End
of Life Vehicle Directive
What is the End-of-Life Vehicle Directive?
After years of discussion and consultation with interested parties
the European Parliament ratified a new directive for processing
End of Life vehicles (commonly known as 'Scrap' vehicles).
The parties involved in the directive include:
Vehicle Manufacturers
Vehicle Dismantlers
Materials Recyclers
Automotive Trade Organisations
Automotive Research Agencies
Various other automotive related bodies
Basis of the Directive
Over the coming years the directive is aimed at increasing the
percentage of recoverable and recyclable materials used in the manufacture
of motor vehicles and recovered during the dismantling and recycling
process.
It will not be immediately evident to the general public, but there
are a great many planned changes to the way vehicles are manufactured,
dismantlers and recyclers handle, reuse and reprocess materials
and the discovery of new recycling routes for materials currently
designated as land-fill waste.
Discussion and Implementation
The CARE Group (Consortium
for Automotive Recycling) was setup by representatives from
vehicle manufacturers and recyclers to discuss and plan for the
eventual changes the directive would necessitate. CARE is involved
in carrying out research for current and new recycling routes and
processes, as well as advising government and policy makers on feasible
and reasonable steps for the directive.
There are also discussions within the dismantling industry about
how the directive will affect our working methods and practices
being made by members of the MVDA
(Motor Vehicle Dismantlers Association), BVSF
(British Vehicle Salvage Federation) and other dismantler trade
bodies.
The Future
As the directive takes effect and the various parties begin to
develop a system for the most effective handling of end-of-life
vehicles, there should be a marked reduction in the use of virgin
materials during the manufacturing process and an increase in the
amount of recyclable materials recovered during dismantling, and
reused.
At present not all recoverable materials can be economically recycled
(most materials can be recycled, but at an excessive cost). Research
is continuing into different recycling processes and over time the
cost of recovering and reusing materials should fall.
Vehicle Processing
Overview
Ever heard the phrase "Where there's muck - there's brass"? In
the past its been assumed that vehicle dismantlers have always made
lots and lots of money from other people's junk, and whilst there
is some truth in that, we don't make as much profit as some people
like to believe. We have been in business for over 10 years, and
like any other business the profits from our sales have helped us
to survive and still be in business today, but you would be surprised
to find how much it actually costs nowadays to process a 'scrap'
end-of-life vehicle.
The 'Scrap Yard' Image
There are still many people for whom the image of a vehicle dismantler
conjures up a picture of a big scruffy man, with a big ugly dog,
and big heavy cash-bag around his waist. The yard is a messy, muddy,
oil-filled piece of land that requires slipping into knee-high waders
before you even consider stepping foot inside the gate, and you
have to do all the parts removal work for yourself getting dirty
and oil-soaked in the process.
Today's Modern Vehicle Dismantling Industry
Today, however, modern vehicle dismantling operations are run as
well as any other professional business. Modern yards have cleaned-up
their act to offer better services, a cleaner working environment,
and a much reduced impact on the environment from their modern working
methods and practices, combining modern technology whilst complying
with insurers and modern legislation.
Through legislation and working with industry bodies such as the
MVDA, ARA,DVLA
, CARE and other motor
and recycling related agencies the modern vehicle dismantler's yard
is a cleaner, better place to buy recycled and new automotive spares.
Nowadays you can leave your wader's at home and visit our yard in
your regular clothes without needing to rush off to the dry-cleaners
afterwards
What's Changed?
Years ago there was very little requirement for yards to consider
the environmental impact of their methods and practices. There is
now a whole host of legislation that applies to our industry, and
even more is on the way over the coming years. Customers have also
helped us to improve our service, and with the advent of computerized
stock control systems we can now offer faster, more accurate details
for spares enquiries.
What Makes the Difference?
To operate as a professional vehicle dismantler we are required
to hold the following licenses/certificates:
Waste Carriers License - So we can transport and
deliver recyclable materials, damaged vehicles and crushed vehicle
shells
Waste Disposal License - So we can dispose of
recyclable or waste materials at our own site, or pass them to other
recycling agents for processing
Waste Management License - Qualified waste management
operator with certified staff members who have achieved competence
in waste management skills
CPC (Certificate of Professional Competence) -
To allow us to operate our fleet of vehicle transporters, and our
Heavy Goods tractor units and trailers
The licenses and certificates are not easy to obtain and sites
have to undergo several stages of inspection from a variety of local
authority and Environment Agency representatives before a license
is granted. These licenses are your assurance as a customer that
a yard is acting professionally and responsibly.
Our yard has also been heavily modified to accommodate the modern
dismantling process as well as aiming for compliance with future
legislation, although not everything is visible; such as the 'traps'
in our water drains to stop waste oils and chemicals filtering into
the water table and drainage system.
Dismantling Process
The dismantling process has changed dramatically over the past
30 years and our current processing system includes many modifications
that have come about from legislation and discussions with other
vehicle dismantlers and automotive industry bodies and agencies.
Let's walk through a typical vehicle arriving at our yard for processing:
Sign-Over / Waste Transfer Documentation - When
a customer brings a vehicle for disposal we ask for proof of ownership,
usually in the form of a V5 and some personal ID that matches the
address. We then complete a waste transfer note confirming the vehicle
details, and any fees paid for the disposal of the vehicle. These
details are later transferred to our computerized records and the
paperwork is filed so that we have a signed document proving the
request for disposal.
