Joe Foytek

REGIONAL SALES MANAGER

When the word recycling is discussed, green is a closely associated term. In the case of W. Silver Recycling, Inc., that would be right-on target.

“Being green is one of the most important things we always keep in mind when we’re talking to our clients,” said Joe Foytek, regional sales manager for W. Silver Recycling, Inc. “That’s why we focus a lot on working with maquiladoras.  The scrap products we get from them can go into a mill and come back to be utilized sooner than expected. We work with all our clients to take a green approach, always trying to see if we can identify more revenue from what they’re considering industrial waste.”

Founded in 1920 by William Silver, the company has stayed in the family, first to a son-in-law and now to Lane Gaddy, Silver’s grandson, who holds the reins as CEO. With 11 locations, nine from California to Texas and two in Mexico, the home office remains in El Paso.

“We specialize in manufacturing industrial accounts. It’s a real eye-opener to see the process all the manufacturing and re-manufacturing companies take to develop products from the industrial scrap we collect,” Foytek said. “We maintain integrity within the industry as we conduct business nationally and internationally. We have to keep up-to-date with the regulations along the border between the federal and neighboring governments.”

Foytek’s passion for the business has grown over the last eight years as he travels back and forth across the border from the Donna facility. 

“I think it’s one of the best jobs I’ve ever had because I get to interface with so many people from different nationalities and I find we think the same,” he said. “It’s always exciting. There’s never a dull moment in the recycling industry because we get to see a lot of new technology as it’s being developed, a taste of things to come.”

“We’re going to be doing this for a long time.”