How a Manufacturing Client Saved $1.7M Through National Waste Associates
Table of Contents
Quick Hits: What You Need to Know
- Load optimization reduces hauling costs by ensuring containers are serviced only when they reach optimal fill levels.
- Equipment optimization helps match compactors and containers to actual waste volumes, improving efficiency and lowering costs.
- Regular invoice audits help identify billing errors, hidden fees, and unauthorized price increases before they add up.
- Expanding recycling and landfill diversion programs can reduce disposal costs while increasing resource recovery.
- Centralized vendor management and reporting improve consistency, visibility, and control across multiple facilities.
- A data-driven waste strategy helps manufacturers lower costs, improve sustainability, and maintain reliable service.
During the course of two years, National Waste Associates’ (NWA’s) team of experts conducted extensive load optimization exercises and worked tirelessly to reduce a manufacturing client’s waste spends by $1.7M. This was achieved by implementing proven waste cost solutions across a complex, multi-site operation.
The Challenge
An international manufacturer with over 60 plants across North America had an uncontrolled waste cost center with disposal costs that were increasing out of control. There were serious inefficiencies in their current waste management practices that they needed to uncover. They presented NWA with three essential requirements:
- Reduce waste spend across the entire portfolio
- Achieve greater control with improved oversight and metrics
- Improve landfill diversion metrics by increasing recycling and reuse rates
The Solution
Load Optimization. After reviewing the waste tonnages for every single container at every manufacturing plant across the country and Canada, NWA implemented an optimization program that maximized compactor tonnage. This resulted in a 4.5% year-over-year increase in average tons per haul. For context, multiply that by the thousands of tons that this company produces each year. The result was major savings.
The locations with the greatest waste activity and the highest spend were targeted first, as these were able to generate the greatest initial savings. Routine tonnage analyses were conducted throughout the contract term to achieve ongoing load optimization and improved tracking of diverted waste.
Equipment Optimization. Using the compactor tonnage analysis, the team also recommended compactor specifications and sizes that improved service efficiency and reduced haulage costs and emissions. This analysis resulted in a 9% year-over-year reduction in the number of hauls. Again, for context, this company had thousands of hauls each year, so the savings were substantial.
NWA’s proactive load and equipment optimization studies generated cumulative savings of $1.05M over the contract term.
Diversion from Landfill. The manufacturing facilities generated certain waste materials that most haulers would immediately look to send to landfill, especially the national hauler who had been servicing them. NWA’s waste experts instead identified diversion opportunities that not only generated $500k of revenue and disposal fee savings, but also reduced the carbon footprint and environmental impact of their operations by significantly improving waste diversion.
Invoice Management. The waste industry is renowned for erroneous fees, clerical slippage, and unannounced price increases. NWA’s accounting team combatted this by thoroughly auditing every single invoice received from all the haulers. The vendor services team then contested every single un-negotiated price increase on behalf of their client. This resulted in compounded cost avoidance of $150k over the duration of the contract.
Service Consistency. All of these optimizations were managed while ensuring that the customer received impeccably reliable service. Across the entire contract, NWA upheld a 99.5% on-time service delivery record, ensuring that waste was never a concern for individual plant managers.
The Results
Through an integrated waste management strategy of load and equipment optimization, vendor management, and landfill diversion, National Waste Associates reduced their manufacturing client’s waste spends by over $1.7M in just two years.
These service optimizations didn’t just save the client a ton of money, but also helped the environment by eliminating unnecessary hauls and diverting valuable materials from landfills. Find out how NWA can assist with your manufacturing sites here.
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Find out how NWA can optimize your waste management operations and drive huge savings for your business.
Call us at 888-692-5005 x6 today, or
email us at sales@nationalwaste.com
Frequently Asked Question (FAQ)
The most effective approach is to optimize waste services rather than simply reducing them. Reviewing container sizes, pickup schedules, equipment specifications, recycling opportunities, and vendor performance often uncovers significant savings while maintaining or even improving operational efficiency.
Load optimization uses container weight and fill-level data to determine the ideal time for waste collection. By maximizing the amount of material hauled during each pickup, manufacturers can reduce unnecessary trips, lower transportation costs, and improve overall efficiency.
Using the right compactor or container for each facility helps maximize hauling efficiency, reduce collection frequency, minimize equipment-related costs, and decrease fuel consumption associated with unnecessary pickups.
Waste invoices frequently contain billing errors, hidden surcharges, unauthorized price increases, or services that no longer match a facility’s needs. Routine audits help identify and dispute these charges before they become significant long-term expenses.
Recycling and reusing more materials reduces landfill disposal costs, improves diversion rates, supports corporate sustainability and ESG initiatives, and may even generate revenue from recyclable commodities such as metals, cardboard, plastics, and other valuable materials.
National Waste Associates provides comprehensive waste management services that include load and equipment optimization, invoice auditing, vendor management, recycling program development, landfill diversion strategies, compliance support, and centralized reporting. By continuously monitoring waste operations across all locations, NWA helps manufacturers reduce costs, improve efficiency, and achieve long-term operational and sustainability goals.
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