With ever-increasing pressure on Irish businesses to comply with National and EU waste management legislation, companies are keen to find ways of increasing their rates of recycling and reduce their cost of waste disposal. One company that aims to meet these business waste disposal requirements is KeyWaste Management Ltd, which operates a fleet of 12 vehicles out of Walkinstown, Dublin.

KeyWaste’s waste disposal services range from 24/7 general waste collection to designing in-house recycling systems, from collecting hazardous waste to servicing skips, compactors and balers. Before fitting the fleet management solution from FleetMatics, KeyWaste’s co-founder Mark Butler explained that the only way of keeping in contact with the drivers was by phone.

‘As the fleet started to grow, so did the number of telephone calls to each other,’ said Mr Butler. ‘We saw that a fleet management system would reduce the amount of time people were on the phone, while improving customer service and also accurately distributing jobs to drivers,’ he added.

Although the trucks used for collecting waste followed a strict schedule, Mr Butler’s major concern was managing the skip trucks more effectively. ‘These trucks are sent out to different locations every day,’ he explained. ‘As we didn’t know the exact location of each truck, we had no overview as to when the truck would arrive at a customer’s premises and scheduling in extra skip pick ups and drop offs was on an ad hoc basis,’ he added.

On selecting the FleetMatics GPS system, Mr Butler added: ‘It really helps having had referrals to FleetMatics from other companies in our industry.’ Since fitting the FleetMatics system, Mr Butler has found that scheduling of jobs is very efficient and effective, and that he can better manage his drivers. ‘The FleetMatics “Live Fleet” tool shows us the exact location of each vehicle. We can now give our customers a clear indication of when the skip truck will arrive at their premises,’ he added.

‘There has been a few occasions when a customer has claimed that a skip didn’t arrive or a bin wasn’t emptied; with GPS tracking we are able to quickly react and prove to the customer that in fact the truck did show up, meaning we are able to back up our driver,’ he concluded.

A further benefit that KeyWaste has received since installing the FleetMatics system is the reduction of fuel bills – this has been achieved through the reduction in vehicle idling time, which is incredibly fuel inefficient. The FleetMatics system records this time and can, if required, send alerts when pre-set idling parameters are breached. Now, working with their drivers, KeyWaste has educated its workforce to think about their idling time and this awareness has resulted in a large fuel saving.

Mr Butler is convinced that since installing the FleetMatics system the company has achieved the right balance, in terms of the monthly investment and the productivity improvements and fuel cost savings that it now makes.