Certified Recycling is electric certified

The 15,000-square-foot warehouse at Certified Recycling in Burnsville is getting full these days after a busy spring, summer and fall of collecting items big and small from metro and southwest suburban businesses and homes.

The company processes about a million pounds of recyclables each year, according to co-owner Lance Chastek. Mountains of mattresses, towering pallets of shrink-wrapped microwaves, rows of stoves and bins of smaller throwaways dominate the warehouse.

Everything is processed and re-used when possible with the more intricate recycled items dismantled in the winter months, which keeps the staff of six busy full time when collections are low. Hazardous elements are removed, raw materials separated for re-use, and what remains is usually shredded.

Helping to move the mountains of unwanted stuff, is Certified Recycling’s electric forklift – or Dougie as they have nicknamed it.

The company bought the 2018 Doosan 25 model about a year ago, switching from a 2006 propane-powered forklift. “It’s quiet, efficient and odorless, and it’s incredible the difference it has made, said Chastek. “Especially in the winter.”

Chasktek said the energy savings is not just measured by the fuel the electric forklift doesn’t use.

Without the exhaust an internal combustion engine forklift generates, he said the air exchanger runs less. The big garage doors don’t need to be open in the winter, which means the furnace runs less and the warehouse can easily maintain 62 degrees despite the cold outdoors. In the summer, doors can be open without needing fans to chase out the smell and smoke.

Now, instead of spending $150 to $200 on propane each week, Dougie is simply plugged into a smart charger overnight, giving plenty of charge time to run a 6 to 8-hour day, sometimes 6 days a week. “We get 8 hours of straight run time a charge, which is about two days of work,” said Chastek.

Chastek said the electric forklift is more powerful than its combustion engine (or propane powered) counterpart. “The weight of the load actually helps with the battery recharge,” he said. “There’s no clutch, no braking and the sensitivity of the controls is very light to the touch.”

Paired with the electric forklift is Dougie’s “baby,” an electric pallet jack nicknamed Clark after the manufacturer. “It’s the coolest item we use all day,” said Chastek. He said the company also kept its newer Nissan propane forklift as a back-up when things are busy. “It’s named Roach, because it smokes all the time.”

As with any industry, Chastek said over the years he has noticed trends, as once-in demand appliance choices fall by the wayside. “We’re starting to get flat screen TVs and front-loading washing machines. When we started the business, appliances were better quality and were 10-plus years old and usually trashed simply because they were out of style. Now we’re seeing things that just last one to five years.”

One thing he doesn’t see as a trend is the electric forklift. Despite the initial $40,000 cost, Chastek already sees the payback.  “We are a company of our word. If we buy something, it has to be reliable.”

“We don’t need to be the biggest or baddest to be a leader in the industry,” said Chastek. “As there are needs, we diversify. Needs, technology and resources keep changing.”

As for others considering an electric forklift, Chastek said do your research and see what’s available.

“Don’t be scared away by the initial cost. It’s not just the fuel savings. It goes into saving so much more.”