NEW YORK — David J. Joseph Co. (DJJ) has halted a shredder at one of its facilities in Kentucky.
The shredder, which forms part of the Henderson, Ky., operations of DJJ-owned River Metals Recycling LLC (RMR), was idled earlier this week.
A spokeswoman for DJJ, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker Nucor Corp., confirmed the development, saying that RMR idled its shredding department Monday "in response to current market conditions."
The company did not specify how many jobs were affected by the move, but industry estimates peg the number at around 10.
"Although there is a change in the work force in Henderson, the employees are being given the opportunity to transfer to other recycling operations within the David J. Joseph family of companies across the U.S.," the spokeswoman told AMM.
RMR installed the world’s first Gamma-Tech online bulk shredded scrap analyzer at its Newport, Ky., yard in 2002, and later installed online bulk analyzers at other RMR yards, including its Henderson facility.
Developed by a former DJJ employee, the Gamma-Tech machine analyzes shredded scrap for contaminants as it moves along a conveyor. DJJ has said previously that the technology can accurately determine the chemistry of scrap grades and reduce variability in designing blends and scrap charges.
The decision to idle a shredder follows moves by other large scrap companies to restructure and consolidate businesses as the industry battles a challenging economy.
Earlier this week, Sims Metal Management Ltd. sold two Arizona recycling facilities to its 50-50 joint venture, SA Recycling LLC (amm.com, Dec. 3); last month, OmniSource Corp. laid off between 40 and 50 workers at its Southeast division (amm.com, Nov. 20) and PSC Metals Inc. laid off more than 100 workers (amm.com, Nov. 9); and in late August, Schnitzer Steel Industries Inc. said it would cut 300 jobs, or about 7 percent of its total work force (amm.com, Aug. 28).