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Since 1880, we have continually sought to meet the recycling needs of the ever-evolving Waterloo region. Starting off as rag and bone recycling during the Grand Trunk era, moving through glass, paper, cardboard and then metal recycling, our goal has always been to provide our community with a clean, safe, reliable, and modern recycling experience that grew with the needs of the residents, small and large businesses, government, and industry that help shape the place we call home.

By now you will have seen the construction on Lancaster St and might be curious as to what exactly is happening with our metal recycling facility there! Here’s what is in store!

One-stop recycling: Everyone will be able to bring everything to one site to be weighed, graded, and paid!

Covered Inbound and Outbound Scale: We will have two 80ft scales so we can accommodate any vehicle or transport option for your scrap AND make sure on-site traffic nor weather impacts your visit.

Fully concreted facility: Our facility will have concrete to facilitate organization, cleanliness, processing, and ease of loading and unloading of your recycled metals. We want to make sure that your boots and tires are as clean going into the yard as they are coming out.

Drive-through non-ferrous recycling: Enjoy a seamless non-ferrous recycling experience in a HEATED facility where you will be able to unload your material and get your receiving slip in the comfort of our new spacious warehouse.

ATM payments: Grab your ticket and get paid right away or batch them together and get paid when it is easiest for you. The convenience of the ATM means you can continue to do your work first and get paid at a more convenient time for you!
 

Global Reach with a Local Touch

Our focus has always been on making sure the region sees the strongest access to all local, national, and international, markets for its valuable recyclable resources. With our partnership with AIM Recycling, it will only get stronger. Our facility will boast rail access, along with our dedicated processing equipment and maintenance facilities to ensure maximum uptime and flow of materials to and from our site. Increasing the speed of shipments and expanding our ability to bring the markets to our doorstep. Working with us means you get the local guidance of your neighbour with the reach of the largest multinational metal recycler in Canada.

 

We are Open During Construction

We are committed to providing a great metal recycling experience during the construction and are fully open at both locations while the changes are taking place! We are still accepting scrap metal at both locations during our business hours which are Monday – Friday 8:00am – 4:30pm.

Community is at the heart why we do what we do. While we may be the recycler and waste management company of choice for the Waterloo region and beyond, we could not do that without the support and confidence of all of you. Giving back through the Foodbank of Waterloo Region is one of the many ways we aim to bring much needed support to the many families and individuals in the region that help make our community as awesome as it is. We are all in this together!

You can read more about what they do in their "Fresh Approaches" blog post which features Ami!

You can donate to the foodbank here

Visit their Facebook page as well!

We know how incredible important community is! With what is going on in the world right now, we wanted throw our support behind the men and women who are at the front lines of this fight. Thank you to all of the health workers that are keeping our mothers, fathers, sisters, and brothers safe during this unprecedented moment in our history. Not all heroes wear capes!   Let's all show our support for our front line health workers! 

I hope that everyone is staying safe and relatively sane during these challenging times. 

As a business, this isn’t the first pandemic that Joseph & Company was operated through, but I think that it is safe to say that for all of us, this will hopefully be our first and last.

Being classed as an essential business aside, this isn’t business as normal for any industry or operation.  Barring those who are making medical or other front-line supplies, we are all reviewing our operations to ensure that we are maximizing our efforts to keep our team employed safely and our business operating efficiently.

Where we are hoping to support our family of businesses and entrepreneurs we work with is to ensure that we are able to give the accurate and timely market information and ensure that our team is there to support your business where we can.

So on that note, I wanted to shoot over some information relating to the stainless scrap metal market.  Commodities, as we have seen with all base metals and oil, seem to be as hard hit as any asset class.  Not withstanding, the mills are seeing ample supply coming in, however, limited sales, as industry across North America and Europe is taking a hit as a result of COVID-19 lockdowns and a quickly slowing economy as a result.  Although China seems to be getting through the worst of their experience, there seems to be some issues with the integrity of their numbers and general reporting of their experience.

