Behemoth shredder set to grind

The main component of the JBF Machine Company of Germany’s shredding machine in Dockyard’s Base Logistics Building. The 2,425lbs machine is capable of shredding non-operational military uniforms in seconds. Photo by Peter Mallet, Lookout

Peter Mallett, Staff Writer ~

Base Clothing Stores is counting on a monster-sized shredding machine from Germany to cut costs, free up storage space, and improve efficiency.

For now the machine and its mechanical teeth are lying in wait on the ground floor of Dockyard’s Base Logistics building. When the machine becomes operational on Sept. 12 it will be able to quickly shred military CADPAT clothing deemed beyond economical use.

Manufactured by the JBF Machine Company of Rahden, Germany, the 2,425-lbs textile shredding machine stands approximately six feet high and four feet wide.

“I call it the Behemoth,” says Clothing Stores interim supervisor Paul Lavallee. “In the end there will be significant savings for the department in the operational movement of scrap clothing at the base.”

Lavallee said the new shredder will vastly improve the speed at which staff process tattered non-re-issuable CADPAT clothing for disposal.

The two-level machine has a giant hopper at the top where the clothing is fed, with the engine and grinders located below. After the unwanted material goes through the shredding process it is placed in a large dumpster and then disposed of by waste contractors.

Base Clothing Stores supplies all dress and work-related operational clothing for military personnel at the base. Their first-floor reception room is normally bustling with clients looking for quick solutions to their uniform requirements, so providing prompt service is of utmost importance says Lavallee.

“Since the majority of our time is spent engaging customers over the counter, it’s going to be a great time saver for our staff to have the shredder,” said Lavallee.

But shredding clothing wasn’t always the way. In the past, says Lavallee, unusable CADPAT clothing and floater coats were cut up by hand, and other uniforms and footwear were resold as Crown Assets. Some of the “scrap” clothing and footwear will still be sold through Crown Assets to recover some funds.

With approximately seven 200 to 400 lbs boxes of non-reusable clothing piling up in the building’s first floor warehouse each week, Lavallee concluded the Behemoth will be a “welcomed time saver” for his staff.