Q&A: Dan Gregory on baler performance, investment, and innovation

Whether a facility is processing post-consumer plastics, corrugated cardboard, or mixed paper, the baler is the machine everything else feeds into, and the one that brings production to a halt when it goes down.

As recyclable material volumes grow and markets demand tighter, cleaner bales, operators are under increasing pressure to squeeze more efficiency out of their equipment without always having the budget to replace it.

I caught up with Dan Gregory, president of Unlimited Recycling Resources, to discuss the factors driving today's baler investment decisions, how to use performance indicators to catch problems early, and where facilities can find meaningful efficiency gains in their existing equipment.

Slone Fox: What's driving your customers' equipment investment decisions right now, and what matters most to them beyond the initial purchase price?

Dan Gregory: I believe, after hearing from our customers, that ease of maintenance is very high on the list. Reliability is and always will remain a top concern, but that goes hand in hand with ease of maintenance. No confined space issues and multiple access points create simplicity. When you make it easy to clean, workers will clean it more often.

Along with these factors, access to spare parts is extremely important! Does the manufacturer hide the parts information? Or do they give you the manufacturer part information? Holding customers hostage for parts information is not a maintenance-friendly practice.

SF: What do you see as the next major shift in baling technology over the next five to ten years?

DG: This is an exciting question. For me, it is the ability for sortation equipment to monitor the sortation process. It can determine contamination percentage and total weight of the material in the bunker and, with proper controls, even change the mode of material on the baler depending on what bunker is currently being emptied. It's extremely exciting.

SF: What performance indicators should recyclers track to evaluate whether their baler is operating at peak efficiency and why?

DG: Throughput is a key indicator of baler health, but that has to be weighed against employee performance. Regular preventive maintenance — tracking pressures, testing your hydraulic oil for contamination — is also key. It's like a blood test for your baler. It can reveal hidden issues before they affect your performance.

SF: For a facility that can't afford major capital upgrades, what lower-cost operational adjustments tend to deliver the fastest return?

DG: That is an extremely difficult question. I personally never recommend purchasing used equipment. In my experience, you inherit the problems that someone else had that motivated them to replace the equipment.

If it's been completely refurbished, then the cost is elevated to a level that is not much less than a new machine. You basically have a 15-year-old-plus piece of equipment with old technology and old structure. Plus, new equipment may present great tax advantages.

SF: In your experience, where do you most commonly see opportunities to improve efficiency in the baling process? Are the biggest gains typically found in the equipment itself, the upstream material flow, operator practice, or somewhere else entirely?

DG: For most facilities, it's understanding your floor — your workers, materials, and layout. Keep workers who may be idle in a process moving. When one portion is done, shift them to assist elsewhere, do housekeeping, or prepare the next product. Mostly, small adjustments make big changes in production.

This article originally appeared in the May/June 2026 issue of Recycling Product News.