How to Overspend on Your Dumpsters This Month

Most companies in the US are overspending on their dumpsters and they’re all doing it in the following ways:

1. Getting too much service.

2. Not having the right dumpsters sizes.

3. Not having the right number of dumpsters.

These are the waste disposal problems we routinely fix for clients and we know just how much money and time can be saved by addressing each of these issues.

Getting too much waste disposal service.

There’s a good chance - it hovers around 70% - that you’re getting too much waste service. You’re getting pickups four times a week, when you only need two. Or you’re getting service everyday and you only need it three times a week.

There’s a simple reason this over-servicing occurs: the more service you get, the more your hauler gets paid. They’re incentivized to overestimate your real waste needs - not to save you money.

Once simple way to tell if you need to reduce service is by observing how full your dumpsters are when they’re serviced. If they’re less than half full, you need to reduce your service days.

Making this change will likely save you hundreds of dollars over the next year - and the effect will be multiplied across every location you implement this cost-cutting measure.

Not having the right size dumpsters.

Larger dumpsters can save you by further reducing the number of needed pick-ups. Alternatively, smaller dumpsters may reduce the rent you pay for their use.

The right size of dumpsters is critical, and there are a number of factors that can help you determine which size to use. Ask your hauler to give you quotes for:

• larger dumpsters with less service

• smaller dumpsters with more service

• smaller dumpsters with less service

You’ll need to have a pretty good idea of your trash output to know what will actually work in your favor, so it’s recommended to first reduce your service days, as we mentioned in the first tip, then adjust your dumpster sizes accordingly.

Not having the right number of dumpsters.

You’ll need to simultaneously evaluate the right number of dumpsters as well as the correct size.

You may be somewhat limited by space constraints as to how many dumpsters you can have, but it is worth exploring the possibility in order to ensure you are paying what you should for waste disposal expenses.

When you ask your hauler for quotes, be sure to ask for a varying amount of sizes.

With all of this information, you’ll be able to make the best decision for the locations in your portfolio, and you’ll likely save yourself thousands of dollars in the process.

5 Easy Waste Tips That Will Reduce Your Waste Expenses

If you take the time to do even one of these steps, you’ll save money on your waste expense in the long run.

Most companies have waste problems they just don’t know about. Their contracts are poor quality, their equipment is inefficient, and their service levels are inaccurate.

But the tips below will address each of these issues and help you stop overspending.

1. Track your contract expiration date.

2. Eliminate your auto-renewal clause.

3. See if you can lower your service levels.

4. Ask your hauler for pricing options on other equipment.

5. Get a waste review.

The little extra bit of time it will take to put these tips into action can translate into thousands of dollars in savings.

Track your contract expiration date.

Most companies don’t know when their contract expires and they let their contract renew under the same terms they currently have. You should only allow this to happen if you know for a fact that your contract terms are stellar (spoiler alert: most aren’t).

If you don’t know your contract expiration date, you won’t have time to evaluate your services. You won’t have time to see if other haulers have less expensive prices. And you won’t save what you could have saved.

Eliminate your auto-renewal clause.

This tip goes hand in hand with the one above. You need to know when your current terms of service expire, but you also need to cancel your auto-renewal clause.

Most contracts have this clause. It allows your services to renew for another contract term. But, as we mentioned above, most contract terms aren’t great. They’re costing you. If your contract renews, they’ll keep costing you - sometimes for an additional five year term!

When you cancel your auto-renewal clause, you don’t have to renew services with your current waste disposal provider. You can, but only if you are assured that your bottom line is protected and that your contract will include all the clauses it needs to do so.

See if you can lower your service levels.

We estimate that 70% of companies get too much service. The reason is simple - the more you get garbage service, the more you get charged.

If your dumpsters are half empty when they are serviced, you’re getting too many pick-ups. See if you can reduce your service days, or the number of pick-ups. This is one of the easiest ways to start saving almost immediately.