Stock No. Assigned - Every vehicle is given a
unique ID number so we can track its progress through the yard.
This number also provides an audit trail for any spares we remove
and is referenced on paperwork and records related to its eventual
disposal (a) Waste transfer notice: purchase of vehicle; (b) Stock
tags for spares; (c) DVLA Electronic Certificate of Destruction;
(d) vehicle digital images (where necessary).
Fluids Drained - We now remove fluids that may
possibly leak from the vehicle during the dismantling process so
they don't get into the water table or drainage system (our drain
traps also help to capture any accidental spillages). We store them
in specially designed tanks and regularly call-in a specialist recycling
agent to remove the fluids for reprocessing or disposal.
Pre-Dismantling - Battery, wheels and tyres are
removed to separate reprocessing storage areas. Batteries that are
in saleable condition are checked over, recharged and put on our
shelves for sale. Unsalable or damaged tyres are stored for disposal
to a waste tyre recycler.(this carries a cost of up to one pound
per tyre)
Crushed and Recycled - Once a vehicle has been 'stripped'
or has little or no saleable spares remaining it will be crushed.
A bailer crushes the shells into a large square block and these
are loaded onto a trailer and delivered to a fragmentiser for metal
recovery and recycling.
ELV Disposal Fee
Why Charge for Disposal?
In the past we have been able to pay money to owners in exchange
for end-of-life vehicles, in fact this has been more or less the
case for the past 30 years. So why do we now charge a disposal fee?
Surely we're getting as many spares as we used to? If there has
always been value in end-of-life vehicles, where has that value
gone?
The cost of processing vehicles has steadily increased over the
past 30 years as vehicles have become more technical and legislation
has been introduced to tighten up the operation of vehicle recyclers.
Along with the increased reliability of vehicles and the fact that
people are buying and running more modern vehicles than in the past.
Here's a few of the major factors that have contributed to today's
decreased value of end-of-life vehicles:
Reduced Value in Scrap Metal - As more and more
recyclable metals have appeared on the market, the price per tonne
has reduced.
Reduced Value in Other Recyclate - Where we used
to generate income from used tyre casings, we are now charged per
casing for their disposal. This is also the case for unusable batteries
and removed fluids.
Reliability of Vehicles - Modern vehicles are
generally a lot more reliable than their older counterparts, which
means fewer potential spares sales for vehicle recyclers.
DIY Repairs - Most modern vehicles cannot easily
be repaired by their owners, they're quite complicated under the
bonnet, which means fewer owners are attempting DIY repairs.
Easy Finance Terms - Easily obtainable finance
means that people are buying and running newer vehicles, which by
their nature tend to be much more reliable and require fewer spares
for maintenance.
Increased Operating Costs - Expenditure on yard
modifications to comply with legislation, increased fuel costs for
our trucks, increased administration per vehicle, operational licensing
requirements and modern dismantling equipment.
Pattern/Grey New Spares - Pattern/Imported/Grey
brand new spares (not produced by the vehicle manufacturer)
have reduced in price over the years, forcing us to reduce our used
spares prices and therefore limiting our potential for profit from
each vehicle.
Breakdown of Disposal Costs
Many people incorrectly assume that we can sell most of the spares
for each and every vehicle we process, this is simply not true.
Every vehicle certainly has potential, but in reality only 15 or
so models are popular enough for us to be able to sell some of their
spares. For the rest of the vehicles we may sell a couple of spares,
but often they will be crushed with the majority of their spares
still intact simply because no-one wants to buy them.
We were at a stage a few years ago where the profit from the popular
vehicles was being used to offset the losses of the majority of
other less popular models. As they got less and less we introduced
a disposal charge to recover some of those losses and to pay for
the increased labour required to process vehicles within the guidelines
of the ELV directive.
A typical vehicle brought to us by a member of the public for disposal
goes through the following process:
- Vehicle collected (where necessary)
- Paperwork completed to transfer the waste to us (Waste Transfer
Note)
- Stock record created giving the vehicle a unique identification
number for our audit trail, and a computerised record created
to track the vehicle, documentation, component parts for resale,
and waste
- V5 document details added to the computer record (where supplied),
along with details of the waste transfer note
- Vehicle moved to draining station where we remove oil, fuel,
and other contaminants
- Battery and tyres removed for resale / disposal, along with
any 'in demand' spares
- Any removed spares are tagged, stored, and added to our stock
system
- Vehicle moved to self service yard for customers to remove spares
- DVLA notified of vehicle destruction
- Once reasonably stripped of parts, vehicle remains are crushed
and sent for metals recovery / recycling
Whereas in the past we could generate revenue from unsold batteries
and tyres, we now have to pay a disposal fee. We also have to pay
for the removal of the fluids and contaminants we collect from vehicles.
We also collect vehicles on behalf of insurance companies, adding
extra costs to the recycling process such as out of town collection,
additional paperwork and computer record keeping, digital imaging
and reporting, etc.
Have disposal charges become a permanent feature? Unfortunately,
yes. We plan to regularly review the disposal costs, and where we
can make savings we hope to pass those on to our customers, but
for the present disposal charges will become a permanent feature
for all last owners of end of life vehicles.
In 2007 is it hoped that it will be the manufacturer's responsibility
to pay for disposal charges, but as yet there is no firm legislation
to confirm this.
Taken with kind permission from :
http://www.wcsauto.com
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