About a decade ago, some customers visited us, including a couple of executives. As we passed by our alligator shear, one of them asked if they had any of those at their yards. The other executive mentioned they did have a few, but only at one of their facilities, despite being a large, successful scrapyard. They were here to purchase wire chopping equipment but did not use alligator shears universally across their scrapyards. We were taken aback and asked why they did not prep their #1 and #2 copper pipe uniformly.

One of the executives explained that they had conducted a study a few years prior. They tasked their fastest operator with sorting a box of #2 copper into #1 and #2 grades. At the end of the exercise, they found they either broke even or lost money due to the effort. They reserved the shear for cutting large pieces of brass or copper and generally used it to size materials so they would be small enough to fit into boxes. Skeptical, we decided to test this ourselves. We had our best worker repeat the same scenario, and by the end of the day, it had cost us an additional $5 to $7 dollars per hour—it simply was not cost-effective.

Since then, we have stopped using the alligator shear for prepping #2 pipe. If it is #2, it goes straight into the appropriate box. If it is too large for the box, we might cut it in half, but otherwise, we avoid using the shear for this purpose. Instead, we utilize it for cutting down large coils of wire and similar tasks. Using it for #2 copper pipe is not practical, especially considering the safety risks involved. Trying to maximize every piece of #2 pipe risks accidents, and we have known industry colleagues who have lost fingers or had employees injured. It is simply not worth the risk, especially when the financial return is marginal or negative.

In short, we do not think it is worthwhile to prep #2 copper pipe, aside from separating it from your other materials.

Please feel free to share your thoughts by getting in touch with us.