WATCH: This scrap metal yard in Dayton is a beehive of activity

Franklin Iron & Metal occupies 55 acres between E. First Street and the railroad, bounded by Findlay St. to the east and Stainton Avenue to the west.

The metal recycling company has been in business since 1962 and purchased the E. First St. site in 1984.

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Industrial scrap from manufacturers is one of three core supply streams for Franklin Iron and Metal, which collects from companies within a 50-mile radius of Dayton.

Auto recyclers are the largest supplier of scrap, according to Greg Clouse, general manager of Franklin Iron and Metal.

As much as 80 percent of a scrap automobile can be recovered by a special auto shredding machine at Franklin Iron and Metal.

A scrap car will bring about $160 per ton today. An average mid-sized car weighs about 3,500 pounds (1.75 tons) so it would fetch about $280.

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Public peddlers of scrap are another source of metal. People who bring in scrap metal from large household appliances such as washers, dryers, refrigerators, ovens and hot water heaters make up a smaller percentage of the business, Clouse says.

The scrap is sorted into metal types once it reaches the yard, such as iron, aluminum, stainless steel, copper, brass and alloys.

Once sorted, the scrap is loaded into rail cars and staged, with the use of a Trackmobile, for transportation to a steel mill. The scrap metal from Franklin Iron and Metal goes to 3 steel mills in Ohio and Indiana.

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“We believe that recycling is very important part of the society here in Dayton and we believe that we were recycling before they invented the word recycling. All the material that comes in here then goes to be used again. Very little goes into the landfill,” Clouse says.

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