OmniSource Corporation - Sturgis

Founded in Fort Wayne, Indiana, more than 65 years ago, OmniSource Corporation has grown to become one of North America's largest processors and distributors of scrap and secondary metals. We collect, process, and resell a wide variety of scrap metal. The company in 2010 shipped 5.2 million gross tons of recycled steel and 961 million pounds of nonferrous scrap.Our primary collection and processing facilities are in the Midwest, the Southeast, and the mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. But our reach stretches across North America, utilizing a wide-ranging fleet of trucks and containers, railcars, and barges to collect and haul metals. We expect to continue to expand OmniSource's footprint, deploying our processing assets to cover new geographical territories, opening new feeder yards, and making targeted acquisitions.Supplementing our company-operated scrap collection sites, we also acquire metals from industrial scrap generators with which we have established strategic partnerships. We have designed and installed customized metals-recycling programs, some of which we manage and operate, for manufacturing companies nationwide.Our national brokerage and trading operations serve both metals buyers and sellers, providing the market intelligence and insights needed to optimize transaction value.OmniSource was acquired in 2007 by Steel Dynamics, Inc., and operates independently as a wholly owned subsidiary.

History

OmniSource was born during the pursuit of a dream—the American Dream, which has attracted so many to these shores with promises of freedom, opportunity, and prosperity.

Escaping the chaos of revolution and civil war, Irving Rifkin, still just a teenager, emigrated from Russia to America in 1920. He came alone, virtually penniless. He didn't speak English, but he quickly learned enough to work and provide for himself and later, a growing family.

After two decades in New York, Rifkin and his family struck out for western Ohio, where, after a year, he started his own business dealing in all sorts of scrap materials: metals, paper, glass, and rags. He even used his stake-bed truck to offer roadside emergency service. As his business grew, Irving took on a partner, his brother-in-law Irving Walters.

In 1943, when the war effort made recycling a national priority, Rifkin and Walters bought their first scrap yard on Clinton Street in Fort Wayne, Indiana. They called their new venture Superior Iron & Metal. Competition was fierce, but the business prospered. Fort Wayne was home to several companies that supplied the military, and those companies generated a great many scrap materials. Rifkin and Walters later invested in scrap-processing equipment to further their endeavors.

Rifkin's son Leonard joined the company in 1956. With Leonard's expertise and his ability to create strategic relationships with customers and banks alike, the company weathered some tough times in the early 1960s.

Late in the 1960s, the company ventured into the trash-removal business, including establishing a revolutionary recycling facility to sort items that could be reclaimed. The company sold its trash-removal and recycling interests in 1973 to focus on expanding its scrap business.

Expansion meant acquisition. Beginning in the mid-'70s, the company began to expand significantly by buying a large number of scrap-processing facilities and increasing its presence across the Midwest. In the '70s and '80s, Leonard Rifkin's three sons—Danny, Rick, and Marty—joined the company.

In 1983 the company was officially renamed OmniSource, and by 1990 OmniSource had become a national force in the metals-recycling industry. That was also the year that the company pioneered a new concept, scrap management, with Chrysler Corporation as its initial client. Scrap management in which OmniSource manages all aspects of collecting, handling, and buying the scrap generated by a manufacturer, has since become a widely applied concept in the scrap industry.

In addition to its aggressive approach to growth through acquisitions, OmniSource in recent years has also pioneered new technologies in the recovery of valuable metals from recycled scrap materials. In 1995, OmniSource founded Recovery Technologies, a heavy-media processing facility in Fort Wayne. In 1998, OmniSource established Superior Aluminum Alloys, a secondary-aluminum-smelting company in New Haven, Indiana.

OmniSource played an important role in the birth of Steel Dynamics in the early 1990s. SDI became OmniSource's parent company in 2007. As a wholly owned subsidiary, OmniSource continues to provide a large portion of the ferrous resources SDI uses to make new high-quality steel.

In October 2007 Steel Dynamics, Inc., bought OmniSource Corporation from the Rifkin family for approximately $1.1 billion, including cash, stock, and the assumption of debt. OmniSource had been an initial investor after SDI was founded in 1993, and for a period of time served as an exclusive agent to supply the nascent steel company with ferrous scrap, the primary material used in its steelmaking operations.

