Which weight does the buyer's price apply to?

Use the accepted recovered weight. Remove rejected material, moisture deductions and container tare according to the buyer's settlement basis before entering it.

Can reclaim value be negative?

Yes. Processing charges can exceed sale proceeds. Keep the negative result visible and compare it with the cost of the available disposal alternative.

Can I use this for internal regrind?

Only with a documented internal credit per accepted pound. Enter that credit as the price and keep any avoided virgin-material purchase separate from unsupported resale assumptions.

Does this include savings from avoided disposal?

No. This result contains sale proceeds less entered processing charges. Assess avoided disposal separately so you do not count the same benefit twice.

Industrial Packaging Materials Manufacturing calculator

Scrap Reclaim Value Calculator

Find what a scrap batch returns after processing costs. Enter generated and accepted weights, the buyer's price and the batch charges.

What this calculator does

Calculate net proceeds from a measured packaging scrap batch after processing charges.

Formula used

Gross proceeds = recovered weight × sale price per pound
Net reclaim value = gross proceeds − batch processing cost
Net value per generated pound = net reclaim value ÷ generated weight
Recovered share = recovered weight ÷ generated weight × 100
Unrecovered weight = generated weight − recovered weight

Inputs explained

Generated Scrap Weight: Batch scale weight before sorting, excluding containers and pallets.
Saleable Recovered Weight: Accepted scale weight after sorting this same scrap batch.
Scrap Sale Price: Buyer's current price per accepted pound of this material grade.
Batch Processing Cost: Total sorting, processing and hauling charges assigned to this batch.

How to use the result

Best suited to film trim sale Reconciliation, recycler quote Comparison, scrap sorting economics.
Excludes avoided disposal costs, taxes and equipment investment returns. Does not predict recycler acceptance or future scrap prices. Input ceilings are computational safeguards, not plant benchmarks.

Current U.S. benchmarks

The producer price index for plastic resins and materials stands at 280.569 (BLS, Aug 2026), up 6.6% from a year earlier. Quotes priced off last quarter's material cost miss this move.
The producer price index for paper (not a paperboard or container index) stands at 282.266 (BLS, Aug 2026), up 10% from a year earlier. Quotes priced off last quarter's material cost miss this move.

Common questions

Which weight does the buyer's price apply to? Use the accepted recovered weight. Remove rejected material, moisture deductions and container tare according to the buyer's settlement basis before entering it.
Can reclaim value be negative? Yes. Processing charges can exceed sale proceeds. Keep the negative result visible and compare it with the cost of the available disposal alternative.
Can I use this for internal regrind? Only with a documented internal credit per accepted pound. Enter that credit as the price and keep any avoided virgin-material purchase separate from unsupported resale assumptions.
Does this include savings from avoided disposal? No. This result contains sale proceeds less entered processing charges. Assess avoided disposal separately so you do not count the same benefit twice.

Last reviewed 2026-10-01.