The Houston-based waste management firm has acquired businesses in Indiana and Virginia.
Houston-based WM has made two acquisitions in recent weeks. The company acquired Clayton, Indiana-based Ray’s Trash Service and Harrisonburg, Virginia-based Green Earth LLC.
According to a report from Indianapolis-based WRTV, WM acquired key assets of Ray’s Trash Service, which is a large family-owned recycling and waste collection operation.
Ray’s Trash Service was founded in 1965 and provides recycling and waste disposal services for 17 counties in central Indiana, according to information on the company’s website. It operates eight facilities across the region and offers construction site services, including LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)-compliant ones.
"We look forward to the integration and value that this acquisition will bring to expand and advance WM's environmental services in central Indiana," WM says in a statement it has shared with Recycling Today regarding this acquisition. "We are excited to welcome our new employees into the WM family and for the opportunity to provide exceptional service to our customers in the Indianapolis market. WM remains committed to providing the Indianapolis area with quality recycling and waste disposal services for years to come, with an emphasis on supporting the cultivation of community vitality and sustainable growth in the region."
According to a letter Green Earth sent to its customers, WM completed the acquisition of that business Sept. 1. Green Earth has provided residential and commercial collection services to residents in Rockingham County, Virginia, as well as a material recovery facility and container rental services. The Facebook page of Green Earth indicates it focused in part on collecting construction and demolition (C&D) materials.
Green Earth’s letter to its customers states that WM has been a waste services provider in Virginia’s Rockingham County for more than 20 years. Green Earth says it chose WM as a buyer since it is “confident that they are the company most capable of providing the same safe and superior service” to its customers.
WM did not share how much it paid for these two acquisitions; however, according to the company's second-quarter earnings report, WM intends to spend $300 to $400 million on acquisitions in its 2022 fiscal year.
An expert at Setco Solid Tire discusses best practices for maintaining solid rubber tires at a transfer station.
The equipment used for moving and managing waste and recyclables at transfer stations, such as wheel loaders, skid steers and material handlers, are crucial to daily waste management operations. Ensuring the continued efficiency of these heavy machines means consistent maintenance and upkeep, which holds especially true for the tires they are equipped with.
To better understand the best practices for solid rubber tire maintenance, Waste Today spoke with Brandon Machell, national sales manager for Setco Solid Tire, a tire manufacturing company with U.S. operations in Idabel, Oklahoma. Setco has been designing and manufacturing solid tires and rubber cutting edges since 1988.
Waste Today (WT): How long do solid tires used at a transfer station typically last if well maintained?
Brandon Machell (BM): It varies widely, depending on the material and where the machinery is in use, like a material recovery facility (MRF). It also comes down to the equipment and the operator. So, a tire may last six months in one application, or it may last several years in another.
WT: What are the primary factors that contribute to tire wear in transfer station applications?
BM: Floor conditions are a big one. If you've got a brand-new floor that is smooth, it’s not going to be so abrasive on the tire. Your tires are going to last a lot longer [on a newer floor] than on a floor that is pitted and abrasive.
Operator education [also] is important, so whoever [is] using the vehicle [should] know how to drive it. You don't need someone driving into a pile and spinning all four tires and not moving anywhere. At that point, it is wearing the tires out when that happens.
The other thing that can affect tire life is the rotation schedule. Typically, front tires wear faster than rear tires. So, you must rotate those tires to make sure you get even wear across all four tires. When it comes down to rotation schedules, the Society of Automotive Engineers’ specifications (SAE J2204) on tires is 3 percent side-to-side and 6 percent front-to-back, which applies to off-road tires also. You don't want to get outside of a 3 percent side-to-side cross axle or 6 percent front-to-back. It's important to keep those specs in mind because once you start operating outside of those specs, you can do drive-train damage to the machine.
Tire rotation frequency depends on the application, and that is determined by observed wear rates. If you have lower volume stations that aren’t moving that much material, it could be years between rotations, but for your higher volume stations, it could be every few months.
WT: What are some of the best practices for maintaining solid tires in the transfer station?
BM: No. 1, you need to monitor your tire wear, whether that be using our proprietary software or any other kinds of methods that you are using. You can’t manage it if you don’t measure it.
That’s the reason Setco developed its Tire Management System (TMS) platform. It uses an algorithm that advises operators on when to rotate their tires. Our customers have found that following this guidance can save them more than 20 percent on tire costs by maximizing wear.
