In a conference call with investors on Dec. 17 to announce two “major milestone events,” green recycler and manufacturer Axion International Holdings (AXIH) announced the launch of its recycling subsidiary AXION Recycled Plastic Incorporation through the acquisition of significant assets, and the signing of a three-year, $42 million contract.

The tone of the conference call was decidedly optimistic, citing Axion’s strong sales, the advantages that come from being a vertically integrated processor, and the growing demand for recycled materials going forward.

In the call, Axion President and CEO Steve Silverman stated that the company has $3.8 million in sales backlog at the current time, and that the company is “very excited about our future.”

There are currently 20 million rail ties in need of replacing and some 20,000 deficient bridges, representing a major demand for recycled plastic building materials.

Silverman told investors that Axion’s products had been used by the Army Corps of Engineers to build three bridges at Fort Bragg, and an additional two bridges at Fort Eustice that were made out of one hundred percent recycled plastic products, “a first of their kind.”

Axion can now claim to be a fully integrated recycling company, and have the facilities to process material in its rawest form to produce the final plastic products. Axion is also engaging in reprocessing for other clients, charging a fee to other companies to utilize their processing facilities.

In response to an investor’s question on the three-year contract, Silverman called the $42 million deal with a large Midwestern plastics company a “binding contract” that would amount to $12 million per annum in business.

Axion has been on a tear in 2013.The company’s shares have advanced 235.14 percent on the year, and 138.46 percent in the last month alone. Axion is currently trading at $1.18 a share.