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A metal shredder is a machine that uses a set of rotary shears to break down materials into smaller, more manageable sizes. They tend to be low speed pieces of equipment with high torque. The low speed variations of the machine are useful because they create less noise, vibration and dust. They are also less likely to spark when materials such as titanium or magnesium are under the blades.
The cutting system is usually composed of 1 to 4 shafts, which can be set vertically or horizontally. The shafts on these industrial machines usually move at about 20 to 30 RPR and have hundreds of thousands of pounds of cutting force. Quad shafts are useful for recovering precious metals from electronics, like hard drives or cell phones. Dual shafts are preferable for materials that are non-ferrous.
The type of equipment used may depend on how reduced the material needs to be after going through the machine. In order to suit the unique needs of each business, there are a variety of brands and designs available. Some are better suited to producing coarse pieces, while others excel at medium or fine. The size of the machine needed depends largely on what materials are being broken down. Obviously, a scrap yard that demolishes cars will need a bigger system than a recycling plant that handles aluminum cans. The addition of a screen or a magnet can be useful for separating materials after they have been shredded. The selection of the wrong machine or size for the task can lead to poor performance or increased downtime.
Due to the nature of their work these machines have to be effective and reliable. They are constructed to be heavy duty and resilient. The shear cutter blades are designed to be resistant to wear. Some can be converted to produce smaller or larger output sizes by changing the blades.
The quality, and therefore value, of the material can be positively impacted by being run through a metal shredder. As the material is torn into fragments, any contaminations can be released. This allows a low grade metal to be converted into a higher grade, and more valuable, scrap. Usually, secondary processes can be performed with greater efficiency once the material has taken a trip through one of these pieces of equipment. The smaller pieces also facilitate processes like furnace feeding or delacquering. Consistent sizes for some materials help improve a facility's ability to control temperature during smelting.
A metal shredder is usually part of an integrated system with other machines, such as feeders or conveyor belts in order to run smoothly. For example, a shredder could be used to feed broken down materials in a hammermill. Having these machines work together cuts down on the need for human assistance that could result in injury.
Often, when metal is being sent for recycling it is tied together to facilitate handling. These briquettes or bales are then fed to a metal shredder. A metal shredder can be used for volume reduction, which makes storage of the scrap much simpler. Smaller volume can be a benefit when it comes to reducing disposal or transportation costs. In a more broken down form the scrap takes up less space in storage.
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