As a result, we are seeing scrap pricing for many items taking a significant hit for the April market – likely heading into May as well.  As the article attached notes, we are seeing a steady decline in stainless pricing – whether 304, 316 or 400 series.  The saving grace for Canadians is that our exchange has supported prices based on CAD.  By example, 304 prices have declined in USD by over 15c in the past month (apx. 30%-35%), however, the USD exchange has added apx 10% to the price, so the actual hit in CAD has been only around 15-20% on average.

We are seeing this across the board with all commodities, so if you produce other scraps, expect a similar analysis.

However, we are resilient business community and when life gives us lemons, we COVID-19 some lemonade.  So if anyone was questions or wants to chat about business in general, please feel free to contact me.  We are in this together and likely are sharing similar experiences.

Cheers!

Hello Everyone

At Joseph And Company, we recognize the serious nature of the current COVID-19 pandemic and the need for a business response that is aimed at protecting the health and well-being of our employees, clients and the public at large, as well as ensuring our continued efficient operations. With the recent announcement from the provincial government (re: essential workplaces in Ontario), Recyclers will be permitted to continue to operate.  Although business will continue to operate, it is imperative that all employees and visitors adhere to our mandatory workplace practices.

Yes, we are open!

Both our ferrous yard on Lancaster St. and our main office on Victoria St. continue to remain open and our trucks remain on the road ready to service your workplace and/or worksites. We will continue to do our best to work within the framework of rules, guidelines, and best practices related to serving customers during the COVID-19 pandemic. If you adhere to the rules we set out in our spaces, you can trust that your experience will still be a positive one.

We are currently operating a different schedule at both yards. Our current hours, as of March 25th are:

Monday – Friday: 8:00am – 3:00pm

Currently, there is no disruption to our bin servicing. It’s important that we maintain your regular service levels and uphold environmental responsibilities to our communities.

What has changed?

Joseph and Company is doing our best to be socially responsible. We will do everything within our power to ensure that we consider and accommodate employee safety and well-being.

Client Visit & Contact Protocol

Joseph and Company are currently not undertaking any site visits. They’ll utilize email, phone and other means of technology to communicate and ensure business continuity.

Feel free to give us  a call to say hello or any other virtual social interaction. We are here for your even if we cannot physically be present! We want to know how you are doing!

On-Site Facility Safety & Best Practices

Employees who have travelled outside of Canada (or those who have been in contact with someone who has) have been advised that they are immediately to be placed in 14-day self-isolation at home.

Employees who are feeling sick are not permitted to come into the workplace.

High traffic areas such as the cashier booth, door handles and common areas will be disinfected.

It is imperative that each of us follow strict social distancing of a min. 6 feet. This also extends to any visitors that come into our facility.

Our main office shall only service one customer at a time. So only the person being paid should be in.

Avoid non-essential gatherings and greetings (such as handshakes).

Frequently wash your hands and do not touch your face.

We ask that if you answer yes to any of these questions, that you DO NOT come to any of our yards or workspaces. Any visitors exhibiting signs of being sick will be asked to leave and not return for 14 days.

Are you experiencing any flu-like symptoms, such as fever, cough, or shortness of breath; or have you

had any of these symptoms in the past 14-days?

In the past 14-days, have you traveled outside of CANADA?

Have you been in close contact with anyone who has tested positive for COVID-19, been under quarantine in the past 14-days, or is currently being evaluated for COVID-19?

We thank you in advance for your cooperation and continued support of our business. These measures are being put in place for the protection of our employees, as well as contractors, suppliers, and all visitors to our facilities.

Should you have any questions please do not hesitate to ask.

Regards,

Ami Tsarfati

Vice President and General Manager

Joseph and Company

We are proud to be participating in Giving Tuesday this year with The Foodbank of the Waterloo Region. Check out our photo and video below to see what it is all about and donate today!

Good morning recyclers of the region,

Its appears that leaves are not the only things falling this autumn.  Ferrous prices are joining our leafy friends in the decent as prices continue to trickle down, as they have for the past calendar year.

