The BM-25 diaphragm switch is a rugged pressure switch for high- and low-level alerts in bins containing nonhazardous, free-flowing dry materials.

BinMaster, an equipment manufacturer based in Lincoln, Nebraska, recently unveiled a sensor to make checking bin levels easier for nonhazardous, free-flowing dry materials.   

The company says the BM-25 bin level indicator provides a new way to manage materials in bins or silos. It alerts operators to high or low levels or when chutes or conveyors are clogged. It is designed to be a convenient way to stop overflowing products or wasting valuable material in the bottom of a bin. BinMaster says the switch eliminates the guesswork of bin management.  

Ideal for bins and silos, the BM-25's mechanism activates a sensitive micro switch to indicate when the material reaches the level of the switch in the bin. The pressure switch alerts when it senses high or low levels.   

Typically, it is wired to a light, horn or alarm panel. The switch has a silicone diaphragm and is enclosed in nylon housing, designed to increase durability. There are models to mount internally or externally. Its corrosion-free polymer construction is perfect for ag cooperatives or any business storing dry bulk solids. It provides management help by monitoring levels of materials like corn, soy, wheat, milo, wood, plastic, crops, rice, powders, landscaping materials and aggressive chemicals like fertilizer pellets.   

Farmers and ag workers are now safer, by eliminating repeated climbing to measure material, says BinMaster. "The BM-25 Diaphragm switch takes the guesswork out of material management and is a better way to use manpower," the company adds. 

Transactions tracked by RMDAS show 23 percent drop in prime grades in just 30 days.

Steel mills in the United States paid some 23 percent less for prime grades of ferrous scrap in July compared with June, according to transactions tracked by the Raw Material Data Aggregation Service (RMDAS) of Pittsburgh-based MSA Inc.

Purchases made from June 20 to July 19 show steel mills paying an average of $500 per ton to procure prime grades. That represents a 23 percent drop from the $650 per ton average recorded from May 20 to June 19.

Prices for obsolete grades tracked by RMDAS —No. 2 shredded and No. 1 heavy melting steel (HMS) scrap—fell by just $34 and $40 tons respectively. Those July price drops represent a 7.1 percent decline in shred’s value and a 10.1 percent drop for No. 1 HMS.

The previous drops in ferrous pricing in June caused some speculation the market may have hit its bottom. Unfortunately for sellers of ferrous scrap, later bids from overseas buyers and unenthusiastic domestic buying in early July proved the floor had not yet been reached.

After lower June pricing trends were made clear by RMDAS tracking and Davis Index surveys, one ferrous trader told Recycling Today a one-two punch of rising fuel costs and less money received at the scale “is causing some peddlers to just give up and stay at home.”

Although demolition projects continue to bring plate and structural and HMS grades into yards, a downward trend in ferrous prices is almost always followed by a downturn in demolition activity as property owners and contractors hold off while waiting for a price rebound.

A scrap processor in the Great Lakes region refers to the recent market as “stressful” and fears the downward momentum for prime grades may not have ended. “I think primes still have another $100 to go,” he says

As the trader indicated, the processor also sees a shift in the supply landscape that could eventually contribute to a price rebound. “Flows are definitely down,” he says. “I’d say there has been a 20 to 30 percent reduction.”

On the demand side, Washington-based American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) says in the week ending July 16, 2022, steel production in the United States was down 0.6 percent from the previous week and had dropped 6.7 percent compared with the same week in 2021.

Year-to-date steel production in the U.S. through July 16, 2022, stands at 49.35 million tons, which is down 2.5 percent from the 50.62 million tons made during the same period last year.

The export market remains unsteady, with East Coast scrap shippers likely having noticed that steel output in Turkey has dropped by 2.8 percent year on year. West Coast shippers, meanwhile, have likely felt South Korea’s 3.4 percent decline in year-to-date output.

DeWalt recently introduced the PowerStack Max battery, which is designed to offer 50 percent more power and twice the life span.

Last year, DeWalt, a job site equipment manufacturer based in Towson, Maryland, launched the DeWalt PowerStack 20V Max compact battery. The company, owned by Stanley Black and Decker, says the battery will increase efficiency, performance and productivity on construction and demolition job sites.

“Power tools typically use cylindrical batteries that were not designed for high power applications,” says Sean Fitzgibbons, director of product development for Black and Decker. “With PowerStack, DeWalt was able to essentially develop a specification that new technology created for the uniquely high-power demands of power tool applications.”

Fitzgibbons says that although cylindrical batteries were not made for high-power applications, the economies of scale that were made possible by their use in electric vehicles made them affordable for other applications. However, when a higher current is run through those types of cells, they tend to heat up. Once they reach a certain temperature, they must shut down the battery. Another example of the cylindrical battery’s shortcomings is if more power is drawn through the device than those cells can provide, they shut down.

The PowerStack is a compact battery that uses pouch cell batteries, which are small rectangular batteries that have been stacked on each other.  The main difference between the pouch cell batteries and cylindrical batteries typically used in other power sources is that they have large surface area connective tabs that are built into the cell. Those tabs are then laser welded together with the neighboring power cell, which creates a reliable, electrically efficient connection that delivers more power.

Compared to batteries from cylindrical cell batteries, the company says the PowerStack has 50 percent more power and has twice the life span. It is also 15 percent lighter and 25 percent more compact than other batteries. Due to the design of the batteries, they also run 30 percent cooler, which means less downtime.