If you get charged $100 for each pick up, and you get service four times a week, you’re paying $400 each week. But you may only actually need two of those pick-ups. That’s $200 a month ($2400 a year!) that you could be saving!

Making this change can easily save you thousands of dollars in the long run.

Ask your hauler for pricing options on other equipment.

If you have the space capability, you may be able to get larger dumpsters. This can translate into fewer pickups, thus saving you on waste expenses.

Ask your hauler what kinds of equipment options they offer, and then ask your representative to come up with quotes for different service levels on each. You may very likely pay less for smaller dumpsters or fewer pickups, but the exact amount will differ based on what you hauler charges for pickups and equipment.

Get a waste review.

A waste review is a thorough analysis of every waste stream at every location in your portfolio. It’s typically completed by an independent waste reviewer, someone who is not affiliated with the haulers and is thus more naturally aligned with your interests.

As experts in the waste industry, our zero risk audit can only help you save. This review has a 90% success rate and it’ll find where you’re overspending and show you the exact steps to take in order to protect your bottom line.

How much could this waste equipment help you save?

When waste service is first set up, waste haulers tend to be less than thorough in their assessment of equipment needs.

They tend to estimate what they think your facility or location needs, and that’s what gets inked on the contract.

And unfortunately, they rarely re-evaluate over the term of your contract. Which is a real shame, because your needs at a particular location may change over time. The equipment you needed two years ago may not be the same equipment you need now.

In this post, you’ll learn how these types of waste equipment can help you save:

• Front load dumpsters

• Compactors

These are common types of waste equipment, and many commercial and residential sites have them. But they have to be used correctly in order to maximize your savings opportunities.

How to save on your waste spend with front load dumpsters.

Front load dumpsters come in several sizes. In order to know which ones to use, you need a third party reviewer to evaluate your waste output.

When we review waste streams for our clients, we assess how much waste you’re really putting out. We ask your site manager(s) whether your dumpsters are completely full when serviced. We estimate that 70% of US companies get too many pick-ups, so it’s likely you fall into that category.

We help some companies cut costs simply by reducing the number of times they are serviced each week.

But we’re able to help other companies by finding the best equipment and service solution for them. For some companies this means:

• Getting bigger dumpsters with fewer pickups

• Getting smaller dumpsters with more pickups

• Alternating the days of pickups for sets of dumpsters

We’ve found this comprehensive approach typically finds our clients savings.

Compactors can reduce your waste spend.

Compactors are a great solution for high-volume trash generators. Residential complexes and restaurants are typically among them.

• Residential complex - Groups of residents generate lots of trash. If the multi-family complex is big enough, it can benefit from a compactors. Instead of paying for multiple pick-ups weekly (or daily) a compactor can reduce service to once or twice a month in some cases.

• Restaurants - Wet food waste can be smelly, and large amounts of it can be difficult to contain. A compactor solves both of these problems. It can contain the waste more effectively, making it harder for critters to access the trash. A compactor will also compress the trash so that fewer pickups are necessary from your service provider.

Compactors require a significant up-front investment in order to install, but they can significantly reduce your waste costs over time if your properties generate lots of trash.

Waste dumpsters and compactors may solve your waste disposal problems.

When used effectively, compactors and dumpsters can reduce your waste spend over time. In order to tell how best to use each piece of equipment, you need a thorough waste review. It will help you protect your resources and more efficiently manage your waste streams and processes.

What equipment do you use at your locations? How have they helped you save?

How to Put Your Waste Management on Auto-Pilot

I’m willing to bet you didn’t wake up this morning thinking about how you could spend more of your time thinking about trash.

But I’d like you to consider spending a few minutes thinking about trash today.

Why?

Well, first, 90% of companies are overspending on their waste. You don’t need to be one of them. There are too many hidden problems that most companies have, and what they don’t know hurts them.

Second, it’s easy to save on your waste expenses. You don’t have to do inordinate amounts of work. You don’t have to do tons and tons of research to try to figure out how to save.

In fact, this blog post will show you just how easy it can be to save if you don’t have the money or time for a typical waste review.

