4 Signs You Need to Review Your Waste Management System

Often considered the “ugly duckling” of business management, the importance of waste management can sometimes be neglected. An effective waste removal plan should optimise your business’ staff, customers, budget, and carbon footprint. Its top priority is to ensure a hygienic and tidy workspace for staff to perform their jobs well, and for customers to enjoy your facility, regardless of the industry your business is in. Like any aspect of business, your waste solution should be cost-effective, with an appropriate allocated budget.

However, one thing that isn’t always considered, waste management also affects your corporate social responsibility to the environment. A reputable provider should communicate to you how your business can achieve the most sustainable solution.

A very niche area of expertise, this can also be neglected if business owners simply don’t know much about what an effective waste solution plan entails. So, here are four things that you should know to look out for - four signs that your waste management system needs to be reviewed and refined.

1. Your bins are overflowing

While this seems like a very basic thing to be aware of, collection frequencies and bin sizes are two of the first important things to consider when optimising your rubbish system. An effective solution will prove that there is no excuse for bins being too small, for there to be an inadequate number of bins, or for collections to be infrequent, to accomodate to the amount of waste produced by your business.

It’s a system of supply and demand. Your provider should make clear to you your options for optimising your solution, which brings me to my next point.

2. Communicating with your provider is difficult

Communication with any business stakeholder is important, especially with one that requires specialised experts. As a business owner or manager, you’re not expected to know everything about effective waste management, but you’re entitled to a trusted provider communicating to you all aspects of your solution, especially since each solution is unique to each business.

It is expected that communication with your provider is consistent and open for you to ask questions to improve or better understand your solution. Clients also value customer service that is personalised, so liaising with the same expert is important to ensure they fully understand your business needs.

3. You’re unaware of your performance

You should be made aware of the efficacy of your solution. How much rubbish is your business producing? How much of that is, or can be, recycled? How does this compare to your competitors or your industry’s average? Questions like this allow you to consider the ultimate, how can your solution be improved?

Improving your solution is about managing its cost-effectiveness, as well as reducing its harm to the environment.

4. You’re producing far more general waste than recycled waste

The streams and amount of waste each that business and industry produces varies. However, you should be aware of how environmentally-friendly your rubbish and materials are.

There is often room for improvement in diverting waste from landfill by using more recyclable options. It’s worth discussing with your provider how to achieve a more eco-friendly solution, whether you’re concerned about the amount of general waste your business is producing, compared to recycled waste, or whether you’re simply unaware and curious if this can be improved.

It is a priority for waste management companies to find the most sustainable solution for you. For an example of how a significant amount of business waste can be diverted from landfill, read a testimonial from one of our happy clients about their 500% increase of waste being repurposed and recycled.

Is time you stopped neglecting your waste management plan? Speak to one of our trusted waste management experts on 1300 729 922 or visit our website to discuss how your plan can be improved.

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How to Choose the Best Waste Management Company?

How to Choose Best Waste Management Company?

Waste management is an essential, but sometimes, underrated aspect of business management. It’s a necessity that businesses must consider, and it’s important for business owners to know what to look for when determining the best rubbish removal provider. Here is a list of questions to consider.

How flexible are their services?

Each business produces a number of waste streams and has specific waste management needs. This includes bin sizes and collection frequencies. Your rubbish removal provider should tailor their solutions to your specific requirements and provide a solution for each stream of waste your business produces. Waste management services should be about convenience, and this is what you should look out for when choosing a provider.

You should also consider how reliable the company is. It’s useful to read online testimonials and reviews to determine this.

How knowledgeable are their staff?

Waste management is a fairly niche area of expertise, so it’s important that you deal with knowledgeable and experienced staff. This will allow you to get most out of your money and have the most effective waste management solution. After all, the competency of staff determines the reputation of a company.

One way to research the staff you’ll be dealing with is to search their LinkedIn profiles. Another is to set up a free consultation, which most providers allow, before signing any contracts.

How affordable are their solutions?

Last year, Victorian waste fees increased, affecting both domestic and commercial rubbish removal providers. Waste management fees can represent a sizeable expense for businesses, so there’s no doubt business owners will shop around for the most affordable option.

It’s the responsibility of the waste management provider to ensure their clients understand their options for cost-effective solutions. They should also be transparent with their clients when discussing how best to tackle Victoria’s waste fee increase and provide prices and the quality of services that clients are happy to pay for.

How much do they care about sustainability?

In a society so environmentally aware, a company’s corporate social responsibility significantly affects its reputation. This is especially relevant for waste management companies, as their work directly affects the environment.

You should ensure that your provider acts ethically and provides you with sustainable solutions that increase your recycling rate and reduce your landfill contribution. The best provider is one that cares about both the environment and the quality of services they offer to their clients.

Nationwide Waste Solutions is a leading waste management company in Australia. With over 15 years experience, we guarantee solutions that consider sustainability, convenience, and affordability. For more information, give us a call on 1300 729 922 or contact us here.

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Waste Management for Schools and Universities – You’re in Safe Hands

A school or university’s top priority is providing a safe and adequate environment for learning. Although waste management isn’t the first thing you think of, it plays an important role in creating a clean and comfortable education facility. Waste management is a necessity that every facility has to handle, and it’s about allowing students and staff to learn and work in a hygienic and inviting environment.

Waste management in schools and universities should be handled by both the education facility itself, and its waste management provider. To make things easy, we’ve put together our three E’s on how to effectively handle waste in your school.

Here’s what you should consider:

Educate:

A school’s waste management practices and solutions are only as good as the people practicing it (and the waste management company providing it comes a close second). That means that it’s the staff and student’s responsibility to make sure rubbish is thrown in the correct bins.

A school should incorporate an efficient waste and recycling system into their policy, and make this known to both staff and students through meetings, posters and general awareness. This should include, not only how to recycle, but why recycling and waste segregation is important for the facility and environment beyond school grounds.

Encourage:

For the convenience of students and staff, it’s important to have an adequate amount of bins around the school. For example, bins should be placed on each floor or level, in every classroom and office space area, and in each section of the outdoor school yard.

It’s a no brainer that this simply encourages everyone to participate in effective rubbish disposal by allowing there to be facilities to do so. It also greatly minimises the chances of people littering.

Evaluate:

Schools should work with their waste management provider on the logistics of handling waste. This includes:

• Budget and costs
• Collection frequencies
• The size of the lift waste bins
• What bins are needed to tackle each stream of waste
• Where to place the different types of bins

Considering that schools and universities are massive facilities, it’s important to implement the most cost-effective waste management solution in their budget. The size of the school will also determine what sizes are required for the lift waste bins and how often the waste gets collected.

Schools and universities produce a number of different waste streams, and this should be considered with what bins are needed and where to put them.

Classrooms should be equipped with regular bins and paper recycling bins.

Libraries need paper recycling bins, mostly. If your school library permits eating, then regular waste bins are required as well.

Admin/Office Space should be equipped with e-waste recycling bins for ink cartridges, paper and cardboard recycling bins, and regular bins.

Cafeterias and Outdoor Yards should have regular bins, food compost bins, and can and hard plastic recycling bins.

Additionally, washroom services are required.

It’s important to tackle every waste stream that schools produce to ensure sustainable disposal practices.

When evaluating the logistics of a good waste management plan, you want to work with a reputable provider. At Nationwide Waste Solutions, we create collaborative, sustainable and cost-effective solutions for your education facility. Speak to one of our waste management experts on 1300 729 922 or request a free quote today.

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