The Recycled Materials Association (ReMA) will recognize Jay Robinovitz with its 2026 Lifetime Achievement Award at ReMA2026. Robinovitz will be honored for his years of leadership and innovation in the recycled materials industry.
Robinovitz, whose three core tenets are safety, quality and customer service, has served the recycled materials industry for more than 50 years. He started at his family’s recycling operation, called R&R Industries Inc., in Springfield, Massachusetts. Robinovitz worked as a general manager at Aerospace Metals, Inc. in Hartford, Connecticut, as well as Schnitzer Steel Industries where he held various senior management positions including vice president of business development and major capital investments, vice president and chief operating officer of the auto parts division, and vice president of Northwest operations. He completed his career at Alter Trading, a Goldstein Group Company, where he started in 2009 as senior vice president and chief officer of operations. Robinovitz was promoted to president and chief operating officer in 2012; and on January 1, 2018, became president and chief executive officer. On April 30, 2024, he retired from Alter Trading and now serves as a member of the Alter Trading Board of directors.
In addition to his leadership roles within recycling operations, Robinovitz has worked to change regulations surrounding plastics and environmental requirements as well as material theft. He is a champion of global environmentally sustainable recycling practices.
Robinovitz started in the industry before the formation of ReMA, when the two major U.S. recycling associations of the time were the Institute of Scrap Iron and Steel (ISIS) and the National Association of Recycling Industries (NARI).
Published March 2026