You can put your waste management on auto-pilot by:

• Delegating the waste review process.

• Taking on 0% risk during the process itself.

• Ensuring future savings

Delegate the waste review process.

In order to save on your waste expenses, you need an independent waste review. Waste and recycling haulers don’t have the financial incentive to properly evaluate your real waste needs. They rarely set up service agreements that help you save. They don’t make it easy for you to make changes to your services or contract specifications.

You need a waste ally - someone who knows the industry and can show you where your savings opportunities are. You don’t need to have the time or expertise to do it yourself. You can delegate the entire process to a trusted industry expert.

You don’t need to be involved in the nitty-gritty details of your waste management process. You and your staff likely have more important things to attend to.

We take on the thorough examination process so our clients don’t have to. We find every overlooked savings opportunity, and show you the exact steps you need to take to find savings.

Taking on 0% risk for the off-site waste review.

The way we do business is really different from a lot of other waste auditors. If we don’t find savings during our review process, you don’t owe us anything. It’s that simple.

No savings, no charge.

It doesn’t happen often (only about 10% of the time in the past 19 years!), but when it does, we simply part ways with the client without charging a dime. In this scenario, the client essentially gets a free waste audit to ensure their waste management process is efficient.

We don’t believe in charging for services that are don’t actually help your bottom line. Lots of other companies out there don’t have a problem with that. But that’s not how we do things.

There are no monthly charges or invoicing during the initial review period. Instead, our off-site team works behind the scenes in conjunction with your staff to find your savings opportunities.

And even after the review process is completed, your risk is still mitigated. How? We are paid solely out of the savings we find for you. No extra line items in the budget. No scrounging for more resources to allocate. You can always afford us because we’re paid out of your waste savings - usually at rates of 50%.

Future Savings Opportunities are Never Missed.

After your initial review process is completed, we continue to periodically review your account for other savings opportunities.

• We track all contract expiration dates. Prior to your contract’s expiration, we evaluate your market to see if other less expensive haulers are available.

• We renegotiate expiring contracts. We ensure that you get the best terms available to you. We know exactly what should - and should not - be in a new contract, and we make sure that’s exactly what you get.

• We handle the negotiate process for new contracts. If a better, less expensive vendor becomes available at the right time, we handle all the negotiations and make sure you get the ideal contract terms.

So on top of the 10-30% reduction in waste expenses every month, companies can continue to expect support to solve and prevent future waste disposal problems.

Put waste savings on auto-pilot.

Having a waste ally allows you to find waste savings automatically. During the initial audit period, we require minimal documents and interaction with your team.

Our thorough review happens entirely off-site, and we continually review your account for more savings opportunities.

The entire process maximizes your resources. We protect your time and your investment in the review process, and our results are reliable - 90% of companies we work with see a reduction in waste expenses.

What questions do you have about putting your waste savings on auto-pilot?

Top 3 Commercial Waste Disposal Problems - and Their Solutions!

Business owners who don’t routinely examine their waste expenses typically pay 10-30% more than those who don’t.

You have better ways to allocate resources.

Today, we’re tackling the top three commercial problems that contribute to this overspending. If you can fix these three things, you may actually save on your waste disposal expenses.

These three problems are:

• Not capping rate increases

• Getting too many pick-ups

• Not eliminating waste fees

These are issues we’ve fixed for many of our clients in the past 19 years, so we know that fixing these key issues will affect your bottom line positively.

Problem #1: No caps on rate increases on your waste hauler contract

Your waste hauler contract will include specifications about what you will be charged for services. Most hauler contracts will include this information on the first page of the contract.

Typical hauler contracts will not include language that caps price increases. Why? Because this is a key way that haulers make their profit. It’s not in their best interest to include this language.

Haulers will raise their prices 1-4 times a year at a 10-15% increase each time. This represents a significant threat to your bottom line.

Solution: When you contract is up for renewal (or when you get a different contract with a new vendor,) you will need to make sure that the “Notes” section on your contract includes price caps.

