Technology is going to continue to play a critical role in helping to further create safer work environments at all levels of the industry. As organizations look to technology to help keep their fleets, workers and the public safe, it is critical to consider expertise, examples of success and the business value.

By Jim Bean

The solid waste industry‘s adoption of intelligent technologies is accelerating at a rapid pace. As a result, the industry as a whole is witnessing a tidal wave of innovation that is helping to reinvigorate standard practices and create safer and more efficient businesses.

Technology’s influence on the waste industry can be seen in how vehicle and equipment operators interact with their surroundings, how analytics are introduced to streamline logistics, and how the market is employing individuals and service organizations with essential domain expertise. While each of these are unique in their effect on the waste industry, the adoption of technology in combination with continual education brings them together to create safer work environments and gained efficiencies across the board.

Rise in Fatalities

From a safety perspective, the waste industry is dealing with a steady rise in accidents and fatalities. In the first six months of 2017 alone the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) reported that 51 people lost their lives in solid waste-related incidents, including 15 employees and 36 members of the public. The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) most recent data is just as sobering.

Published in December of 2016, the BLS distributed the final 2015 figures surrounding the industry and occupational fatalities. Specifically, the waste and recycling sector incurred a multi-year high of fatalities and fatal injury rate.  It was determined that total fatalities for refuse and recyclable material collectors rose from 27 to 33 per year or a fatal injury rate of 38.8 per 100,000 workers—the highest level since 2006. In a separate report, SWANA recorded that in 2016, 46 worker fatalities occurred in the U.S.—half of which were drivers and helpers collecting garbage.

The rise in fatalities points to an industry that is struggling to adapt to the changing work environment with long held and “standard” approaches.  To address this rise in accidents and fatalities, we are seeing innovation in the form of technology being developed for and installed on equipment to aid operators and helpers. For instance, backup alarms and lights are standard safety solutions widely deployed by the industry to alert those around a truck when it is reversing, slowing or stopped. While both are relatively effective in many applications, the installation of cameras and monitors has become a standard in industry best practices to help assist the operator as a way to combat blind zones.

Camera Integration and Telematics

A growing number of organizations are also introducing the integration of cameras and monitors with radar sensors to empower operators with an active safety system and help create a better sense of situational awareness. Specifically, the introduction of this powerful combination provides operators with a safety solution that combines both visual and audible alerts when there is something in their blind spot. Fleets are now able to eliminate virtually all blind zones around the entire vehicle to decrease the amount of accidents and create safer working environments.

From an operational standpoint, the introduction of telematics and other connected systems is a very timely topic in today’s heavy-duty and fleet-oriented industries. Telematics provide the waste industry with a watershed of new insight and analytics regarding their fleets and the operation of trucks and equipment. Because most of today’s technology is developed as an open solution, organizations are able to deploy vehicle wide systems that are connected to accomplish specific tasks and provide data on those tasks. For instance, telematics allows for the braking system to be automatically engaged if the truck reaches a specific level of alerts regarding a pending collision. On another front, the introduction of connected systems allows corporate and dispatch offices to collect and analyze data to evaluate performance of individual operators. They can capture and view specific instances related to the handling of the vehicle and optimize the operator’s efforts to ensure that they are minimizing risk while increasing efficiency.

It should be noted that there is no one safety system that will fix all of your issues. Each plays an important role in the solution as a whole. This is why it so important that industry recognized protocols be a part of each system to ensure that they are able to work together to help your team achieve its safety goals.

Creating a Streamlined Business

Another trend that is building momentum within the waste industry is the shift in how the industry recruits new hires. Understanding that there are gains to be made from the introduction of technology from an operational and safety perspective, many companies and waste-oriented organizations are looking to hire and retain individuals and service partners that bring a unique, technology-oriented domain expertise. By doing so, the industry anticipates that best practices from other industries will be applied to the waste industry. Hiring individuals and service partners that have an extensive area of expertise within the realms of safety and technology accelerates the adoption of technologies across the board and creates a more streamlined business.

While technology is going to be the catalyst for much of the change in the solid waste industry, it is only going to be successful in conjunction with the continual education of the industry‘s front line. This front line includes the large and small haulers who work in towns and cities across the country. Small haulers specifically have a tendency to be the ones that are put in harm’s way and are the emphasis of national organizations like SWANA. To create safe environments, SWANA’s national education campaign Slow Down to Get Around (SDTGA) program is a shining example of the industry‘s commitment to creating safe environments.

Regardless of the waste sector you work in, there are never-ending opportunities to improve the safety culture at both the organizational and industry-wide levels through continual education and the application of technology.  The National Waste & Recycling Association (NWRA) recently announced the appointment of Darrell Smith as their new president and CEO. With his vast safety experience, we look forward to his guidance to help address the complexities that challenge this essential and often underappreciated industry.

Technology is going to continue to play a critical role in helping to further create safer work environments at all levels of the industry. As organizations look to technology to help keep their fleets, workers, and the public safe, it is critical to consider the expertise behind the development of the solution, the examples of success within the waste and recycling industry, and the business value that they accomplish.

The waste industry has the benefit of having some of the most brilliant minds available to them. Through associations such as NWRA and SWANA and their many initiatives, access to safety and educational resources abound. As the implementation and acceptance of safety technologies further advance in the industry, it serves as an opportunity to further stress to employees the importance of making sure everyone is able to make it home safely at the end of each day.

As President and CEO of PRECO Electronics, Inc. (Boise, ID), Jim Bean brings more than 30 years of operational experience with Fortune 500 companies to the management team. He has been providing outstanding vision and leadership to PRECO’s leading-edge industrial safety products since 1997. Jim currently sits on the board of directors and the audit committee for electronics manufacturing service provider KeyTronic Corporation, the National Advisory Board of the NIST Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership in Washington, D.C. and the advisory board for Boise State University’s TechHelp, a manufacturing consulting organization for Idaho businesses. He can be reached at (208) 323-1000.

Integrating safety technologies provides safer working environments and increases efficiency. Images courtesy of PRECO Electronics. Installing rear and side object detection systems provide drivers with solutions that monitor their blind zones.

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