“One of the things … that we try to do at DeWalt with product development is helping our end users become more productive and there are multiple ways to do that,” Fitzgibbons says. “This battery has a longer lifecycle, increased power and is lighter weight. This increases how quickly jobs can get done, reduces fatigue from holding power tools all day and generally means a better return on investment for the contractor.”

The company says the battery includes several features to optimize functionality. This includes a battery pack with a LED fuel gauge that displays the battery’s state of charge, helping the end user avoid unplanned work stoppages. The batteries are designed with a durable, non-marring rubber over mold that provides impact resistance while helping to protect finished surfaces. 

The battery is ideal for cutting, drilling and fastening applications, precision and finishing tasks and when working in tight spaces. The battery is compatible with all Dewalt tools and chargers in the 20V max system.

While the company recently introduced the battery packs last December, it already has plans for expansion. Fitzgibbons says DeWalt will be introducing high-capacity versions of the PowerStack.

“We are going to be taking that PowerStack fundamental technology and bringing it into the market in a different capacity this year,” Fitzgibbons says. “It will expand the range of what you can do with PowerStack now that we'll have a compact option and high-capacity option.”

U.K.-based maker of crushing equipment names Lee Johns to global sales post.

United Kingdom-based crushing equipment maker Tesab Engineering has announced the appointment of Lee Johns as its sales director. Johns has spent more than a decade in the heavy equipment industry, most recently as general manager of U.K.-based JCB Financial Solutions.

The appointment of Johns, who will be based in the U.K., is effective immediately, says Tesab.

“Working previously for a global organization such as JCB allows me to quickly implement the structures and processes needed to move Tesab into a new era of growth,” says Johns. “There are tremendous opportunities in the crushing and screening sectors for new distributors, partners and customers and I can’t wait to get started on what will be an exciting journey.”

At JCB Financial Solutions, Johns dedicated much of his time at developing dealer, distributor and finance partner relationships, says Tesab.

Tesab says Johns “has developed unique insights through roles in sales, commercial and financial solutions,” and he will bring that experience to Tesab “to accelerate their growth aspirations in the short, medium and long term.”

Johns will lead the sales organization within the Tesab business and will work with the firm’s current distribution network as well as identifying and recruiting potential new dealers in his new role.

“Lee’s experience within the heavy equipment industry will allow him easily integrate into our existing dealer network while creating new relationships and distribution channels to keep pace with rising demand for our equipment worldwide,” says Ben Frettsome, a vice president with Tesab.

He adds, “We look forward to continuing and building on this momentum in a meaningful way to contribute to the business success of our partners and customers.”

Tesab, with manufacturing capacity in Northern Ireland, describes itself as part of the Canada-based McCloskey business unit within the Finland-based Metso Outotec organization.

Metso Outotec announced its acquisition of Tesab Engineering this April. 

Germany-based Vecoplan says modular design and customized components can help recyclers tackle an ever-widening materials stream.

The world’s product and packaging designers are busy introducing new items that eventually will be discarded for recycling. To Germany-based shredding equipment manufacturer Vecoplan AG, that circumstance provides a reason to offer new varieties of shredders.

At the same time, the equipment maker says recycling plant operators can be wary of complications that can add to training or component replacement costs.

Thus, Vecoplan says it has “taken a fresh look” at its shredding machines and standardized the interfaces. Users also now can take advantage of a modular system that will handle a wide range of materials, the company adds.

Manufacturers of shredding equipment have long had to deal with special customer requirements in the recycling sector. That provides a reason, according to Vecoplan, to modify components such as rotors, cutting tips, counter knives and screens to match a given task.

These choices and the relevant combinations are critical to the performance and quality of the shredding process, Vecoplan states. One user may have to process especially tough materials while another might require electric motors that comply with specific standards in its operating region.

The design effort for such diverse solutions can be considerable, and manufacturers must keep an increasing number of different parts in stock in order to be prepared, the company adds.

In response, Vecoplan says it has modified its product architecture and established different system platforms depending on the application and size. It has also classified separate modules according to their specific function.

The interfaces used by operators, though, are standardized and the platforms remain unchanged, says the firm. “Application engineers can put together suitable products according to each customer’s needs, much in the way vehicle manufacturers use a configurator,” states Vecoplan.

A shredder buyer or operator can select appropriate modules for the screen, the rotor and the drive. Each module is available in different variants and can be combined as needed with other assemblies, according to Vecoplan.

Components such as cutting tools, counter knives, screens and rotors have been organized in a grid with uniform module sizes. The Vecoplan grid allows shredders to vary in width by small increments from 800 millimeters to more than 3,200 millimeters (31 inches to 10.5 feet).

Vecoplan debuted its modular system on its VIZ shredder line at a trade fair in Germany in 2019. It says it is extending the principle to its entire range of shredding machines and plans to present several platforms in the months ahead. The company also is planning additions at the module level to make its shredders more versatile for buyers to be “perfectly matched to their needs.”

“A wide range of tool sizes and types can be mapped within this grid without the need to change the designs of adjoining components,” says Vecoplan, which also is applying a similar grid idea to other components such as drives.

Thanks to this grid principle, Vecoplan can design custom solutions within the spectrum while at the same time maintaining a manageable degree of complexity, the company says. “There is no need to start from scratch with the design, and no time-consuming special solution is necessary."

When a user decides to purchase a new machine adapted to its requirements, Vecoplan can tailor a shredder faster and manufacture it immediately, claims the company. As the grid concept takes hold, customers also benefit from even faster parts availability thanks to streamlined warehousing, adds Vecoplan.

Retrofitting remains an option for “the various modules,” according to Vecoplan, allowing the machine’s functionality to be adapted to changing requirements.