United Catalyst Corporation is a North American-based processor of scrap catalytic converters that offer global refining services.  Getting you the most from your converters with a process you can trust.  We feel that an educated customer is our best customer.  We know this industry can be hard to navigate, but we have some expert tips to help you through the process of converter recycling.

#1 Tip: Always follow The Four P’s of converter recycling profitability.  You need a process, a program, and a partner you can trust.  You also need to learn the power of Education.

#2 Tip: A Process You Can Trust – You can sell on assay instead of selling by the piece.  You will need to be paid on a sample and assay that are official, accurate, and verifiable.

#3 Tip: A Program You Can Trust – You need to get money when you need it to run your business.  Getting you the most money from your converters should not mean you have to wait three months to get paid or until you have a truckload.  With most processors, you have payment choices.

#4 Tip: A Partner You Can Trust – Selling on assay or recovery helps eliminate grading scams and two-for-one sales because there is a test result that can be considered the basis for the sale.  However, even with this method, nothing is guaranteed.  Working with a partner you can trust cannot be overstated.

# 5 Tip: The Power of Education – We take a complex process and try to make it understandable and easy to use.  You will increase your profits once you learn about your converters and your yard profile.  No one will ever be able to take advantage of you again.

#6 Tip: Focus on the Numbers – We strongly advise our customers to know their count before selling.  If you do not have an accurate unit count, you will not know your actual average.

#7 Tip: Understand the Importance of Weights – Next to knowing your unit count, weights are the second most important piece of information.  Be sure your processor is mass balancing all weights IN and OUT of their facility.  If you are missing weight, you are missing money.

#8 Tip: Making Sense of the Assay Report and Final Invoice – Both can look like mumbo-jumbo, but when you understand what should be on them, you are less likely to fall prey to any unethical practices and leave money on the table.

#9 Tip: One Way.  Assay. – Assay-based selling with a process, a program, and a partner you can trust (and verify) is the only way to maximize the money you get for your cats with any certainty.  There is more than one good way to do most things in life.  This is not true with converter recycling.

#10 Tip: Play the Long Game – Keep selling into the market on assay.  Do not take unnecessary risks.  Play the long game.

#11 Tip: Increase Your Averages – By switching to Assay, your average cat sale should be up anywhere from 5-45%, depending on how your buyer was treating you.

#12 Tip: Be Meticulous – Be meticulous about safeguarding your converters: locks, video, counts, personnel.  Even if it takes a significant amount of time and money, do whatever it takes.  The primary responsibility lies with you.

#13 Tip: Never tell your buyer, You Know Where They Are – If you are selling by the piece, never say to the converter company, “you know where they are.” This is a license to steal.

#14 Tip: Mark Your Cats – Another way to safeguard against theft is knowing your count and secretly marking your cats.  If your cat count is consistently short when you sell, start marking them in an unknown way.  Pick a color each week or month and spray inside the cat.  If someone takes your converter and tries to come back and sell it to you, you have got them.

#15 Tip: Put Your Halves Aside – If you are selling by the piece, never let the company put the halves on the truck until you inspect them.  If a converter is worth $300 and it’s three-quarters full, why would you take half price when the guy sells it as a full?

#16 Tip: Do Business with Good People – Good people need to do business with good people.  Screen your clients and customers.  Know your customer (KYC) is a legal requirement to comply with Anti-Money Laundering laws (AML).  Protect yourself and your business.

#17 Tip: Become an Educated Customer – The best recyclers know their numbers in converter recycling and partner with companies that educate.

#18 Tip: Audit your program – Become a data junkie.  Learn all the key metrics to avoid misleading data, like your average converter price, and track actual sales.  As you gain data points, you will be amazed at how easy it is to get misled.

#19 Tip: Switch to Assay – There is only one way to recycle a scrap catalytic converter.  It must be de-canned, milled, sampled, assayed, smelted, and refined.

#20 Tip: Get All the Money for Your Converters – How much money do you want from your converters?  Your answer should be all of it.  How do you get all the money from your converters?  Process and sell them on assay.

If you have questions about this article or any issue pertaining to catalytic converter recycling, our team is here to assist you.  Recycling converters on assay is a journey.  We hope you will rely on us at United Catalyst as your guide.  To subscribe to our daily e-newsletter or get Platinum Group Metal prices texted twice daily to your phone, TEXT Daily to 864-834-2003.  You can also call us or email us at [email protected].