Below is a Waste Management contract, with the notes section highlighted. This contract does not have specifications about rate caps, but if it did this is where it would appear.

Different haulers will allow different rate caps. It depends on your region of the country and it often depends on how many competitors are in the area.

Problem # 2: Receiving Too Many Pick Ups from Your Waste Hauler.

70% of companies are getting too much service from their haulers. Why? Because haulers are compensated based on quantity of pick-ups. The more times they visit your locations, the more money they make.

Many haulers aren’t intentionally being dishonest when they set up your service for too many pick-ups. They simply don’t have the financial incentive to ensure the services you receive are truly efficient. They may estimate what they think you need based on typical service schedules for locations your size. But estimates are, by definition, not exact.

The hauler is unlike to do a thorough waste review to access your true needs. They aren’t going to look through your invoice history. They aren’t going to see if your current equipment is what you actually need. They’re simply going to give you a contract based on what your past needs have been, or based on their best estimate.

Solution: Have your waste services reviewed and reduce the number of pickups as necessary. Most companies here in the US have never had their waste needs evaluated by an independent professional. As a result, they are paying for too many pick-ups and they are robbing themselves of potential savings.

Problem #3: Allowing ancillary fees on contracts.

Waste fees are fees like “administrative fees” or “waste cost recovery fees” that appear on your invoices. Most typical waste fees don’t have to be included on your contract.

We find that when companies allow fees like these on their contracts, haulers tend to indiscriminately raise their charge rates. One month a company may be charged 5% for a fee, the next month they may be charged 6%. If your contract doesn’t cap these increases, the company can charge whatever they want for each category of fees.

And we find that most waste hauling companies do exactly that.

5 or 6% may not sound like much, but it can translate to thousands of dollars when you have multiple locations with years-long contracts.

Solution: We include all fees and waste charges in one flat rate that is capped at a certain percentage growth. In other words, we allow the haulers we select for our clients to increase the flat rate at specific intervals in the contract term. That way, the hauler can only raise his fees up to that percentage.

This solution is fair to the haulers, and it’s fair to our clients. The haulers are prevented from charging unfair rates and the clients don’t receive unplanned hikes.

This also allows the client to be able to budget accurately for the fiscal year. If they know when and by how much their rate will increase, they will know how much to allot for waste expenses with certainty.

Solutions for Your Top Three Waste Problems

90% of companies have these waste problems at their locations - regardless of industry. These simply aren’t problems that most people are aware of.

But if you do the following, you will save yourself 10-30% on your waste expense every year:

• Cap price increases

• Reduce the number of pick-ups

• Eliminate ancillary fees

Doing these three simple things will help protect your bottom line and prevent future overspending.

Have you ever tried one of these solutions for your waste management?

Do waste audits really find savings?

If you’re spending more than $10,000 a month on waste, we can likely help you save 10-30% on your annual waste and recycling spend.

For some companies it will be a little less, for others, it will be more.

The actual percentage you save depends of course on the amount you’re currently spending on waste expenses.

Take Tad Dolbier, for instance. He had a gross savings of $6800 each month in savings. Scott Alderman of Landura Management (multi-family management) is saving a total of $116,000 every year. We’ve found millions of dollars in savings for our clients - how much are you sitting on?

And Lisa Russell of Ardmore? Click the video below to find out how much she saved!

Why is the average savings percentage so dependable? 

We know these percentages are reliable because it’s the average amount of savings companies have saved with us for the past 18 years. We’ve become experts in finding the gaps in your current waste management process. We know where to find your biggest hidden savings opportunities, and we know how to fix them.

Click the presentation below to see how much just a few of our clients have saved! (You can also download this file here.)

What if you don’t find any savings? 

On the rare occasion we find no savings, you don’t owe us a dime. When this happens, you get a free audit and the assurance that you’re managing your waste costs efficiently. You will only pay us when we find and implement precise solutions for you. 

Our services are guaranteed to be cash-flow positive. You only pay us out of the savings we find for you, so our services are not an added expense.

