SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2007
Burton Albert has guided Albert Bros. for almost five decades, helping this fourth-generation family scrap business succeed while remaining steadfastly independent.
BY SI WAKESBERG
After almost 50 years in the scrap business, you’d think that Burton Albert would be content to retire and play golf all day or devote his time to his beloved philanthropic activities, but you’d be wrong. The 75-year-old chairman of Albert Bros. (Waterbury, Conn.) still loves being active in the business. “Honestly and truly, I can’t wait to get to the office,” he says. “I just love going in.” And who can blame him? Albert Bros. is one of an elite group of scrap companies that can boast of reaching their 112th anniversary and fourth generation of family leadership, and Burton Albert—who prefers the nickname Burt—sits at the firm’s helm.
From that corporate perch, he can look back proudly on the company’s evolution from a 2-acre scrapyard to one of the largest independent scrap processors in New England. Remaining independent is important to Burt. Maybe it’s his freedom-loving New England nature, but he has turned down many buyout offers over the years—and Albert Bros. has every intention of remaining family-owned and independent well into the future, he says.
A Nor’east Scrap Story
Albert Bros.’ remarkable tale began when brothers Nathan and Lewis Albert emigrated from Lithuania to Connecticut in 1891. At first they made a living as peddlers, buying scrap metal and selling tin goods. In 1895 they opened their first physical scrap operation, and Albert Bros. was born. The company moved several times in its early years until settling on a 2-acre site in Waterbury with a 5,000-square-foot building. There the company remained for about 54 years.
In 1918, Lewis left the company to manage his own coal and oil business, and Nathan carried on the scrap business under the Albert Bros. name. The next year, Nathan fell ill and his eldest son, Sidney—Burt’s father—stepped in, marking the second generation of Alberts in the business. “The family had six kids to support, so my dad started working full time at 14,” Burt says. Though Sidney was a promising student—he was valedictorian of his grammar school—he never got the chance to continue his studies. “He told me many times he wanted to, but his work hours were just too long, so he couldn’t do it,” Albert says.
In the early 1900s, Waterbury was home to many copper and brass mills, which earned it the nickname of Brass Center of the World. The inscription above the town’s City Hall entrance, in fact, is Quid Aere Perennius, which translates to What Is More Lasting Than Brass? Albert Bros. kept up with the city’s industrial growth, handling mostly nonferrous scrap from both industrial and retail sources. The company grew thanks to Nathan’s solid foundation and Sidney’s tireless efforts, Burt says.
Despite his family’s roots in the scrap business, Burt’s career interest initially was elsewhere—American history and a possible teaching position. He pursued an American studies curriculum at Amherst College (Amherst, Mass.), earning a bachelor’s degree in 1954. After graduating, Burt—who had been in the ROTC program during school—entered the U.S. Air Force as a lieutenant, serving as an intelligence briefing officer in 1955 and 1956.
Upon his discharge as a captain, Albert returned to academia with two more years of study in American history at Brown University (Providence, R.I.). “I thought I wanted to become a college professor,” he says, “but I frankly didn’t like the politics at the university level, so I called my dad one day and said, ‘How would you like me to have a try at the business?’”
Thus, in 1958, Albert Bros. ushered in the third generation of family leadership. “It was the best decision I ever made,” Burt says with a smile, “except for one better—my decision to marry my wife, Sylvia,” which also happened in 1958.
Apparently, Burt wasn’t the only one pleased with his decision to join the family company. Sidney, who had worked so hard for so long, trained his son for three months then took a well-deserved hiatus. “I started in September, and in December he was on his way to Florida for three months,” Burt recounts with a laugh. “I learned as much as I could from him in those first few months, but I had to learn a lot on my own afterward.” Of course, his father did return to Albert Bros., and he served as a great mentor to Burt for many years.
In the 1960s, Waterbury’s copper and brass mills began to close, forcing Albert Bros. to broaden its presence in the ferrous market. “We knew we couldn’t just handle one thing, we had to handle everything,” Albert says, adding that he focused many of his efforts on expanding the company’s industrial business.
