In the sports world, there comes a time when the General Manager of an organization has to make an important decision when it comes to players on the team:

Keep an aging, veteran player vegetating on the roster, trade the veteran player for a player in return, or release the veteran player; making room for the young up-and-coming star.

Likewise, professionals dealing with industrial equipment and machinery have to make similar decisions, that is, to keep aging machinery idled in the back of the warehouse or trade and sell for a return.

Whether you’re the plant manager of a large manufacturing facility or the owner of a local machining shop, you play the role of General Manager, determining what to do with your company’s aging machinery and equipment.

Options for Machine Disposal

Industrial machinery sitting in the warehouse not being utilized or reaching end of life and what to do with it is not among the top priorities for most companies. It’s also challenging to relocate, remove, or dispose of the machinery yourself, especially if its thousands of pounds.

Below we’ll look at four options: recycle (scrap), sell direct, partner with a broker, and auction. The options will allow you to evaluate the advantages of each method before disposing of your industrial equipment and machinery.

Option 1: Recycle or Scrap

If your old industrial machinery is beyond repair and cannot be sold due to its condition, recycling or scrapping the machinery is better than placing out of sight and out of mind in the back of your facility. Leaving machinery in storage for an indefinite period won’t profit anything.

Recycle centers and scrap yards accept a wide variety of industrial machinery and equipment. Recycling your old industrial machinery also helps the environment, avoiding dumping the machinery in local landfills.

Hire a Machinery Mover to Scrap Your Machinery

Removing industrial machinery from your facility and transporting to the scrap can be challenging, especially if the machinery is hundreds of thousands of pounds. A specialized machinery mover such as A&A Machinery Moving has the right equipment and many years of experience removing heavy machinery and hauling it to the scrap yard.

Take a look at some of the machinery we’ve moved and hauled over the years here.

Option 2: Sell Directly to a Buyer

Selling your machinery directly to a buyer can net you better profits than scrapping or recycling. The challenge is finding and reaching potential buyers, especially if it is very specialized machinery.

Reaching markets and finding buyers for your machinery consumes an ample amount of effort and time. Most owners, plant managers, operations managers and so on are often already overloaded. There just isn’t enough time in a day to perform day-to-day duties plus find the right potential buyers for the machinery.

Time is Money. Do You Have the Time?

Directly selling your machinery to buyers means you’re the salesperson. You’re in charge of the marketing to reach buyers. This has its limitations. You’re in charge of answering questions buyers may have at any time. Buyers may also want to come by and take a look at the piece of machinery. Do you really have the time in your busy schedule to handle a potential buyer?

Option 3: Partner with a Broker

Partnering with a reputable machinery broker is another avenue to disposing of idled machinery. Machinery brokers are often knowledgeable about the machine. They may even have a buyer already lined-up ready to purchase, prior to looking at the machine. Working with a reputable machinery broker will also create a successful partnership. When machinery at your facility has been upgraded and old machinery is ready to be disposed of or sold, you know exactly who to call.

Use the Market Reach of A&A

Remember option #2 – when you sell direct, you’re the salesperson? When you partner with a company like A&A Machinery Sales, Inc., you avoid having to do all the legwork. A&A Sales has an extensive network to reach across many industries. Plus, thousands of buyers visit our website regularly, browsing through our used machinery inventory. Partnering with A&A Sales puts your piece of machinery smack dabbed, right in front of those thousands of buyers.

Option 4: Auction

If you have multiple machines sitting idly in your facility, putting the machinery up for auction is an option, especially if the machinery is in-demand. This will require little to no effort on your end.

Advantages of an auction are the machinery is guaranteed to sell, providing a quicker return on investment (ROI), while also reaching a much wider audience of buyers. Bidding sites have access to an extensive list of potential buyers, increasing the likelihood of a higher ROI if that machine is in-demand. Whether it’s a single machine or a facility full of machinery, auctions are another option to disposing machinery.

More Than 50% ROI

Chosen because of experience and capabilities, A&A Machinery was called upon to decommission a 400,000 sf. manufacturing plant. Over 260 truckloads of machinery and manufacturing equipment were removed from the plant by A&A in a 6 month period.

A&A Machinery Sales partnered with a national auction company to host a public on-site auction, which included over 460 pieces of machinery. A&A Machinery Moving was named the exclusive rigger for the auction, disassembling and removing all items auctioned. The auction achieved a return on investment of greater than 50%., which was higher than expected.

Recap – Machine Disposal

Whether you’re disposing of a single machine or an entire facility of machinery and equipment, the disposal options above should help you make the right decision for your organization or facility.

• Idled machinery sitting in the back of your facility won’t profit anything. Hire an experienced machinery mover to remove it.
• Selling directly to a buyer nets better profits, but consumes an ample amount of time in your schedule.
• Partnering with a reputable broker requires little to no work on your end and builds a successful partnership for future machinery.
• Auctions allow your machinery to put be in front of a larger audience of buyers and provide a quicker ROI.

No matter which option you choose from above, the A&A Machinery team will be your resource. From 4,000 sf. machining shops, to 400,000 sf. manufacturing plants, our team has the experience and capabilities to dismantle and remove idled machinery or assist in providing you a return on investment by selling or auctioning your machinery. You’ll be confident you’ve chosen the right partner when you choose A&A Machinery.