Our business model is unique, and we believe that it is one that is in your best interest. You take on zero risk to see if you are one of the 90% of companies nationwide who can stand to cut their waste expenses by 10-35%. Your odds are better than good that you’ll save - in fact, they’re great.

Schedule a free consult now!

Your Hidden Waste Hauler Contract Problems: What they are and what you can do about them - Part 2

Most hauler contracts are written to ensure that haulers make money - and keep making more.

Typical hauler contracts:

1. Allow for unlimited price spikes 

2. Have inaccurate service levels

3. Charges you for additional fees

4. Makes it nearly impossible to cancel 

5. Has no provision for bad service

If your contract was not adjusted and has these default specifications, you will almost certainly pay more than you need to for your waste expenses.

Today, we’re going to talk about the last two contract specifications that cut into your bottom line.

Waste Contract is Nearly Impossible to Cancel 

What’s worse than a bad contract? Being completely stuck in it.

There are two aspects of contracts that make them difficult to exit. First, most contracts automatically renew for long terms - usually five years. So you may realize you want to change your contract, but it can be almost impossible to do so if you are in the middle of a five year term.

Second, contract termination is de-incentivized since it typically includes hefty associated fees. On rare occasions, it may be worth it for your company to terminate their contract and pay the fee so that they can hire a cheaper (or more reliable) hauler. These fees are usually equal to the past six months of charges, which is likely no small amount.

If you do chose to terminate, you have to send a termination letter within a very specific time frame prior to your contact renewing. Most of the time, this termination letter has to arrive at your hauler no more than 180-90 days prior to your contract renewing.

You must send a certified letter - not an email - specifying that you are terminating the contract and/or cancelling the auto-renewal clause.

Cancelling the auto-renewal clause allows you to create a contract with the same vendor with more favorable terms.

Has no provision for bad service

When there are service issues, you should be able to get them resolved quickly and promptly.

When a hauler misses a pick-up, it should be easy to get in touch with them to resolve it. If they’re leaving stacks of garbage around the dumpsters or make a mess every time they service them, the hauler should only need one request to service more conscientiously. But this isn’t often the case. 

Why pay someone for a service who is actually making your life (and your staff’s lives) more difficult? If you had multiple hauler problems with no resolution in sight, you need to know that you have an out if you need one. 

A thorough contract will include steps for resolution - and what will happen if you continue to be dissatisfied with service levels.

You Don’t Have to Overpay for Waste Services

By default, your haulers are going to let these things happen to your contract. But you don’t have to let them. You can solve current problems and prevent new ones from happening - all it takes is effort, and some persistence.

We help companies across the nation find waste solutions and implement changes on their behalf. Don’t be part of the 95% of companies that are overspending on their waste disposal! Drop us a line to learn how you can fix your contract.

Your Hidden Waste Hauler Contract Problems: What they are and what you can do about them - Part 1

Most waste hauler contracts have hidden problems. Why? Because your haulers don’t have incentive to help you save.

And unfortunately, many vendors in the waste industry are out to make more and more profits. So they’re willing to have you sign contracts that help them do exact that. And many of you have unwittingly signed them.

A typical contract will include the following expensive specifications:

1. Allow for unlimited price spikes 

2. Has inaccurate service levels

3. Charges you for additional fees

4. Makes it nearly impossible to cancel 

5. Has no provision for bad service

Most people simply don’t know that they can ask for additional contract language. They don’t know that they can ask that certain clauses be removed. They don’t know they can edit existing language. So they don’t.

And as a result, they overspend by 10-30% on their waste every month.

This article will help you start saving on your waste expenses by identifying some of the most common contract problems. We’ll go over 1-3 today, and 4 and 5 later in the week.

(Psst! Want to quickly know how good your contract really is? Download our free Waste Hauler Scorecard!)

Price Spikes Allowed On Contract

This is a good example of a contract problem that requires additional language in order to fix. If your contract does not include language that prohibits or limits price hikes, you will almost certainly get them.

