How technology is making waste management safer and more efficient

Waste management today has become a far more complicated affair than simply chucking rubbish into a container and lugging it to the recycling centre.

Advances in waste management technology are coming on in leaps and bounds, playing a vital role in ensuring the future doesn’t see us drowning in overflowing landfills.

In the UK alone, waste management workers handle around 222.2 million tonnes of waste (2018 stats), so safer and more efficient solutions can’t come quick enough.

Here are some of the most fascinating innovations in waste management technology, some of which are already being adopted at SunSkips to improve efficiency and keep staff safe.

Smart lorry maintenance

Lorries that need to be taken in for servicing can seriously disrupt waste management systems. Even one lorry can take several weeks to fix, all the while rubbish continues to pile up…

Smart lorry maintenance aims to make out-of-action lorries a thing of the past, monitoring vehicles in real-time to identify issues before they become serious.

Predicting the optimal time to replace parts rather than finding out about it when it’s too late not only means more vehicles on the road but also keeps drivers safe from avoidable accidents.

Pneumatic waste pipes

While keeping lorries running optimally is useful for a waste management system to function effectively, one city has eliminated the need for lorries to collect waste altogether.

In Songdo, South Korea, pneumatic waste pipes have been installed in every building in the city. The system of air-powered tubes sends waste from homes and businesses to a central processing facility, massively reducing traffic congestion and pollution.

Even more impressive is the fact it only takes seven people to run the entire system, making managing the city’s waste incredibly safe as there’s very little human interaction with the rubbish.

Driver aids

It’s unlikely we’ll see waste pipes installed in Suffolk and Cambridge anytime soon, so until then, the well-being of SunSkips’ waste lorry drivers is a top priority.

SunSkips’ fleet of HGVs is equipped with GPS systems, providing turn-by-turn directions to reduce driver fatigue and decrease the chances of getting lost.

SunSkips lorries also boast cameras so drivers can see clearly when backing up to prevent accidents and help navigate tight spaces.

Logistics

Planning routes used to be a time-consuming process for waste managers, which was often done manually without any up-to-the-minute data. But now, software applications take the leg work out of charting the best routes – and they do a better job too!

SunSkips uses these applications to take into account traffic patterns, construction zones, and weather conditions when planning routes. As a result, drivers avoid traffic delays, arrive on time and can add new collections to their journey as and when they come up.

GPS tracking allows companies to track their fleet in real-time, make last-minute changes and ensure drivers are on track to complete their day’s collections. Data from the GPS can be further used to improve route efficiency and identify areas where issues commonly occur.

Waste tracking

It has become increasingly difficult to know how much waste is being generated in the UK – not to mention where it really goes after it’s collected.

But new technology is making it possible to track waste from start to finish, providing valuable data that can be used to improve recycling rates and reduce landfill usage.

Tracking systems using RFID (radio-frequency identification, the same technology used in department stores to tag items and prevent them from being stolen) and blockchain (which is what cryptocurrency is based on) can not only make sure waste is going where it’s supposed to, but is also being used to crack down on waste crime like fly-tipping.

MORE: Tracking plastic waste from Tesco to… Turkey?!

AI screening lines

 

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SunSkips has worked hard to refine its recycling screening processes, which separates valuable waste from contaminants that can’t be recycled. This involves clever flip-flow screens and air classifiers to extract even the tiniest waste particles.

Future screening lines will introduce artificial intelligence (AI) to help identify waste items that are harder to spot by humans. This technology is already in use in some recycling centres in the UK to prevent dangerous items like batteries from exploding in the mechanisms – and San Francisco has adopted AI in its screening lines to divert around 80% of the city’s waste from landfill.

Smart bins

 

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Smart bins are intelligent containers equipped with sensors and compactors to make waste collection dramatically more efficient.

These clever containers can track the amount of waste being generated and provide real-time data on waste levels. This information can be used to optimise collection routes and ensure bins are emptied only when they become full to save fuel. The bins can also compact waste down to 10% of its original volume automatically.

Polish company Bin-e has even developed a smart bin that can recognise the objects put into it and pre-sort them ready for collection.

Drones

A pioneering new study used drones hovering above citizens in Bournemouth to study their waste habits and work out what influenced their decisions to litter.

Researchers concluded that people who felt they were being nagged by anti-littering campaigns were actually more likely to litter than if they didn’t encounter them in the first place.

More interestingly, the study found that when people are offered fun alternatives to standard waste containers, like disco bins or cigarette receptacles that allow people to vote in a poll, littering rates plummeted dramatically.

The bright future of waste management

Technology is changing the way waste is managed, leading to a positive impact on both the economy, the environment and the safety of workers.

With waste crime on the rise, governments are investing more and more into research and development for new technologies that will soon become the norm in the industry.

What was once a messy business is now on the cutting edge, with the best and brightest professionals from both the public and private sectors setting high standards in making waste management cleaner, safer and more efficient.

SunSkips is excited about the future of waste management and is always looking to the horizon for innovations that can be adopted across our three sites in East Anglia.