reclaimers

A reclaimers is a person or machine involved in the recovery or retrieval of material from storage or waste streams for reuse, recycling, or processing. The term is used across industries to describe both workers who salvage usable materials and equipment designed to access stored bulk materials.

In waste management and recycling, reclaimers are workers or facilities that recover valuable materials from discarded products, scrap, or waste streams. They separate, sort, and extract metals, plastics, glass, and other components for resale or remanufacture. Reclaiming can occur at landfills, material recovery facilities, metal recycling yards, and e-waste centers, and it often involves manual, mechanical, or automated processes to improve resource efficiency and reduce landfill volume.

In bulk materials handling, a reclaimer is a large mechanical system that retrieves stored bulk solids from stockpiles and feeds them into a conveyor or processing line. Common types include bucket-wheel reclaimers, bucket-line reclaimers, and stacker-reclaimers. These machines may operate on rails or within yards and are designed to move along or around piles, scoop material, and transfer it to conveyors. Reclaimers are used for coal, ore, aggregates, cement, and other bulk commodities, and may be part of integrated handling complexes at mines, power plants, ports, or processing plants. Modern reclaimers often feature automation, sensors, dust suppression, and safety systems to optimize throughput and reliability.

In chemical and industrial settings, solvent and chemical reclaimers recover usable liquids from spent solutions, used solvents, or contaminated mixtures, enabling reuse and reducing waste disposal.

Overall, reclaimers play a key role in material recovery, waste reduction, and efficiency across multiple sectors.