What Happens to Old Vehicles?

A Kalamazoo company created a new solution and it’s significantly reducing the environmental impacts of improper vehicle recycling

Ronald L. Flowers, Jr. is a Kalamazoo business owner with a powerful story to tell. As a young man, he made ends meet as a scrap metal collector. Today, he’s the Founder & Operator of Flowers Automotive Recyclers (FAR), a growing company that is using technology-enabled solutions to revolutionize automotive recycling with a goal for achieving zero waste. 

Flowers is one of the five Kalamazoo-based startup founders currently participating in the Fall 2026 cohort of the Michigan Founders Fund Pre-Accelerator powered by gener8tor. The community is invited to learn about these growing Southwest Michigan companies at the MFF Pre-Accelerator Showcase happening in Kalamazoo on Nov. 19.  

Reverse Engineering & Recycling Vehicles in Kalamazoo (and beyond)

The traditional automotive scrapyard removes limited high-value components from vehicles, but most of the car is crushed and creates automotive shredder residue, a waste product and  environmental contaminant. Flowers is pioneering a new approach which identifies 85 materials that can be removed from vehicles and recycled.

“Michigan put the world on wheels and it’s ideal for Michigan to lead an industrialized, healthy way to recycle wheels,” said Flowers. “I haven’t seen another company in the country that’s focused on zero waste like we are at FAR. Our company – and Michigan – can change the way old vehicles are handled.”

“We’re reverse manufacturing the vehicles,” Flowers said. “The same way manufacturers assemble vehicles, we want to take them back apart and make sure the whole vehicle goes down the proper recycling stream.”

Flowers combined his early lessons from scrap metal collecting and recycling with five years of research and innovation, accelerated by the use of technology and AI. 

Today, the company has nine employees working in their Kalamazoo facility. “Just two years ago, my team was working outside in the mud,” said Flowers. “Now, we have an indoor facility and it’s just amazing how far we’ve come.”

Additionally, Flowers’ expertise and innovation in automotive recycling is getting noticed. He’s partnered with Michigan’s Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE), the City of Kalamazoo, and NextCycle Michigan to date.

Statewide Company Expansion & Job Creation

This is just the beginning for FAR, though. More than anything else, Flowers wants to create more job opportunities. 

“We’re getting ready to take off,” he said. “I especially want to open more facilities in underserved areas and create jobs for those areas. That’s huge for me. We can take car waste and turn it into jobs: one vehicle and one job at a time.”

Flowers said the MFF Pre-Accelerator helped sharpen his business and investor story to support company growth. 

“I built this rocketship but I needed fuel,” Flowers said. “Michigan Founders Fund gave me the opportunity to shake the hands of people interested in what we’re building. Through the network that I’ve been connected to through the Pre-Accelerator, there’s someone available for everything. Every corner I turn, I’m meeting someone who’s helpful and that’s been game changing.” 

The MFF Pre-Accelerator is a 7-week program designed for underserved founders preparing for early investment and company growth. This fall, the program is holding a pilot cohort in Kalamazoo after four successful cohorts in Southeast Michigan. Support for the Kalamazoo cohort is provided by the Stryker Johnston Foundation, Kabundant, Kalamazoo Forward Ventures, Kalamazoo Community Foundation, and StartupZoo.

MFF Pre-Accelerator Founder Showcase is Open to the Public

The MFF Pre-Accelerator in Kalamazoo will conclude with a Founder Showcase where the participating founders will present their companies to an audience of investors, business and community leaders, and other founders. The public is welcome. 

Event details:

• Event: Michigan Founders Fund Pre-Accelerator Founder Showcase
• Cost: Free
• Who should attend: Business professionals, tech enthusiasts, founders, community leaders, investors, and students
• Register: luma.com/kzoomff 

“Ronald is a great example of the startup founders building in Kalamazoo and throughout Michigan,” said Brittni Abiolu, Program Manager at Michigan Founders Fund. “He’s leveraging Michigan’s industrial legacy and developing technology that solves a challenge that most people don’t even think about, while creating well-paying jobs and reducing environmental impact along the way.”