load a ship or barge with scrap and have never even seen one being done in person. Last night to practice up, Clover my 3 year old daughter and myself got out her new Pirate ship toy and started loading it up with M and M's, pennies, and dried banana chips. After an hour practice, I Never realized how easy this export gig would be. I'm not nervous a bit anymore ! Sims, Schnitzer and EMR (our competition) here we come !!!!!!!!!!

    So tomorrow I finally start building my Export port in Albany New York after 14 long years of working on it. Very nervous as this is my largest project to date and now that the time is here I'm kinda freaking out lol. I realized last night that I have no Clue how to load a shipread more


  • Feature story in American Metal Market today, 'Upstate Shredding signs lease for NY port facility' Please click on the photo if you would like to read it! Reproduced with permission from American Metal Market (amm.com)

    Feature story in American Metal Market today, 'Upstate Shredding signs lease for NY port facility' Please click on the photo if you would like to read it! Reproduced with permission from American Metal Market (amm.com)


  • With our 3 biggest competitors, Sims, Metalico, and Schnitzer reporting the worst news ever in regards to their earnings and announced mass layoffs, I, in turn, am so proud of my 300 plus employees at the same time for posting the best quarter in our company history ending Sept. I love that we are kicking ass even though I have never worked this hard in my whole life. I appreciate everyone that works here so much even though I'm kinda grumpy all the time. We have taken a company in a town of 4000 people, gone head to head with the biggest companies in the world and kicked them in their head really really hard. Kim and I have decided this year to again leave 100 percent of the profits in the business to strengthen up our walls and buy new ammo to pound these guys even more. Yes, I want to make a good living, but more important I really get off competing against these guys who underestimated us, and now are realizing that that they can not beat my teams passion to win. You can teach people about scrap but can't teach people to have passion. My guys have it, its showing, and I could not be more proud. In 2013 my crew and I will travel and battle these guys on their home turf. I get off just thinking about it ...............

    With our 3 biggest competitors, Sims, Metalico, and Schnitzer reporting the worst news ever in regards to their earnings and announced mass layoffs, I, in turn, am so proud of my 300 plus employees at the same time for posting the best quarter in our company history ending Sept.read more


  • A prestigious New York City investment bank talks about our company for the first time in their latest investment report...I'm very excited!!!

    A prestigious New York City investment bank talks about our company for the first time in their latest investment report...I'm very excited!!!


  • Great News!!! We've raised prices $37.00 / gross ton on all grades of scrap metal!!! We are coming out swinging heading into November!!!

    Great News!!! We've raised prices $37.00 / gross ton on all grades of scrap metal!!! We are coming out swinging heading into November!!!

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  • Albany port scrap terminal could employ 60 people:

    Albany port scrap terminal could employ 60 people:


  • Upstate Shredding - Ben Weitsman hires additional industry veterans Reproduced with permission from American Metal Market (amm.com)

    Upstate Shredding - Ben Weitsman hires additional industry veterans Reproduced with permission from American Metal Market (amm.com)