It’s also important that operators consider the impact of tire wear on the overall machine. Keeping the tires within the SAE specification saves wear and tear on the drive train, preventing the need for major maintenance and/or replacement. TMS helps to ensure that.
After two measurements, TMS provides a projection as to when the next rotation will be needed. It allows operators to implement predictive maintenance to ensure their machines stay in service and productive.
By tracking tire cost per hour (or ton handled) the system also provides useful data for annualized tire replacement and maintenance costs for use in budgeting.
No. 2 is maintaining operator training, ensuring that operators use best practices when moving material around and operating that equipment. If you have an operator who’s going in there and spinning the tires like crazy, you’re not going to get the full life of those tires. If you had a more experienced operator that knew how to use the equipment [properly], they aren’t spinning the tires as much.
The third thing to keep in mind would be ensuring you’re using the right tire in the correct application. Make sure you have the right tread design installed and make sure you have the right sidewall design, whether that be apertures or just making sure you have the right size, as well. Many machines, in our opinion at Setco, come with undersized tires. The larger [the] tire you can fit on the machine, the more use you get out of it.
WT: What tread designs work best for transfer station applications, and what factors determine tread design?
BM: In most transfer stations, most operators choose to go with a smooth tread design. This is because you get longer wear due to more contact with the ground, and you don’t have tread voids. But if you’ve got an operation that desires actual traction, you can get different styles of staggered lugged tread designs that increase traction and can reduce spinning.
Another thing that impacts tread design is what material is being moved. When looking at C&D [construction and demolition] waste, you may have a lot of wood, rebar or other things mixed into debris that you’re moving. When you have solid traction or a solid tire with no traction grooves, there are fewer points for material to become lodged. … A solid tire won’t have voids where debris can get caught in it like a tire with traction does.
WT: What additional advantages do solid tires offer beyond longer lifespans compared with foam-filled tires?
BM: Less downtime is the key to operating in those environments. If you cut the side wall out of a foam-filled tire, you’re down; you can't do that with a solid rubber tire. Solid rubber tires offer longer wear and less maintenance, which makes them more cost-efficient.
Sherra Durham-Camp, assistant director of collections operations, and William Bouie, a collection truck driver, were honored for their efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Two employees of the Miami-Dade County Department of Solid Waste Management (DSWM) in Florida were inducted into the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) Hall of Honor in Washington, D.C., recently as Essential Workers of the Coronavirus Pandemic.
The employees—Sherra Durham-Camp, assistant director of collections operations; and William Bouie, a collection truck driver—were honored for their efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“On behalf of Miami-Dade County, we are honored that our solid waste workers are being recognized for their excellent work and vital service to our community,” says Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava. “They represent all our county employees who worked tirelessly during the pandemic to serve our residents during such a challenging time.”
“I’m very proud of Sherra and William, not only for this honor but for their hard work and dedication every day,” says Mike Fernandez, director of DSWM. “I’m equally proud of all our employees and contractors, all of whom worked hard during the pandemic to ensure waste and recycling were collected and disposed of properly in Miami-Dade County.”
The event was live-streamed and can be viewed online on the DOL’s YouTube channel.
NERC and NEWMOA have drafted a model bill encouraging the use of PCR in consumer products and packaging.
The Northeast Recycling Council (NERC) and Northeast Waste Management Officials’ Association (NEWMOA) have announced the publication of its Model Minimum Postconsumer Recycled Content Requirements for Plastic Products and Packaging Legislation. This model is the result of two years’ worth of work by a group of state recycling officials from the Northeast and incorporates many suggestions received from 36 organizations and individuals during a public comment period in early 2022.
While the model legislation does not reflect the specific views of NERC, NEWMOA or their respective members, it’s a best effort to provide a basis for state legislation to further the use of postconsumer resin, or PCR, in plastic products and packaging.
This model bill would require producers of covered plastic products and packaging to use a specified minimum amount of PCR , phased in over time. The covered plastic packaging and products include single-use bags; single-use containers used for food, beverages, household cleaning and personal care products; and rigid plastic containers. This model does not address all types of plastic products and packaging.
The model’s legislative strategy encourages a circular economy in plastics. The other benefits of mandating minimum PCR content in plastic products and packaging include conservation of resources, reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and other environmental impacts from producing plastics products from petroleum, strengthened domestic markets for products made with postconsumer plastics and increased stability in the plastic scrap markets.
