Are your business waste costs just continuing to increase with no end in sight, or perhaps you’re just trying to find out if there’s anything that you can do to make a saving – well don’t worry, you’ve landed on the right article.
At The Waste Removal Group (WRG), we’re experts in commercial waste and we’ve put together several strategies that you can use to get those disposal costs down. It’s a two pronged attack, reducing the amount of waste that you produce as a company but not only that, we’ve also included what you can do to lock in a lower cost contract, or solution.
Here are our 11 steps we would suggest you work through as a company to get the most efficient business waste disposal plan.
Step 1: Get or conduct your own waste audit
The first thing that you should do before anything else is do a waste audit. This will assess your waste streams, identify the type and amount of waste that you produce, highlight areas that may be inefficient and help the company set waste reduction targets.
Several waste management companies offer a free basic waste audit as part of the service, with the aim of doing this to attract new customers. You can also sometimes ask your local council as they may have options on free or subsidised waste audits.
If you want a more comprehensive audit, a standard waste audit that is suitable for a small to medium sized business typically costs £200-500 depending on the size of the company, larger companies that have more complex waste requirements can expect to pay £500 – £1,000.
You can further opt for a specialist audit, which are typically for large national corporations, or ones that need a more detailed analysis, such as construction companies or those that deal with hazardous waste. These can range from £1,000 – £5,000+ but include on-site inspections, in-depth analysis, compliance checks and saving recommendations.
We know that it might seem like an investment to conduct an audit, but the money you will save by getting the foundations right first will more than pay for it.
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Step 2: Work on reducing the volume of waste
There are several small efficiencies you can make as a business that will help you reduce the overall volume of waste that you produce. Here are just a few ideas that you can apply to see immediate results.
Reduce paper waste
Encouraging a paperless office policy can cut down paper waste significantly, but also reduce your printing costs - double saving! Going digital with invoices, e-signatures, reducing printing and if you absolutely have to use 100% recycled or FSC certified paper can also reduce costs.
Optimise inventory & supply chain
Avoid overstocking materials which may go to waste, use older stock first to reduce spoilage, monitor and track the waste trends and levels to make adjustments. This is applicable for businesses with perishable goods, but for instance, have you considered giving away surplus stock if you know it’s going to go to waste?
Reduce food waste
This is more tailored towards restaurants, cafes and anyone in the hospitality sectors but monitoring the portion sizes, composting the organic food waste or partnering with food charities are all ways to reduce waste, companies like Too Good To Go may be worth looking into.
Reuse & repurpose items
In office environments especially there are easy ways you can reduce waste by just reusing office supplies like envelopes, folders, binders. Any equipment or furniture you may be able to donate, refurbish or even give away instead of just disposing of it, you may even be able to offer them to your employees.
Step 3: Educating your team & rewarding waste saving culture
Creating a workplace that is waste conscious is essential, and it all starts with education, and is helped with incentives. You can foster a culture of efficient waste saving by:
1. Training
Organise training sessions on proper waste disposal with waste sorting challenges. Educating employees on how waste reduction can offer significant benefits to the company is key, and you should reinforce the message around the workplace.
2. Waste Sorting Stations
Have clearly labeled bins so employees are aware certain waste should go, such as recycling, general and food waste, and making them colour coded can also help. Make sure they are in all the high traffic and well used areas, preventing incorrect waste disposal is important as sorting your waste will reduce costs.
3. Appoint Champions
In each department give a team member the responsibility of being in charge of the waste incentives for that department. They should be responsible for monitoring the waste reduction progress and you may want to provide them with extra incentives for doing so – additional break time, certificates, small financial rewards.
Step 4: Reduce packaging waste
If you ship a product then packaging can be a significant area where you may be able to improve your waste. Using biodegradable or recycled packaging can help reduce your overall waste, whilst also opting for smaller, eco-friendly packaging. You may also be able to reuse packaging materials like boxes, bubble wrap and pallets.
Step 5: Implement waste segregation & recycling techniques
We touched on this within the training for employees, but having separate bins for paper, plastic, glass, food waste and general waste is important as it will lead to cheaper rates on the waste collection and disposal side.
If you are able to get your staff to properly segregate waste then you will often be offered far lower disposal fees, especially for the recyclable materials.
Step 6: Invest in waste minimising technology
This depends on your business, and may be extreme, but investing in waste reduction equipment can be a good way of saving money over time. There will be a more significant upfront cost to this, but it might be worth looking into.
These compress recyclable materials like cardboard and can help to reduce the amount of storage space needed, and the frequency of collections, reducing cost.
This will reduce paper waste and also ensure your confidential waste is safe, and it also makes recycling a lot easier.
Switch from disposal to reusable containers for storage.
Step 7: Compare waste collection providers
You should always compare a number of waste collection providers to find the partner that meets your business waste management needs.
Saving money: Comparing providers is extremely important to getting the most efficient contract. Every provider, national or local, has a different pricing structure, and there WILL be providers that suit your waste needs better than others. Comparing quotes from different companies will definitely help you avoid overpaying for waste disposal.
