Wilkins family opens Got Scrap? recycling center

CHICAGO HEIGHTS - Got Scrap? We Pay More!, a full-service scrap recycling business, has opened at 223 E. 12th St. in Chicago Heights.

The company was founded by father-and-son team, Peter and Josh Wilkins, and caters to the construction and retail industries.

The construction industry has its own unique needs. Contractors typically lack the time to really maximize their returns on their scrap, the owners said. Got Scrap? has designed a program to make contractors' jobs easier by offering contractor rewards and a loyalty incentive program, along with immediate weighted roll-off and pick up service.

Peter Wilkins founded Wilkins Rebuilders Supply in 1986 in his garage. Today, it is one of the largest suppliers of truck parts in the Midwest. He also opened Wilkins Truck Sales in 2014. In 2011, Josh Wilkins founded Brookfield Iron & Metal to help expand the family business by penetrating the scrap metal industry. Brookfield is now processing hundreds of thousands of tons of scrap each year.

A good friend of the Wilkins family, Josh Shank, has been appointed head of operations at Got Scrap? Shank also grew up in the scrap industry with his father.

"There aren't many companies that make scrapping in the construction industry easy or convenient, which is what contractors really need," Shank said. "We are focused on catering to the way that they operate in order to provide value they haven't had before."