The technological renewal of the austrian company Josef Schuster GmbH

Located in Asten near Linz, this family-run company has been operating in the collection and processing of ferrous scrap for over 30 years.Martin Schuster, who took over the management in 2016, leads the business with a strong spirit of productive and economic renewal. With this in mind, it has increased the quality of the internal treatment cycle by installing two solutions supplied by Panizzolo Recycling Systems.

When Schuster Metall-Recycling GmbH was born and how it has evolved to this day?

The company was founded by my parents in 1985, focusing mainly on the collection and trade of scrap metal. In 2016, with my entry into the company management, we diversified and increased the type of metal collected, allowing us to grow our business, quadrupling the work space and taking it from the initial 4,000 m2 to today’s 16,000 m2. Over the years we have expanded our range of action to include other waste such as paper, waste and wood, however we still consider ourselves a company strongly focused on the collection and treatment of metal and ferrous scrap.

 

Tell us how you work and how you position yourself on the Austrian market

We currently consider ourselves a medium-sized company with 25 employees, including clerks, workers and drivers. We cover all stages of the process, from the purchase of scrap to the sale of the finished product. The areas in which we work most are located in the regions of Ober-österreich, Nieder-österreich and Salzburg where we receive scrap from both traders and companies that produce their own production waste.

Once stored and sorted, the scrap is sent in one of the two Panizzolo treatment cycles. The mixed metal is sent to the special plant with Mega 1100 for the recovery of iron, copper, brass and aluminum. Unlike the aluminum cans, they are ground by the Flex 500 Mobile hammer mill plant.

Overall, the load of material circulating in our company is about 40,000 tons per year. The two Panizzolo plants – Flex 500 Mobile and Mega 1100 – allow us to work simultaneously on the two main types of scrap. The Flex 500 is used for aluminum cans and allows us to process approximately 2.8 tons / hour with a total input load of approximately 10,000 tons per year. The Mega 1100 is used in the processing of mixed metal scrap, with a production capacity of about 20 tons / hour.

The outgoing metals are sold in Austria, Germany and Italy.

Why did you buy Panizzolo hammer mills?

I wanted to introduce new technologies into the company that would allow me to work mixed metal, a type of scrap that is increasingly found in Austria and throughout Europe in general. I therefore came across the Panizzolo recycling plants, finding the treatment cycle and operation of the hammer mills very interesting. I also probed other companies, however in the end I realized that the technologies offered by Panizzolo were the solution that best suited my production and quality needs.

Karim Bekkous, my sales representative in Panizzolo, was able to follow me with professionalism and competence. The meetings were limited due to the health emergency, however any doubts or questions I asked always followed a prompt and comprehensive answer. Likewise, during the assembly and training phase, I was pleasantly impressed by the seriousness and professionalism of the Panizzolo technicians.

I had the opportunity to see the Panizzolo plants in action during my visit in a German Company , touching the quality of the machinery and comparing myself with the experiences of the end users. However, what most convinced me at the time of purchase is that, compared to other models on the market, the Mega 1100 and Flex 500 Mobile hammer mills are able to balance other production performance with low energy costs. Quality that, added to the compact dimensions of both machines, are indispensable for my business objectives.

Focusing on the treatment of post-consumer cans and mixed metals, I preferred to insert two distinct treatment lines. In this way I can work on two fronts simultaneously, keep the outputs separate and maximize the value of the metals at the time of sale. However, the interchangeable cradle system remains a decisive aspect as it allows me to optimize the hours dedicated to maintenance.

How COVID has affected your production?

Even during the health emergency we never stopped working, thanks to both the availability of the type of scrap and the reserves of material in our possession. Both plants were bought in 2020, in the midst of the COVID pandemic. However, unlike other companies, we did not let the situation intimidate us but we thought about the business opportunities that would be created in the near future.

 

What do you think about the change of prices?

During the month of December last year, prices began to rise exponentially, in fact, to date the materials are very expensive. At the moment this is not a problem but, if prices were to fall in the coming months, there would obviously be a large amount of money lost for scrap and recyclers traders.

 

What are your thoughts for the future?

We are expecting that in the coming months we will be able to produce up to 25 tons / h of treated mixed metal with the Mega 1100. Considering the fact that it is easy to find these scrap both in Austria and throughout Europe, we are currently focused on maximizing productive and profitable performance. However, we constantly monitor market trends and, also thanks to the interchangeable cradle in the Panizzolo mills, we are ready to change the direction of treatment if needed.

The aspect that remains fundamental is that here in Austria, as in other European countries, our sector is increasingly moving towards the use of those technologies that allow a higher quality treatment of metal scrap.