YOUNGSTOWN — In the distance, a sign can be seen at the bottom of Gypsy Lane where it dead ends into U.S. Route 422:

“HUNGRY SHREDDER NEEDS SCRAP.”

Behind the sign is one of the few remaining Mahoning Valley steel mills — formerly the Youngstown Sheet and Tube Brier Hill Works, now a tube mill owned by Vallourec Star.

It’s hard to see the shredder from Gypsy Lane, but you can frequently hear it working as you pass by, grinding and tumbling. And from Route 422, one can typically see piles of shredded and waiting-to-be shredded metal.

Trucks hauling scrap to the facility can be seen and trailers hauling crushed vehicles are also a common sight.

People driving past might wonder how the operation works, asking: Is it owned by Vallourec Star to provide raw materials for its tube mill? If not, where does the shredded metal go? Where does it come from?

FIND OUT in Sunday’s VINDICATOR.