Supplier News

Due to the demand for the Sierra REB line of two-ram balers and conveyors, Bakersfield, California-based Sierra International Machinery has announced it is adding a 24,000-square-foot expansion at its manufacturing facility in Jesup, Georgia. This expansion will allow Sierra to increase production and meet demand for the full Sierra product line, the company says.

This will be the third expansion Sierra has added to its Georgia facility since it opened in 2008.

“We are proud to announce the expansion of our facility in Jesup, Georgia,” says John Sacco, the president and owner of Sierra International Machinery. “The success of our two-ram balers and conveyors in the waste sector has grown exponentially—far more than we initially anticipated—which can be largely contributed to our new REB-4 two-ram baler that has surpassed all expectations. With this type of growth, the expansion was necessary to meet the demand for the Sierra catalog.”

While all machines in the Sierra product line pass through the Georgia facility, every Sierra two-ram baler and conveyor is fully engineered, manufactured and assembled in Georgia. Sierra offers three different two-ram models, including the patent-pending REB-4 with dual-compression doors, and many conveyor models. Once completed, Sierra’s Georgia manufacturing facility will be 72,000 square feet and will provide additional job opportunities in the Jesup area.

AMP Robotics Corp, a Louisville, Colorado-based provider of artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics to the recycling and waste management industry, announced it has hired Robb Espinosa as vice president of operations. In this role, Espinosa will be responsible for overseeing and scaling AMP’s operations, field engineering and technical support. He will report to CEO Matanya Horowitz.

“Robb’s deep experience designing, building, managing and operating recycling and waste processing facilities is a perfect fit for AMP,” Horowitz says. “Given his background, Robb deeply understands the transformative potential of AI in recycling. His expertise managing rapidly scaling companies will be invaluable as we continue to profitably grow our business.”

Espinosa brings more than 30 years of recycling and waste management industry experience to AMP. He has held leadership roles in a variety of industrial scale processing companies. Most recently, he was COO at Midwest Recycling Service and Sales, Cartersville, Georgia, where he helped to design, build, commission and optimize material recovery facilities (MRFs) nationwide. Previously, he was vice president of operations for Rational Energies, Minneapolis, a plastics recycler that processes waste into fuel. Prior to that, he held leadership positions for Bulk Handling Systems (BHS), Eugene, Oregon; Greenstar North America, Houston; and TRI-R Systems Corp, DeKalb, Illinois.

“I look forward to using my industry expertise to scale AMP’s impressive technology platform and help the company grow to meet demand,” Espinosa says. “AMP’s innovations in AI bring groundbreaking applications to generate better quality, lower cost and higher throughput over traditional processing and labor practices without a significant change to existing operations or additional capital investment outside of AMP’s products.”

McNeilus Truck and Manufacturing Inc., a Dodge Center, Minnesota-based Oshkosh Corporation company, announced the creation of a new program to train service technicians in the maintenance of refuse vehicles.

“A refuse collection vehicle mechanic is a valuable asset to a customer’s organization and to the industry as well,” says Jim McReynolds, the vice president and general manager of customer support solutions at McNeilus. “That’s why we want to do our part to increase both the quantity and quality of the mechanics working in the industry.”

The three-day program offers a variety of courses to train technicians in the company’s ZeroRadius Automated Side Loader, the Meridian Front Loader and the company’s rear loaders. Participants can attend any combination of courses.

The program includes in-depth sessions on topics like safety, controls and monitoring, electrical components, hydraulics, tailgate systems, packer systems, arms, pneumatics and body lift systems. The courses will include both classroom sessions as well as hands-on experience with the trucks.

Dates and locations will be scheduled based on interest and demand, the company says. Classes will be held each month at different locations around the U.S., beginning the week of Dec. 11 in Salisbury, North Carolina. The company will accept training candidates from any customer who has service technicians working on McNeilus equipment.

“These training courses are designed to teach technicians what they need to know to keep their fleets in top condition, increasing efficiency and improving their company’s bottom line,” McReynolds says.

To learn more, visit the McNeilus website.

Metso Corp., Helsinki, announced that Pekka Vauramo started his new position as president and CEO of the company on Nov. 1. According to a company news release, Metso’s board of directors appointed Vauramo as its president and CEO in May.

The news release says Metso CFO Eeva Sipilä served as the company’s interim CEO until Vauramo started the position. Sipilä will continue to serve as Metso’s CFO.

Prior to this position, Vauramo served as president and CEO of Finnair, Vantaa, Finland, since 2013. Before that position, he held several management positions at Helsinki-based Cargotec from 2007 to 2013 and at Stockholm-based Sandvik from 1985 to 2007.

“I am familiar with Metso’s operating environment thanks to my long background in the industry, and therefore, I find the opportunity to start leading Metso an attractive one,” Vauramo says.

Mikael Lilius, chair of Metso’s board of directors, says Vauramo brings both competence and experience to the company. “Pekka Vauramo has a proven track record in leading businesses facing competitive global markets, and he has long and extensive experience in the mining industry and in an international business environment,” Lilius says. “His experience is a good fit for Metso, which has achieved solid momentum this year with its new and goal-oriented organization and management team. The board is confident that Pekka is the right person to lead the company forward with its current strategy and create added value for its customers and shareholders.”