Albert Bros. grew substantially under Burt’s direction, so much so that the company had to move to larger quarters in 1971. It settled on East Aurora Street on an 11-acre, rail-served tract with 50,000 square feet of building space.
The company took another big step in the 1980s, when it welcomed the fourth generation of Alberts—Burt’s two sons—into the leadership ranks. (His daughter, who lives out of the area, chose not to join her brothers in the company.) Currently Eric serves as president and Jonathan as executive vice president. His sons have brought “an even higher level of professionalism into our company,” Albert says, adding that it has been “one of the greatest privileges of my career to work with my two sons in the business.” The company has “grown an awful lot in the past 15 years, and that’s due to my sons, not me,” he says modestly. “I think they’ve done a marvelous job.”
Albert Bros. has indeed grown in recent decades, buying adjacent properties around it on East Aurora Street to the point where it now occupies 21 acres and 100,000 square feet of building space. Its equipment roster has expanded to include a 1,000-ton shear, a three-ram ferrous baler, a nonferrous baler, two briquetters, several hydraulic and lattice-boom cranes, and various loaders. From its single location, the company also has extended its business reach, sourcing material throughout the United States and selling its processed scrap nationally and internationally. “Among companies that are still independent, we’re one of the largest dealers in New England,” Albert states.
In 1995, Albert Bros. marked a major milestone—its 100th anniversary. Many local, political, and community leaders attended the company’s celebration event, including Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman, the governor, and Waterbury’s mayor.
When Burt ponders the secrets of his company’s success, he says that “the real story of Albert Bros. can be seen in its commitment to people, whether they are our customers, our suppliers, or our employees.” That philosophy starts at the top with the Albert family and extends throughout the company’s ranks. “Everyone in our firm understands that customers are our number-one responsibility,” he says. “Our highest priority is meeting our customers’ needs. We try hard to be creative with them, to get them to look at new ways of handling scrap that are more efficient and beneficial to them—and to us.” By doing that, Burt notes, the company has “generated tremendous loyalty from long-term customers spanning three generations.” He’s also proud that Albert Bros. has “numerous employees who have remained with the company for more than 25 years.”
Another key to success, he says, is “we’ve tried very hard to treat people with integrity,” which has enabled Albert Bros. to establish a “very good reputation in the trade.” Even during difficult times, “we’ve never changed our ways,” he says. “We did things the right way, no matter what.” That includes investing “a tremendous amount of energy and money” to make its operations as safe and environmentally friendly as possible, Albert notes.
The company must be doing things right because over the years it has received awards from the state of Connecticut for its workplace safety record and environmental safeguards. In addition, Albert Bros. was the first recipient of the People’s Bank Ulizio Business Achievement Award, given to a company that has made significant contributions to its industry.
In 2002, the company was a finalist for the Connecticut Family Business of the Year Award given by the University of Connecticut Business School and Family Business Program. And in 2004, Albert Bros. received the Traurig Family Award for Philanthropy from the Connecticut Community Foundation, which recognizes a business or professional firm that exemplifies long-term commitment and generosity in the Waterbury community.
Planning for the Future
With Albert Bros. looking ahead to its 113th year in business and beyond, Burton Albert says the firm’s ongoing success will depend, in part, on retaining its current customers and scrap supplies from industrial, retail, and dealer sources. Also, the company must continue to maintain a safe and environmentally friendly workplace while delivering quality products to the marketplace, which “demands constant vigilance,” he says.
The scrap industry’s ongoing globalization is another challenge—and an opportunity. “Lots of nations that were not scrap consumers before are now buying all types of material,” Albert says. “Also, there are a lot more people in the world in developing economies,” which is creating demand for raw materials to build infrastructure and make consumer products. This global demand is skewing, but not eliminating, the cyclical nature of the scrap market, he observes. “I don’t think the business cycle has changed permanently, but it has changed for several years to come, albeit with typical downturns,” he says. “The demand for basic materials is going to continue, not just because of China but because of globalization in general.”
