Waste management is sparing on the environment, time and money if IT and communications technology are used. New inventions are necessary, because a considerable portion of municipal waste management costs are caused by the collection and transportation of waste.

The software company Ecomond Oy has developed Transport Control Systems (TCS), a comprehensive system for the environmental management logistics chain, which can be used to automate the driving plan for waste collection, data transmission between the collection vehicles and office, and route guidance.

"The time spent on planning the loads and routes is shortened, the amount of work is reduced and reacting to changing service needs is speeded up. At the same time customer satisfaction increases," says Juha Hietamäki, the sales manager.

Inexpensive and easy

Ecomond cooperates with WEG Oy, which specializes in solutions for environmental technology and waste management. WEG has developed a warning system for waste compactors that involves a miniature computer monitoring the filling of a compactor.

Ecomond's TCS system and WEG's compactors can be combined in the same information system: when a compactor fitted with a WEG reporting device is filled to a certain level, a report is transmitted automatically to the TCS server and to the nearest vehicle for the appropriate action.

"Distance supervision of the filling means that the user no longer has to monitor the compactor and ensures that the compactor is emptied only when it is full. In practice this often means a doubling or trebling of the intervals for emptying, so the customer saves 50 to 60 per cent in transportation and emptying costs," stresses Vesa Kinnunen, a director at WEG Oy.

Effective logistical tool

"When monitoring the filling is combined with automatic route planning, the transportation firm gets an excellent tool for planning its operations," Kinnunen says.

The TCS system can be applied to all environmental management logistics solutions. It can be used for collecting municipal waste, hazardous waste and paper and also for sewage and drainage maintenance.

"The system, which is already generally well known in the environmental management sector in Finland, has also aroused interest abroad. We are at present discussing cooperation with various international sales channels. Customers with the greatest potential are in western and central Europe," Hietämäki says.

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>> www.weg.fi

The TCS system can be used to utilize waste management transportation equipment more efficiently. The driver's work is also made easier and the quality of work improves. (Photo: Ecomond Oy)