Today, as a part of SDI, OmniSource has grown through acquisitions and new ventures in the Midwest and in the South. OmniSource currently collects or processes ferrous and nonferrous scrap at more than 70 facilities in the United States, including the operation of 11 automotive shredders. OmniSource has the processing capacity to recycle 7 million tons per year of ferrous scrap and 1 billion pounds of nonferrous metals. It operates shredders in the Midwest and Southeastern United States.

OUR VALUES

OmniSource was founded upon the principles of integrity, hard work, perseverance, and topnotch customer service. Good values never change. OmniSource continues to emphasize these fundamental principles. Plus, we're strongly committed to our valued employees and to the communities in which we work.

Both our customers and suppliers know from experience that we honor our commitments. Our focus on integrity over the years has resulted in strong commercial ties, based on mutual respect and fair dealing.

Beginning with our founder's first small business venture, our company has faced and overcome adversity and met many challenges. This was accomplished through hard work and perseverance. Simply put, we never give up.

We focus on providing superior customer service. We're constantly challenging ourselves to improve at every juncture, by providing consistent quality of products and services and through embracing innovative systems and technologies.

OmniSource truly cares about its employees, the lifeblood of the company. We demonstrate that concern for the well-being of our employees by providing very competitive compensation, plus a variety of valuable employee benefits.

OmniSource strives to be a solid citizen. We've prospered in the communities where we do business, and we readily share our good fortune in these communities by lending our direct and financial support to a wide variety of civic organizations and causes.

ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE

OmniSource believes that a positive approach towards conserving and enhancing natural resources is consistent with its core values, and is fundamental to the scrap and secondary metals industry.

OmniSource Corporation is committed to operating its business in an environmentally responsible manner that protects human health, natural resources, and the environment. We go beyond compliance with the law to integrate sound environmental practices into our daily decisions and activities. We have in the past met our environmental commitments, and will continue to pursue a course of responsible environmental stewardship, complying with all federal, state, and local environmental laws and regulations.

In an effort to ensure that all inbound scrap metals are handled responsibly, OmniSource has developed and implemented several best-management practices. Some examples include comprehensive refrigerant-recovery programs, unique handling and storage facilities for oily scrap-metal turnings and borings, a state-of-the-art enclosure for capturing and controlling emissions from torch-cutting operations, extensive mercury-switch removal programs, and cutting-edge treatment facilities for storm-water management. OmniSource is constantly working to improve its environmental programs, which is yet another component to being 'The Best in Metals Recycling.'

SCRAP MANAGEMENT

'A competitive edge through cooperation'—that's what drives our scrap-management consulting practice. We develop and manage custom-designed solutions for scrap handling and disposal activities, serving scrap generators and metals consumers.

A dedicated team works to develop a tailored solution suited to each client's unique situation. Beyond initial consulting, our services may include design and engineering, financing, investment in on-site equipment, facility operation, marketing of metals, logistics, transportation, and administrative support. Full-accountability reporting is a part of every implemented project.

Environmental issues are critical to every metalworking manufacturer. In designing and operating metals-handling facilities, we adhere to stringent environmental standards that meet or exceed regulatory requirements. Careful planning and ongoing monitoring are essential to protecting the environment.

Currently, OmniSource is engaged in long-term scrap-management programs throughout the United States and eastern Canada. Our clients include automotive OEMs, their Tier I & Tier II suppliers, steel processors, steel mills, foundries, wire and cable producers, utilities, and telecommunications companies.

FERROUS PRODUCTS

OmniSource produces an array of high-quality ferrous-scrap products for foundry and steel-mill melting applications.Investment in state-of-the-art technology and process-management systems assures consistency and reliability across all product categories. Research-and-development efforts consistently yield customized products to fit specific applications.

NONFERROUS PRODUCTS

At OmniSource, nonferrous scrap is an important component of our business. Our facilities produce a wide array of nonferrous scrap products to the exacting standards of our customers.Some of our processing capabilities include baling, shearing, briquetting, granulation, incineration, aluminum and lead sweating, secondary aluminum smelting, and silver refining. Our commitment to the environment and our attention to detail ensure that these products are produced in an efficient yet environmentally sound manner. At OmniSource, every scrap generator and consumer is a customer, and we tailor our nonferrous services to meet customers' needs.