DANE FUELLING
WZBD.com
Generations of Decatur residents have hopped in grandpa’s truck and taken a ride to the “junk yard” or the “dump”, but the old Decatur Salvage site has been transformed into a brand new business on the north side of Decatur and the owners of Metal Source are excited to be a part of the community.
For decades, Decatur Salvage was the graveyard for old appliances, cars and farm equipment. Patrons would enter the yard off US 27 and weigh in, drop off their items and come back in to see just how much metal they had unloaded and what the payout would be. In some cases, the reward might have been good enough to spare the expense of a can of pop or a bag of chips.
The expansion of US 27 some decades ago changed Decatur Salvage somewhat, but the business had become too much for long-time owner Larry Imel to manage.
Colin Denihan, the chief commercial officer of Metal Source, whose corporate offices are in Wabash, Indiana, received a call from the Imel family about acquiring the property and revitalizing it.
“Mark (Imel) called and approached us, telling us that Larry was ready to officially retire, so we purchased the property, took possession of all the assets from Larry last year and got started with everything.”
Now fully operational, Metal Source offers recycling of ferrous and non-ferrous scrap metals, along with scrap management programs, roll-off industrial services, retail recycling and demolition.
To get to that point, Denihan and his team had to make some serious upgrades. Along with remodeling the existing building on site, the team did a full-scale excavation project to level out the site, but that only happened once all of the scrap from the old Decatur Salvage was removed.
“We have invested in a complete site development and excavation project that included all new stone on property and several sections of concrete,” says Denihan.
The building at the site now has brand new offices and a drive thru for all non-ferrous customers.
Metal Source also has a brand new truck scale, along with a ton of new equipment.
“Material handler cranes, magnetics, front-end loaders, forklifts, car draining stations, shears, bailers and floor scales are all new.”
Denihan says that as the summer goes on, he plans on pouring more concrete to keep the business as clean and professional as possible.
“We are now offering competitive pricing and a fully-staffed and operational business,’ he says, referencing the sometimes limited hours of the former business.
The business had hoped to open earlier than this spring, but availability of equipment, along with issues connecting to a reliable internet provider hindered their efforts.
Denihan entered the recycling business as an intern in college, where he met CEO Ben Gebhart back in 2007. He now serves as President of Metal Source and Chief Commercial Officer of the parent company, Gebhart Holdings.
As far as what local patrons can expect at the site over the coming years, the answer is simple: growth.
“We plan to grow our volume at Decatur and add employees accordingly,” says Denihan, who recognizes the importance the site carries as many people enter the city from the north. The company has plans to further expand its recycling footprint with more regional sites in the future.
The goal for Metal Source is simple for the first-time customer driving through those gates off 27.
“People should expect a positive recycling experience with great customer service.”
Metal Source in Decatur is open Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. and on Saturdays from 8 a.m. until noon.
The Decatur location will host another Super Scrap Day, where customers receive an extra 5% on scrap prices, on August 2nd. Customers will have the chance to enter a drawing that entire week for a $100 gas card, as well. There will be an additional Super Day November 15th.