Price spikes can occur 1-4 times a year, at rates of 10-15% each time. Most haulers will only increase prices once a year, but some will chose to do so more. And if your contract doesn’t expressly prohibit this there’s nothing to stop them from taking advantage of the opportunity.

If price spikes compound over time, you will pay more than you should. If this happens at multiple properties in a portfolio, you can overpay by thousands of dollars. Don’t let that happen to you.

Take a look in the notes section in one of your contracts. Does it have notes that limit or completely eliminate price hikes? If not, scan the rest of your contract for any similar denotations.

You can read more about these waste issues and others right here.

Inaccurate Service Levels

Service levels tend to be “off” for two main reasons.

First, 70% of companies in the US are paying for too many pick-ups. Why? Because haulers err on the side of too many pickups since more pickups mean more revenue. The more trips to your property that they make, the more they get paid.

So when they’re first evaluating for your needed service levels, they have financial incentive to over-estimate your real needs. Some haulers do this intentionally. Others err on the side of too many pick-ups because too few pick-ups are going to cause major problems quickly.

Second, most haulers don’t tend to re-evaluate your real needs over time. When was the last time your hauler said they should drop service down to twice a week? Or that if you switch out equipment, you could have fewer pickups?

You may have had the correct service levels when your contract began, but your needs may have changed. There may be unnoticed savings opportunities at one or more of your properties because your services have not been thoroughly evaluated in a long, long time - or ever. (This is one of the major reasons why 90% of companies are paying too much for their waste services.)

Haulers simply don’t have the financial motivation to proactively find the solutions that are right for you. They’re there to pick up trash, and they know that more pickups means more revenue.

To make sure you have the right services, find an independent waste consultant who will objectively evaluate every waste stream and find where you’re currently overspending.

Contract Includes Additional Fees

Most haulers will pass on the cost any number of administrative and overage charges to you. A lot companies pay these outright because they think they have to. You don’t.

But unless your contract specifically caps or eliminates these fees, you will need to pay them.

Look for these on your current hauler contract:

• Fuel/environment fees: This fee supposedly helps recoup the cost of gas, but is actually a huge profit center.

• Recycling recovery fee: Covers the fees incurred by hauler to transfer recyclable, but again, is typically a profit center.

• Minimum tonnage fees: Fee charged by the hauler (typically on roll-off or open-top accounts) when a container’s weight upon pickup is below a specific threshold. 

• Administrative fees:  typically charged if a client elects to receive paper invoices instead of electronic delivery of invoices.

• Regulatory Cost recovery fee:  Some haulers, (like Waste Management) will charge this fee to cover costs in other regions - not necessarily yours. They explain it like this:
  “This charge is not specifically tied to such costs to service your account, but instead helps us cover Waste Management’s enterprise-wide costs for host community fees, waste disposal taxes and similar charges to service all WM operating company customers in the United States and Canada, and to achieve an acceptable operating margin.” (From Waste Management, retrieved July 23, 2019.)
  The regulatory cost recovery fee is not “tied to . . . your account.” In other words, you’re helping cover their costs to service other companies. Why should you pay for what you don’t benefit from?

You can reduce or eliminate all of these fees; you don’t have to pay them.  But you have to do it prior to renewing a contract, or getting a new one. It’s extremely difficult to negotiate these fees in the middle of a contract.  

Your Hidden Waste Problems are Costing You

Too many companies don’t realize how prices hikes, inaccurate service levels, and ancillary fees are costing them.

Price hikes are built into the fabric of the vast majority of waste contracts. Inaccurate service levels go unnoticed in most contracts. Ancillary fees are paid without question.

Take the time you need to take to carefully review your contract or contracts. You are likely sitting on significant savings.

Have you ever thoroughly reviewed your contract? Ever heard of any of these waste issues? Let me know in the comments below!

What Are Valet Services ( + 2 Ways to Save on Them!)

Trash valet service is when trash and recycling get picked up outside your door.