Albert also points to the consolidation trend that has returned to the scrap industry after flaring up, and burning out, in the late 1990s. Consolidators have absorbed many family scrap businesses, but Albert Bros. is steadfast in its desire to remain independent. “We’ve enjoyed being independent and making our own decisions,” Burt says. “We resisted that trend in the 1990s, and we’re not interested in it today.” Instead, he and his sons are waiting to see if a fifth generation will take over the business reins. They will have to wait a few years, though, since Burt’s grandchildren range in age from 4 to 19. “We talk about it because we very much want this to continue,” he says. “We’re hoping that one or more of the kids will be interested. It would be wonderful for them as well as for Albert Bros.”
Burt’s desire to see the family business continue makes sense given that family is the “most important and rewarding aspect of my life,” he says. In addition to living near his three children, he has “very close relationships not only with my three children, their spouses, and my eight grandchildren, but also with my extended family. Spending time with my family is my priority.”
A Wonderful Ride
One of Burton Albert’s fundamental principles is that one has to give back to the community, which is why he is so devoted to philanthropic and community service. “I’ve spent a lot of time doing volunteer and nonprofit work, and I’ve loved every minute of it—and I still do,” he says.
This value system has made Burt and the Albert family well-known and respected throughout their community. His résumé of volunteer activities is too long to list here, but a few highlights include his service on the boards of many civic groups and Jewish organizations, including the Federation: Jewish Communities of Western Connecticut, and on the board of trustees of St. Mary’s Hospital in Waterbury. In 2005, in fact, Burt was the first recipient of the St. Mary’s Hospital Champion Award, which recognized him as the hospital’s longest-serving board member as well as both his and Albert Bros.’ longstanding commitment to the community and the hospital. Also, for their combined dedicated service, Burt and Sylvia received the Menorah Award from B’nai Israel in Southbury, Conn.
In addition to community service, Burt believes wholeheartedly in supporting and participating in industry trade associations. Albert Bros. has been a member of ReMA and its predecessor groups—ISIS and NARI—almost since the beginning, with Sidney—Burt’s father—helping to establish the Southern New England Chapter of ISIS many decades ago. “My father always told me how important it was to not only act as a group but to gain knowledge from your colleagues,” he recalls.
Burt was active in NARI, serving in numerous posts including the board of directors and the executive committee. And Eric has carried on this tradition in ISRI, including serving as president of the New England Chapter and as a national board member, among other positions. “Our growth as a company has been greatly enhanced by working within the trade associations,” Burt says. Now 75, Burton Albert has no plans to retire completely. “I have the best of both worlds,” he says. “I’m not heavily involved in the day-to-day operations, but I’m in the office at least two or three days every week.” The real reason he doesn’t want to retire, though, is a matter of the heart. “I love the business,” he admits. “It has been a wonderful ride, and I think my boys are stuck with me for a long time.”
Burt’s Basics
Born: Sept. 5, 1932, in Waterbury, Conn.
Education: Earned a B.A. in American studies in 1954 from Amherst College (Amherst, Mass.). Pursued two additional years of study at Brown University (Providence, R.I.) but left in 1957 without earning a degree to join Albert Bros.
Military Service: Following the ROTC program at Amherst College, he entered the U.S. Air Force in 1955 as a lieutenant and served as an intelligence briefing officer, leaving the service in 1956 as a captain.
Family: Married Sylvia Meisel in 1958. Three children—Eric, Jonathan, and Debbie—and eight grandchildren.
Career: Joined Albert Bros. in 1958 and has worked there ever since, currently serving as chairman.
Community and Philanthropic Service: Member for 37 years of the board of trustees of St. Mary’s Hospital in Waterbury, Conn.; chairman of the Harold Leever Regional Cancer Center; active for almost 50 years in the Federation: Jewish Communities of Western Connecticut; active in B’nai Israel in Southbury, Conn.; and board member of St. Margaret’s-McTernan School (now Chase Collegiate College), among other positions.
Hobbies: Listening to classical music, playing golf, reading, spending time with family, working on volunteer and philanthropic activities, and spending time at his second home in Boca Raton, Fla. •
Si Wakesberg is New York bureau chief for Scrap.
Burton Albert has guided Albert Bros. for almost five decades, helping this fourth-generation family scrap business succeed while remaining steadfastly independent.