LYNNFIELD, Mass. (Dec. 3, 2002) — GreenMan Technologies Inc. will spend $1.5 million to upgrade equipment in its Des Moines, Iowa, tire processing facility.
The capital investment—funded from internal cash flow and long-term debt provided by First American Bank of Des Moines and the state of Iowa—is in response to increased market demand for crumb rubber, GreenMan said. The company has replaced all tire shredders with more efficient, higher volume equipment similar to what is used in its Minnesota, Georgia and Oklahoma locations, according to Mark Maust, GreenMan's mid-western regional vice president.
GreenMan also has installed its third waste tire processing equipment line, which will allow it to reduce disposal costs and produce more than 20 million pounds of rubber feedstock per year for its crumb rubber operations, he added.
Bob Davis, president and CEO, said the equipment upgrade will eliminate more than $250,000 in annual transportation costs caused by sourcing crumb rubber feedstock from GreenMan's Wisconsin location.