If you have been reading my commentary, you will know the main culprits of pricing pressure on steel has been the lack of export due to the tariffs that the US administration has placed on incoming steel and more recently the chipping away of prices for new steel due to a poor orders from service centres and other mill customers.

This month, we have the added challenge of capacity being taken out of the market due to mill outages for ‘routine’ maintenance and the recent GM strike.  The GM strike should not be understated, as I have been told that GM alone consumes around 35,000 NT of steel a month in the US and Canada.  Then you add their tiered suppliers to the mix – that is a lot of material not being consumed with no where else to go!

As you can read in the articles attached, with 13 mills out of the month and the remaining consumers taking reduced orders this month – some significantly reducing their buys from the prior month.  The net effect of the demand being removed from the market is that Detroit mills have entered the market taking orders down $35/GT on grades (heavy melt and plate) and $40/GT on prime materials, we are anticipating declines along similar lines.

What this means is that we are going to experience yet again, another severe price drop for our ferrous scrap metal that we are generating.  And based on what my instinct tells me, we likely will not see a meaningful rebound in pricing for some time, as inventories are building up across many yards due to reduced mill orders and a challenging environment for recyclers to market their scrap into.

We expect the October market to come out early to mid next week and we will have more clarity on our markets and scrap metal credits for you at that point. 

This is not the first challenging cycle in our over 100 year history and we have experienced and we will continue to ensure that our customers get the best value for their scrap that they are generating. 

If you have any questions about your recycling program or market questions in general, please feel free to reach out.

Cheers!

Hello Everyone!

As a local company, we are always wanting to give back to the community in which we live. The FoodBank of Waterloo Region is a fantastic organization that does tremendous work for the community and it is one that we are proud to help support. With 3 meals being provided for every $1 donated, the FoodBank help support more than 34,000 people in the community. They help fight food insecurity and make sure families who are in need, can access the help they need. In 2004 alone, they helped distrubute 3.1 million pounds of food to 63 programs to assist 23,5000 people. 

We are glad to be a part of such positive change and such a great organization!

Cheers!

Good afternoon all!

Given all the trade talk and economic news in the air over the past week, I thought that I would send a note on how commodities are fairing with this news.

As I’m sure that you have noticed on your scrap metal credits of recent, market pricing is declining from several months back.  Naturally, I have sent along some information detailing the price movements, however, this article below paints picture on how metal pricing is now a leading indicator on our economic fortune (or lack there of).  And more soberly, as a metal trader once told me – ‘the trend is your friend’ – and this trend seems to be bearish.

Interestingly, not all scrap metal pricing has been bearish over the past quarter, however, base metal prices have been declining for the better part of the year.  More interesting to me, at least, is that the decline has been broad based – not specific to one commodity.

The same culprits of mill demand, lack of export market, tariffs and trade wars have been a staple of the causes.  However, it now seems to be that global growth is also playing its part in weakening commodity pricing.  It is hard to appreciate a slowing global economy from the perspective of what is happening in the Waterloo Region.  But outside our bubble, there seems to be more and more pockets of slowing growth and demand and this is trickling down into base metal pricing.  They don’t call copper the “Doctor’ for nothing. 

I felt that this article is worth sharing because it is one of the first articles that I have reviewed that is tying in base metal pricing to our wider economy.  It is not fear mongering – but educational and does a really good job in an efficient way of explaining what is going on.  I would read this article for what it is – a good analysis of the theory meeting our reality of business – and what is happening out there is affecting all businesses equally. 

I hope that you enjoyed your long weekends (if you got one) – we certainly did.  I think that August has gotten a lot more interesting….

Naturally, if you have any questions or concerns about the market and how it may affect your scrap metal stream, please don’t hesitate to give me a call or an e-mail. 

Cheers,

Amichai Tsarfati, CPA, CA

One of our core values is supporting the community in which we raise our children and live our lives while having fun at the same time! We have been fortunate to be able to team up with CHYM in order to pull together this great event! The Father Daughter ball is a great community building event and this year alone, we managed to raise more than $30,000 for prostate cancer research at Grand River Hospital.