Using the same drivers and trucks, MCM Disposal created operational efficiency.
By Rachel Revoy
Photos courtesy of Najd Ayari.
Michigan was largely closed down in the spring of 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Even with MCM Disposal’s roll-off operation at half its normal levels for March and April 2020, their annual revenue grew by 28 percent as a result of implementing Starlight Software.
MCM Disposal is a Michigan-based roll-off dumpster company servicing the Greater Grand Rapids area. Operating since 2003, the company aims to provide customers with hassle free, affordable waste and recycling services.
Chad Arp started the business after coming across a truck with eight cans for sale while working with his family’s concrete and recycling business. He purchased the truck and cans and began servicing the area with the hopes that they would learn as they went. Today, Chad runs 15 trucks and manages 700 cans.
Managing the Business
Before using Starlight, the dispatcher and the drivers at MCM disposal used pen and paper to record order information. “Dispatch would radio the drivers regarding orders that were called into the office. The drivers would need to pull over and write down the order on a legal pad in the truck. It was ridiculous.” Chad knew that the systems they were using were not working for them—instead, this outdated method often created more hurdles.
In 2019, Chad began looking for a software to help manage his business. Chad and his team searched for a software that was actually built for what they were doing, and a company that understood what tools they needed to improve dispatching, track inventory, and equip their drivers with the resources needed to get the job done efficiently and professionally. “Some other software systems try and fit roll-off, but Starlight is the only software that is made for roll-off, without adjustments or customization. It is ready to go,” Chad says.
This year, Chad made a direct correlation between their increased revenue and profit and the adoption of Starlight. Overall, MCM achieved an increase of 25 percent more container moves and 28 percent more revenue from May 2019 to May 2020. MCM did not add any additional trucks to the fleet, but did add some containers.
A Complete System
Even with the pandemic, the totals for the year demonstrate that even though they were not operating at full speed for a few months in the spring, running the business with Starlight created significant and immediate improvements in business and operational efficiency. Starlight embeds a scalable infrastructure in the business for much higher growth in the future.
without adding any additional trucks to his fleet.
Chad attributes this to Starlight’s ability to optimize their entire business operations. “It’s about working smarter with the resources you have,” Chad says. “Before we used Starlight, if we didn’t know how much inventory we had at a site we would send someone down there with a piece of paper to record a tally,” Chad says. Now, they use Starlight’s real-time inventory recording system.
The improvement to inventory tracking is only the tip of the iceberg. “With the driver app everything is systematic. The drivers have to follow the flow of the dispatcher to move through the work orders. Before we had Starlight, sometimes our drivers would go rogue. They didn’t do things in order, so we had upset customers. We are now able to give the customer more information and the system will even text them automatically when the dumpster is on its way,” Chad says.
With Starlight’s dispatching software, MCM can create efficiencies that were not possible before. Starlight’s dispatch system provides a bird’s eye view of all of the work scheduled for the day in their market. The dispatcher can make decisions by seeing the real-time status and location information of all of the drivers, the containers and the jobs, choosing to dynamically assign and reallocate work continuously as the day progresses to take advantage of every efficiency opportunity throughout the day. Chad notes, “the visual dispatching piece with the drag and drop ability to map out switches, drops, and pickups is a game changer. Our dispatcher now fits orders together for the driver to have a seamless operation that gets rid of unnecessary trips going across town to pick up a can for the next project.”
Plug and Play
Starlight was created for the waste and recycling industry. This ERP system manages the entire revenue cycle from start to finish. From orders to delivery, and tracking all the data along the way, it is the answer to optimal performance in driver routing, asset and data management, real-time tracking, accurate invoicing and comprehensive reporting.
Spring 2020 was a challenging time for many businesses, as business slowed down in multiple states, including Michigan. Chad and his team were concerned about the impact this would have on their business, but by using Starlight they came out way ahead. “The state was shut down in March 2020, we were at half speed, and once they opened up the construction industry opened up as well,” Chad says. “And we were ready to handle it. We have the ability to take on more and that is what has made our revenue grow. With Starlight, we can plug and play to make it work and take on all the orders we receive in a day.” | WA
Rachel Revoy is the Marketing and Communications Manager for Starlight Software Solutions (Denver, CO), an integrated ERP suite of mobile, cloud and local applications that work together in real-time to streamline operations and drive efficiency and revenue. Designed for the transportation, waste and environmental industries, Starlight’s live dispatch, real-time inventory control and comprehensive network of intelligent endpoints are all tightly coupled with its custom billing system. Starlight’s unique design includes competitive customer engagement and creates full, live transparency to resources and operations so that you can always make smarter decisions while managing your business from anywhere. Rachel can be reached at (720) 699-8530 or e-mail [email protected].