As nonprofit 501(c)(3) organizations, neither NERC nor NEWMOA say they will lobby for this model legislation. It is intended as a tool for interested organizations and legislators to consider when examining opportunities for the use of minimum PCR content legislation and implementation.
The awards ceremony will be held at Wastecon in December.
The Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA), Silver Spring, Maryland, has announced its 2022 Safety Award Winners, representing leading companies and municipalities in the solid waste industry:
Rumpke Waste & Recycling for Best Safety Innovation; and
Delaware Solid Waste Authority, Henrico County Solid Waste Division, and Wasatch Integrated Waste Management District for COVID-19 Resiliency.
Honorable mentions were awarded to Athens Services for Biggest Safety Improvement and North Texas Municipal Water District (NTMWD) Solid Waste Department for Best Safety Innovation.
“SWANA is extraordinarily proud of each of our award winners,” says David Biderman, SWANA executive director and CEO. “The competition was fierce for each award, and I thank the Safety Committee members who worked diligently to select the winners, who will be recognized at Wastecon in December.”
The Biggest Safety Improvement award goes to NTMWD Solid Waste Department. Through improved training and other efforts, including an interactive dashboard, NTMWD addressed leading and lagging indicators. SWANA says 89 percent of identified hazards were abated, and the total recordable injury rate and days away, restricted or transfer rate was cut in half.
“At the North Texas Municipal Water District safety is a core value,” says Mike Friesen, NTMWD assistant deputy for solid waste. “NTMWD works daily to deliver essential services while mitigating risks to minimize accidents, injuries and damage to protect our workers and the public. We are proud of the progress made by our solid waste division. This progress would not have been possible without our staff taking ownership of safety. We applaud our staff for their success in living out our safety values.”
Rumpke Waste & Recycling's Cincinnati recycling facility has been recognized with SWANA's Biggest Safety Innovation. The facility installed two FLIR thermal camera systems to detect lithium battery fires and automatically shut down the conveyor. The data collected can replicate and improve similar systems across the recycling industry. It also provides facility-specific info about battery-related incidents to understand the extent of the problem.
“Our team has done a really good job of mitigating a very significant risk to our operations,” says Jeff Rumpke, west area president for Rumpke Waste & Recycling. “As batteries continue to plague our recycling stream, these types of investments in equipment, training and education will aid in our efforts to protect our assets.”
The Delaware Solid Waste Authority, Henrico County Solid Waste Division and Wasatch Integrated Waste Management District have been given SWANA's COVID-19 Resiliency award. SWANA says all three implemented the Occupational Safety & Health Administration’s (OSHA) hierarchy of controls to respond to and control the spread of COVID-19 in their operations.
The association says the Delaware Solid Waste Authority (DSWA) stood out for its focus on testing and vaccination. They held numerous vaccination clinics for employees and contractors and implemented a vaccination/testing policy to reduce the spread and severity of the disease. Clinics also offered additional vaccinations such as tetanus, pneumonia, flu, hepatitis and shingles.
Henrico County Solid Waste Division demonstrated resiliency in the development of its COVID-19 Continuity of Operations Plan, which identified potential scenarios involving worker shortage and provided detailed solutions to maintain essential functions. As service levels fluctuated, they kept the public informed through numerous communication channels.
“The ability of our entire Solid Waste Division to fully embrace safety and wellness throughout the pandemic was pivotal for the continuation of essential services in our community,” says Josh Byerly, Henrico County Solid Waste Division assistant director. “This SWANA award accentuates Henrico’s approach to safety, and specifically, the mentality our great team exemplifies through the daily commitment to safety and service to Henrico County citizens.”
Wasatch Integrated Waste Management District developed a six-phase, graduated plan for infectious disease outbreaks. The plan reduces the transmission of disease among staff and members of the public, maintains a healthy working environment, and minimizes adverse health effects on customers, area waste haulers and businesses. It also provides continued essential services to the community.
“We appreciate SWANA’s recognition of the professional and dedicated work of our team here at Wasatch Integrated Waste Management District,” says Nathan Rich Wasatch, Integrated Waste Management District executive director. “The team worked through tough issues to keep our employees safe while providing the high level of service our customers expect.”
The 2022 award winners will be honored at Wastecon in San Diego Dec. 6. Winners also will be featured during the Safety Summit Dec. 6 and 7.