These services are typically performed at multi-family residences, or apartment buildings. Residents simply put their trash outside their door and the valet service employee picks it up. Then, they either deposit it at your on-site trash receptacle, or they take it to the dump themselves.

This service can be very attractive to potential residents since so few people enjoy taking out the trash. It’s something that can make your apartment complex stand out to potential leasers.

But like trash services, valet trash services can be overpriced. How would you know? Below, we’ll show you three ways you can save on your services.

1. Check out other vendors.

The easiest way to see if you’re overpaying is to ask other area vendors what they charge for similar services. If other area vendors charge way more or way less than what you’re currently paying, you’ll get a good baseline for how fair your prices really are.

Keep in mind, though, that rates are not the only thing you should compare. Some vendors may have certain clauses in their contract that would impact their overall pricing. Be on the lookout for auto-renewal clauses and language prohibiting price hikes. If vendor A includes rate caps in their contract, and vendor B doesn’t, vendor B will likely cost you more in the long run.

It’s also wise to ask vendors for references. Asking pointed questions of these references can help you understand what potential shortcomings may be. (See the video below for an example of why getting references is such a good idea!)

Rates should not be the only thing you compare! The cheapest service provider may have a terrible track record. You can also google their business and see how their clients rate them.

2. Scour your contract

It’s critical to your bottom line that your contract does not include:

• auto-renewal terms

• the possibility of additional fees and price hikes 

• zero provision for bad service

Auto-renewal terms will ensure your current contract renews. Not all contracts have the provisions you actually need to make sure you don’t overspend. You don’t want to be stuck with a bad contract!

You don’t want surprise additional fees on your invoices. And you certainly don’t want price hikes. You must have language on your contract that limits the possibility of this happening to you.

Valet services are an excellent amenity, but they’re not perfect. You need to make sure that you contract specifies that you have recourse in the event that service is not performed well, or inconsistently.

We audit our client’s valet services precisely for these reasons. It’s easy to have a bad contract and not know it. It’s easy to employ the most expensive service in town and have no idea.

Take some time to review your services to make sure they’re actually working for you.

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Do you have valet services at your locations? Have you run into any waste service issues in the past? Sound off in the comments below! I’d love to hear your thoughts.

What it's Like to Partner with Us - Part 2

Today, Patrick shares with us how much savings we found, how easy it really was to work with us, and some specific examples of service issues we’ve helped with.

We work remotely with the vast majority of our clients, but Patrick happens to be about an hour down the road from us. Thanks again for your time, Patrick!

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How much savings did we find for you all?

I think we saw a 25-35% reduction?

On a scale of 1-10 how easy was it to work with us?

10!

What service issues have we been able to help you with?

My hauling charges! And simple things like getting a new container. My managers have probably called the hauler 4-5 times, and now I can turn that over to you all.

We’ve also had missed pickups. Carolina Woods, one of our properties, is a good example. The haulers were dreadful, the containers were in terrible shape. We weren’t getting punctual removal. That has changed now!

We’ve got new containers out there and we’ve got a difference structure now. It’s been very beneficial. Carolina Woods was one where I really needed you all to step in and reach out to your hauler contracts especially since we had just taken over the management portion for that location. Taking over contract management for us

Would you recommend our services? Why or why not?

No, because I don’t want my competitors to find you!

Actually, I have recommended you all before. A lot of my colleagues and contemporaries are in similar positions to me.

I handle a lot of operations. I also wear a development hat, trying to organically grow the company whether it be through acquisition or new construction or new property management opportunities. I simply don’t have time to negotiate our hauling contracts.

Getting notifications that expirations are coming up is extremely helpful. A lot of the service contracts we have automatically renew. If I don’t know they’re coming up to the deadline of when I can serve notification, that locks me in for another year or two! I am just not as in tune with when those contracts come up.

Being able to rely on you all has made things a lot easier for me.

Top 5 Industries that Need Waste Expense Reductions

Not sure how we can benefit you? Think your industry may not actually be helped by waste review? Unsure about the possible ROI?

