The department may purchase, lease, construct, or otherwise acquire and may maintain all necessary equipment, machinery, supplies, buildings, and other essential items and employ the necessary labor to remove road materials from the land, to prepare the materials for use, and to manufacture the materials into roadmaking products. The department may sell any surplus of materials or products to any political or governmental subdivision or public corporation of this state or to any contractor who will use such materials or products exclusively for building or maintaining roads, streets, alleys, or structures of a political or governmental subdivision or public corporation of this state. The funds received from the sale of the road materials or products shall be paid into the state treasury and credited to the Highway Cash Fund.