What Is Involved in Removing Old Equipment for Scrap?
Chicago Machinery Movers is an industrial machinery removal, dismantling and scrap company serving all Chicago suburbs -- in business since 1998, removing machinery of any size up to 650,000 lbs per piece, whether one machine or a large plant.
Most phone calls we get sound the same: "I have two old CNC machines I need to get rid of" or "there is an old injection molder sitting in our shop - can you take it out?" Yes - that is exactly what we do! Most of these machines leave completely free, for their scrap value and the value of parts in them, often within a week. Tell me what the machine is, roughly what it weighs if you know, and what door it has to go through - most of the time you get your answer on the spot.
Removing old equipment is not always difficult, but most of the time its owners do not have the capability to remove it properly and need to call for help. That's the work that we practice doing weekly. Removal jobs run anywhere from 2-4 hours to 3-4 weeks. We like both kinds of work and prefer to be done sooner rather than later -- but some things genuinely take time.
Planning and Safety
For most customers, removal time is of the essence for one of two reasons: minimizing downtime, or preparing a building for a real estate closing. We develop a plan that works around your production process, so downtime is minimized and nearby production is disturbed as little as possible.
I have yet to meet a company that says "safety is job number 2". Safety does not mean working slowly -- it means working right. When it comes to old machine removal, safety means complying with OSHA regulations, trucking regulations, and environmental and fire codes, in these areas:
- Electrical safety
- Removal of liquids
- Using lifting equipment safely
- Working at heights only from approved personnel lifts and platforms
- Observing fire safety when torching
- Proper personal protective equipment for everyone on the job
- Protecting Floors and Parking Lots with Steel Plates
We know how to do a job safely without incurring excessive costs and overcharging you.
Dismantling Large Machines
While most machines can be moved in one piece, some need to be disassembled. We once removed a giant printing press weighing 320,000 lbs by splitting it into 26,000 lb sections and moving one section at a time -- you can see it in the gallery below. We cut a 540,000 lbs forming press by cutting it into "small" 50,000 lbs sections.
We clean up after ourselves. Piles of junk and chips, or anchor bolts sticking up from the concrete, are trip hazards that can hurt your workers and visitors. Bolts get cut flush with the floor; the junk leaves with us. You typically pay for trash dumpsters.
Machinery removal capabilities
- Two 60-80,000 lb lifts (boom and forks): a rigger lift and a Versa-Lift 60/80
- Two 30,000 lb forklifts (boom and forks)
- 15,000 lb and 8,000 lb forklifts, plus several smaller units
- Four Semi tractors with gondola, lowboy, step-deck and flatbed trailers
- Bobcat skid steer with scrap grapple, Case skid steel
- 26-foot scissor lift with 1,000 lb capacity
- Two liquid-oxygen torch outfits
- Our own street plates for soft ground and weak floors
Industries served: metalworking, printing, injection molding, food processing, and manufacturing. We remove obsolete machinery all around Chicagoland: Chicago, Addison, Elk Grove Village, Tinley Park, Aurora, and many more.
Call Igor at 630-235-6603 to discuss your project. I know how the world works -- what companies and managers need when they decide to dispose of old machines -- and how to make you a satisfied customer.