Scrap and time waste can be costly to manage, but Mid America Paper Recycling has solutions to reclaim plant floor space and increase profitability.
Chicago – February 3, 2025 – Walk through almost any printing or packaging facility and you’ll likely see valuable floor space consumed by scrap and trim waste. For companies already operating on tight profit margins, inefficiencies like these lead to unnecessary costs, safety risks, and missed revenue opportunities. Mid America Paper Recycling (MAPR), a fourth-generation industry leader founded in 1926, is helping large enterprise print and packaging customers reclaim floor space and boost profitability through innovative recycling strategies backed by unique, hard assets.
“Manufacturing and warehouse space is expensive and critical to operational success,” said Brian Gaughan, MAPR’s Business Development Leader with over three decades of industry experience. “According to logistics real estate experts, the average annual cost for warehouse space is $13.20 per square foot, including base rent and operating expenses. Dedicating 1,000 square feet to waste storage could cost a single plant location $13,200 per year in avoidable expenses.”
In addition to the financial burden, ineffective waste management poses safety and productivity challenges. Loose bins and stacked bales create hazardous conditions that increase the likelihood of workplace injuries, which the National Safety Council estimates cost over $40,000 per incident on average.
“Managing waste on the plant floor also requires significant time and labor, with employees spending hours handling materials instead of focusing on higher-value tasks,” adds Gaughan.
These inefficiencies quickly add up, particularly since the average employee wage of $20 per hour compounds into a substantial annual cost. Moreover, every square foot allocated to waste storage represents a missed opportunity for revenue generation. A production machine occupying the same space could contribute as much as $500,000 annually in additional revenue.
Mid America Paper Recycling works with clients to address these challenges and uncover hidden efficiencies through waste audit assessments. As a result, one of the company’s most effective strategies for optimizing floor space is a trailer spotting service, which involves stationing dedicated trailers on-site to collect scrap and trim waste. Unlike most recycling brokers, MAPR owns a fleet of 125 trailers, giving them the unique ability to incorporate hard assets into strategic recycling solutions. This ensures greater control, reliability, and flexibility in servicing client needs, setting MAPR apart in the industry.
The trailer spotting approach eliminates the need for storing waste on the plant floor, freeing up valuable space for production equipment or finished goods storage. With trailers positioned strategically, packaging firms can consolidate materials efficiently, reduce clutter, and minimize safety risks while streamlining waste management. The collected materials are transported to MAPR’s recycling facility for processing, enabling faster turnaround times and more consistent cash flow.
Gaughan explained how trailer spotting has transformed operations for many of MAPR’s clients. One large printing company was able to reduce its reliance on floor space for bales by 50 percent. Removing bales and scrap materials at key intervals not only improved safety, but also allowed the client to maximize production capacity. By transporting recyclables directly to paper mills more frequently, the company experienced fewer delays and accelerated payments, improving the financial returns tied to their recycling program.
MAPR’s Chicago facility processes 51 different paper grades using advanced baling systems and its 125 trailers as part of a closed-loop logistics network. Customers who have streamlined their operations began by identifying inefficiencies in their waste management handling practices. Spending 10 minutes to take MAPR’s
waste audit services program helped them develop customized solutions to optimize floor space.
“As we’ve seen time and again, a well-executed recycling program doesn’t just improve sustainability, it transforms operations,” Gaughan said. “Owning and managing our own fleet allows us to go beyond the limitations of typical brokers and deliver results that others simply can’t match. With the right strategies, our clients unlock new opportunities for profitability, efficiency, and growth.”
For more information about Mid America Paper Recycling’s strategic recycling services or to schedule a waste audit, visit
www.midamericapaper.com.
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About Mid America Paper Recycling
Founded nearly 100 years ago in 1926, MAPR is a fourth generation-owned leader in the recycling industry and provides solutions for partners ranging from small businesses to large multinational corporations. Its robust program features a new benchmarking audit, consultation services, documentation, quantification and presentation of the specific and overall values that can be realized from customer waste streams. To learn more about the free waste audit and Mid America’s other environmental initiatives, call 773-890-5454 or visit the
website.
