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Waste Disposal Costs

How to deal with rising waste disposal costs

In the future, there will be more and more pressure on margins for companies in the waste sector. This will mainly be driven by market conditions and to a certain degree by governmental intervention. Waste contractors, can still have plenty of influence over their own profitability. But how?

 

Bin weighing technologies as the answer to rising waste disposal costs

One step would be to use advancing technology that assist in identifying loss-making contracts. This includes on-board dynamic bin weighing, bin identification, in-cab technology, and route optimization. By utilizing this technology, waste collection contractors can maximize their operational efficiencies.

Charging by waste is now seen by many forward-thinking waste management operations as the most efficient method of billing its clients, as it helps them identify contracts that are systematically exceeding their contracted bin weights. It not only forces clients to be more mindful of what they throw away but also provides waste management companies with opportunities to offer a range of add-on services, such as extra collections, additional recycling bins as well as a clear understanding and reporting of the daily work activity.

 

Example of a successful use of bin weighing technologies

To profit from these possibilities, waste vehicles will need to be equipped with on-board dynamic bin weighing and RFID technology combined with in-cab rounds management tools providing real time data information and fully linked directly to the waste company’s back-office software. By this method, all bins are automatically identified and weighed during the emptying process providing immediate and concise data analysis. One such person who has recognized this opportunity is Clearaway MD Andrew Gibson, a waste contractor from the Midlands, UK, Andrew states that since he started a pay-by-weight (PAYB) billing system “we have realized savings of more than £100,000, which has supported the initial cost of investment in the technology. Until this was introduced by us, 15% of all collections were above the contracted weight, which consequently was clearly impacting our profitability and service to our customers”.

  

 

Needed actions from councils

Although this technology benefit is now fully recognized by trade waste management companies. As the cost of waste disposal increases and recycling rates continue to stagnate, council collection operations need to take far better control of what is disposed of. With a number of councils now charging for a green waste service, perhaps it is time that they also considered extending this technology investment to cover additional waste streams, which, in turn, should also boost recycling rates. In this way, not only individuals and waste collection operations both profit from a more transparent waste disposal but also so does the environment.

 What about you? How are you dealing with rising waste disposal costs?

 

IanLewis 28.11.2017 0 5366
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