Hidden Fees: Some providers will charge extra fees for things like bin rental, excess weight or leaving your contract early. You always need to look into the contract in detail, and compare with other companies, to ensure you get the best overall deal for you.
Reliability & flexibility: Not all retailers have the same flexibility of service, and sometimes a local service may be more responsive than a national company, as an example. You also want to read the companies reviews to check their collection reliability from the perspective of other companies.
No matter the type of waste, or size of business, we can help!
Step 8: Talk to nearby businesses & group together
If you have businesses nearby that you can team up with, it could be worth considering. Sharing waste collection services can help significantly reduce cost, impact on the environment and improve efficiency.
There are several benefits to grouping with local businesses, from lower costs, to getting better deals with waste providers due to having an increased waste amount. This can make things slightly more complex as it may require you to negotiate a shared contract with multiple businesses, but the potential discount is definitely worth at least investigating.
Some local business parks and councils already have waste sharing programs in place – so it might be worth checking if your area already has one!
Step 9: Reach out to your Government & Local Council
Not everyone is aware, but your local council and government may offer cost saving opportunities, grants and compliance support for your waste management.
Why engage with your local council?
You should always look to engage with your local council, many of them offer business recycling programs or discounted collection service, and some areas will even fund waste audits to help you cut waste costs.
There are lots of options that your local council might be able to run you through, with many of them offering funding for sustainability incentives, reduced landfill tax rates, waste-sharing programs and even free recycling bins or subsidised collections.
Step 10: Perfect your collection frequency & bin size
One of the most important things is determining what bin size you actually need and how often you want it collected. These are the two primary factors that can increase your business waste costs, so getting it right is important.
Why does bin size & collection frequency matter so much?
If your bin is rarely full, you will be wasting money and overpaying for unnecessary collections, and on the other side of the coin, if your bin is always overflowing, not only is it not a fantastic sight, but it can also incur penalty charges and additional collection costs.
Choosing a supplier with flexibility collection options without having to re-negotiate your contract might be a good option if you aren’t fully aware of what that “perfect” schedule may be.
We’ve put together two tables of recommended collection frequencies based on the type of business you may have, and what size of bin may suit your needs.
Recommended Collection Frequency
| Waste Output | Recommended Collection |
|---|---|
| Low (Small Office, 1-10 staff) | Weekly or Fortnightly |
| Medium (Retail, Restaurants, 10-50 staff) | 2-3 times per week |
| High (Hotels, Factories, 50+ staff) | Daily or multiple times per week |
Optimal Bin Sizes & Collection Frequency
| Bin Size | Ideal for | Collection Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| 240L | Small offices, cafes | Weekly or Fortnightly |
| 660L | Medium businesses | 1-2 times per week |
| 1100L | Large businesses, restaurants | 2-3 times per week |
Step 11: Negotiate your contract!
We’re giving away tricks of the trade here! You would be surprised at how often customers don’t seek to negotiate their waste collection contract, which is something we always recommend that you should do.
Negotiating your waste management contract is crucial, these can often be quite long term, so saving money, preventing hidden fees and getting the best service for your business is massively important!
Key reasons to negotiate your waste contract
The main reason that you should negotiate your waste contract is simply to lower the costs, and get the best price.
- Most providers will start with higher quotes, just assuming you won’t negotiate.
- Compare nation with local providers, this can reduce costs significantly.
- Bulk discounts & longer term contracts
Key things to negotiate in your contract
There are a couple of key aspects that we would recommend that you fully check, and are comfortable with, when negotiating your contract. These include:
- Hidden fees or additional charges, like overfill or contamination fees. Make sure the price breakdown is clear to prevent unexpected costs.
- Flexible terms and collection schedules so you don’t overpay over your contract, businesses change and sometimes your waste needs reflect that.
- Guarantees around service and reliability, will they compensate for missed collections, offer guaranteed collection windows or even offer advanced customer support to resolve potential issues.
- Make sure you aren’t locked into a landfill heavy waste disposal which could increase costs overtime, instead negotiate better recycling rates and look into alternative recycling solutions.
Best ways to get a better waste contract
There are a couple of ways you can go about trying to negotiate a better contract, and here are a few things we would recommend:
- Multiple provider quotes to leverage your most competitive offer.
- Negotiate your collection frequency, we detailed how important this was previously.
- Ask for a cost breakdown to ensure there are no hidden fees.
- Request flexible terms, they may not offer them, but you should always ask – avoid long auto renewal clauses.
- Check their sustainability incentives, a lot of providers will offer discounts for better recycling practices.
One final tip: we would always recommend you review your contract annually. Your waste needs will fluctuate, so it may mean you can conduct another waste audit and get a better deal overtime – don’t just set and forget, letting it auto renew every year, there could be some potential savings there!
Now we’ve told you how to get the best commercial waste deal, let’s talk!