A sad, sad story

[2muchstuff]

Last night I got to speak with the father of a girl that my son has been hanging around with for the first time. He used to work for a company here in town that makes custom coveyer systems for customers. Last November they decieded to clean out the back room. Imagine 8- 40 yard dumpsters full of stuff. He said that 95% of the stuff was brand new or customer returns ranging from drive motor assemblies to bearings. I got into detail with him and there was numerous, I repeat, numerous linear bearing, slide stuff and stepper motors with drives. He said it not uncommon for the engineers to order a part and not like it, instead of returning it, it would go in the back room to collect dust. It never fails, for years I've been kicking around the idea of building a cnc router and now I've decieded to get the show on the road. Let's hope the phrase "good things come to those who wait" still holds true.

[murphy625]

I have to laugh at your "sad story" because that happens everywhere!!!!

I have a friend who's next door neighboor was "the robot guy" for the GM plants around here.. He was telling me they throw out complete working units.. Some of them costing upwards of one hundred thousand dollars and more.. And they have rules that do not let you get that garbage..

Now that's sad..

Murphy

[keithorr]

I bought 3 100kg. capacity robot arms that came from Toyota in Kentucky. They were used on a spot welding line. Production lines change and equipment is surplus. Now I hear they would like to buy them back. Not a chance.

[cbass]

I used to attend a state run university that specializes in ceramic engineering. They went through asbestos abbatement a few years back and had to clear an entire engineering building. Since this was during the summer, many engineers (some whom had been there 30+ years) were not around. The maintenance crew inadvertently through out office after office of stuff dating back to the 50's. The dumpster was a virtual paradise. I would check it twice a day. I got visual pyrometer glasses (for looking inside of high temperature kilns), countless mixers (variable speed, of course), many material samples and I even considered taking a half gallon jar of Mercury (I'm glad I didn't).

Many things were tossed that were perfectly useful. They had to toss it to be able to ask for more funding the foillowing year. Those were the days!

[RickOmatic]

After I graduated (1976) I took a security guard job that my father in law got me into. Strictly commercial, very good pay. I had to work at a plastic molding company, checking out the people as they left the building, and stay during the night to make sure no one came in. They were closing the plant and were afraid the employees would steal stuff. The tool room was FULL of tools, motors, bearings......The day the plant closed they brought in 3 roll off box dumpsters AND a bobcat skid steer... literally smashed the wire fence walls of the crib, loaded the dumpsters, trucks picked up the dumpsters, and within 3 hours it was all gone. What the heck was I guarding it for! VERY SAD RICK......

[trubleshtr]

Vertually every component I own came from de-commisioned machines at work....We throw so much out it would make you sick!
I have brought so much stuff home I literly have no room left, I love it though,because as I rumage around my basement looking for a part, I always find things I forgot I had....I guess that too is sad......

[ynneb]

It might be sad, but I find it downright annoying and wasteful. ( Sinful )
We live in a world of finite resources, and the majority of the human population is starving. Big bussiness will happily watse our rescources just to make sute that no one can get an upperhand and compete against them.

This kind of waste happens not only in the mechanical industry but in most indistries, including food.

My wife and I have spoken about this kind of waste often and have considered what we can do about it. I still dont have the answer, but have considered starting a campeign demonstrating agains so much waste when there is so much poverty around.
I would love to be able to publically embarras these sorts of wastefull bussinesses.

Dont worry this is not a pipe dream for me. I will eventually do what I am talking about.

It really sickens me.

[trubleshtr]

If it makes you feel any better Ynneb, I have slowly steered our organization to recycling. Alot of other guys at work have clued into what I am doing, and now usefull items are either placed on ebay,taken home by employees or sent to the recycler.
The funny thing about it,what use to go directly to the dumpster is now left on my bench with a little note asking if I can use this item? Or should it be re-cycled?

Monies made from re-sale are returned to the company. The more we keep out of landfills the better. My basement is a living testemant to that.

[2muchstuff]

It's a shame that we live in such a throw away society. I would swear that manufactures/ engineers design for planned obsolesance. Some of the stuff that I scrounge up will have date codes on them and they are only a few years old. For example, you find a stepper motor that you could use, you contact the manufacture and find out that there is no info to be found because it is obsolete. IT'S ONLY A FEW YEARS OLD. At my work, I will remove the aluminum, brass and copper from equipment that is being thrown away, save it up and then it's off to the recycler. What I make goes for the parts that I can't make or scrounge up. I tend to average about $1000 to $2000 dollars a year. This may sound like a lot scrounging but it is not, it's all in WHAT you collect and of course an understanding wife helps too. Heck, at my previous job, I would collect the pure tungsten electrodes from spent Xenon short arc lamps, a box 6" square would weigh almost 100 pounds, take it to the recycler and cash it in. Fifteen years ago I was getting $1.75 a pound (copper was .50 a pound), 5 times a year, well you do the math. Now copper is almost $1.50.

On the flip side I think it is great that there are forums like this one where there are enough people with varied backgrounds and skills to be able to provide us with the information that we need so we can complete our projects, even if the parts are obsolete.

[pen25]

what we need to do is offer these things up to those members of the forums for those who can use them if you dont want to sell. I believe in the pay it forward ideal. I am part of a suzuki samurai owners group and we do play it forward all the time. I have given away carbs shackles leaf springs engine all sorts of things.. so maybe we need to have a for free forum?? granted i know i would surely offer to pay for shipping.. I can build a circuit board and i know others can i would be more then willing to pay for parts and shipping if someone would build me a 4 axis board ;-).. wouldnt mind some slides either hehehe.. but seriously. if you hear of this by all means let us know im sure youll be asked for all sorts of things you might run accross..

[RotarySMP]

It is a shame there aren't more big companies who run a surplus house like Boeing surplus in Renton. THis is my favourite shop in the whole world (I like in Vienna, Austria).

Any business trip to Seattle always involves a visit.

[2muchstuff]

There is a place in St. Louis, Mo. that has a bunch of stuff from McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing). Anything from metal, tools to parts and pieces. Talking with the guys that work there, they keep refering to the good old days. The days of entire flight simulators and the F.B.I. coming around to check out what they had. Hanging around and talking to people can pay off. I thought that this was there only place, but NNNNOOOOO, they have 2 other places full of stuff and one of them is a 3 story warehouse with a basement. Also come to find out at the 3 story place, they are going to be spending the next few weeks trying to clean up the place. If I can catch them there, I've got permission to come in and root around. Wish me luck....