Below, you’ll learn how a waste review can find your hidden disposal problems - and your unique solutions.

We’ll talk about the five top industries that are sitting on waste savings:

• Multifamily

• Manufacturing

• Retail

• Restaurants

• Medical

Regardless of industry, our clients save an average of 10-30% on their waste expenses - and not just 50% of the time. Not 60% of the time. We find savings 90% of the time.

Multi-Family Management / Apartments

Multi-family properties need a waste review because of the amount of trash they produce. An individual creates an average of 3 pounds of waste every day, which means that most apartment complexes create 120 pounds of trash every day!

Residential waste is relatively simple to transfer from your facility to a dumpster, but that doesn’t mean it’s inexpensive. If multi-family complexes are not using the right equipment, they will easily overpay by thousands of dollars on waste services.

Compactors help managers realize significant savings over time. Compactors crush the garbage in a specially made cannister, making pick-ups less frequent. And generally, the fewer pick-ups you have, the less you’ll pay. While they are a significant investment up front, they pay for themselves as time goes on.

Manufacturing

Manufacturing factories need waste expense reductions because they often don’t sell their by-products. Glass, plastics, and cardboard can all be sold to other businesses or even other manufacturing plants. Are you missing out on a revenue stream?

You and your company might also want to consider industrial recycling. It’s another possible way to add a revenue stream. This could be a good idea for you if you:

1. Are overspending on waste, recycling and landfill costs. 

2. Want to reduce raw material expenses.

3. Producing too many leftover materials.

Some metal producing companies, have been saving roughly $1,300/ton from their recycled metals. Many companies have also benefited from reusing recycled materials to produce new products. Companies, such as Nike, have cut a large amount of their raw materials expenses because they are now able to reuse recycled materials.

Retail Properties

Retail properties need a waste review because they typically overspend on waste as well. They often have high output of trash, but we find that their current waste management process does not typically align with their real needs.

They may be getting too frequently serviced. They may have the wrong equipment. They may have too little equipment.

All of this is exacerbated by the high output of trash. The more of a service you need, the more critical it is that that service is efficient.

In other words, if you are paying expensive rates for trash and you have a high output you’re going to overspend.

Waste Expense Reductions at Restaurants

Restaurants typically need expense reductions because they create enormous amounts of wet food waste. For this reason, it’s critical to have the right equipment on site. The right equipment can help you reduce your waste expenses!

For some restaurants, we recommend getting a compactor for the same reasons we’ve listed above for multi-family. But we also recommend it because it does a really good job containing food waste - and the smells that can accompany them. Dumpsters are functional for the this purpose, but they’re not going to be able to contain odors as well as compactors will.

Medical Waste Disposal

Medical waste or red bag waste is a critical part of your overall waste management process. It often involves hazardous materials that must be disposed of with care.

Medical waste is anything that could contaminate blood borne pathogens. Proper disposal of any medical waste containers is absolutely critical. 5.2 million people worldwide die from conditions related to poor medical waste disposal - and this could be completely eradicated with proper procedures in place! 

Do your part to ensure that medical waste is safely and effectively disposed of. You are protecting the lives of everyone who enters your facilities.

At least 50% of companies nationwide are overpaying on their medical waste disposal. Why? Because regulated medical waste often comes with “special” pricing. Medical waste services are notorious for their exorbitant fees and frequent price hikes. 

I wish there were some good reason for this - a lot of people assume there is! They think that red bag disposal is expensive because the process requires people to handle dangerous materials. Or they think that paying higher prices means better quality of service. (It can - but it doesn’t always!)

Medical waste service providers will often hike prices because your contract allows them to do so.

Because of this, audits - and constant monitoring - are imperative. You need an independent third party to review every aspect of your medical waste management process.

Your current vendor isn’t going to disclose your current savings opportunities. They’re not going to tell you that another vendor in your area charges 95% less (as we recently discovered for one of our clients)! They’re not going to show you what terms in your contract are costing you thousands every year. We will.

What questions do you have about waste expense reductions? Let us know in the comments below!