Waste Haulers and Manufactures the Truth behind the Story

Manufacturing of any product produces a magnitude of waste. I have been in the Waste Industry for over 20 years in the USA and in Europe. So as an expert in the waste industry, I have seen the shear enormity of waste produced by Manufactures.

The amount of waste produced in the production of most products is an enormous problem for the Manufacturer. As the producer of large amounts of waste, you have the issues of Health and Safety, pollution control, what equipment is needed to remove the waste, the placement of equipment for ease of use, the cost of complying with state and local regulations and removal of the waste.

The Waste industry knows what a huge problem this is for Manufactures and they do there best to keep it that way. I don’t say that in a malicious context. I say it because it’s the way the waste hauler makes there money. After all, they are called waste haulers because they haul your waste away. And the more waste you produce, the more profit they make.


I’m sure that you have sat across the table from your local hauler and heard them tell you how they can move your waste and comply with all the legal issues that you have concerning the waste you produce. And they can. I’m not disputing that at all.

What I am disputing is the image that they portray as the people that you can trust to do the job in the most cost effective and environmentally friendly way.

In the twenty years that I have been helping manufactures deal with their waste removal. The one thing they have all said to me is “I believe that I am paying way too much to remove my waste.” The truth is they are!

It is not in the best interest of the hauler and his profits to be or to even offer a way to be efficient. Quite frankly there unscrupulous strategy is to be as inefficient as possible.


Today’s waste haulers are in an industry that produces billions of dollars. They have done their research and planed ahead for the best ways to keep their profits up and grow their business in the same way that you have.

The difference, in my opinion, is in the unscrupulous strategies they employ to achieve their goals. To give you an example, a waste hauler will tell you that the best way to handle your waste is to use open top roll-off containers. That this is the way you can keep your cost down and fit a lot of waste into one container and they will only charge you for the pull plus tonnage.

On the surface this seems reasonable. Here is where there unscrupulous strategy comes in. they will place a roll-off container on your site. You start to put your waste in to it. And they come and haul it away.

Sounds good right? They are pulling the “full“ roll-off away and replacing it with and empty and charging you each time they pull it.

What you don’t realize is that the “full” roll-off they are taking away isn’t full! (Not sufficient tonnage in container to be considered full)

The hauler will come in and pull that roll-off as much as he possibly can. The least amount of waste in the roll-off the better. I have seen them pull roll-offs when they weren’t even a quarter full. And you the customer still have the full charge to pay.


Remember, we are talking about Waste Haulers and they are charging you every time they hook up to that roll-off and haul it away. There is the tonnage charge for the waste that is in the roll-off. But where the waste hauler really makes his money is with the haul charge. So, the more times he can haul a roll-off away with the least amount of waste the more money he makes.

Let’s take it a step further. Let’s say that as the customer you saw this was happening and confronted your waste hauler with it.

I can tell you right now that they have a myriad of caned excuses that have been researched and taught to them to use in this situation. That you, as the customer can’t really argue with.

Just to name a few,

1) We just wanted to make sure you weren’t left with a roll-off that was over flowing.
2) You are on a scheduled time for pick up and my drivers don’t have time to climb out of their truck to see how full your roll-off is.
3) We are just trying to give you the best service we can.

If you where to push them for a solution to the problem. They will offer you a ram compactor for what they consider to be a reasonable cost of course. They will sell it to you as the best way to get as much waste into a container as possible and reduce the number of pulls you get charged for.


Again, sounds good right? It will reduce the number of pulls slightly, and your cost per month will go down slightly. But they know that they will make that lost revenue back when they raise your cost per pull which they do at least once a year or more.

Let’s ask ourselves, why didn’t they offer a ram compactor sooner? Why did you have to push them for a solution to a problem they created?

Answer: PROFIT!

Let’s also ask ourselves, why is the ram compare the machine of choice for the waste hauler and not some of the other waste handling machines out there?

Answer: The ram compactor is inefficient and has been around for at least fifty years or more. It is antiquated technology. The hauler knows how to turn the pressure down on them if they chose, to where they are not much better than an open top roll-off. And they can still control how often it gets hauled. Because you can’t see the inside of a ram compactor you can’t tell if it is full or not. So you get charged accordingly.


The big issue here is not the haulers using unscrupulous tactics to make there enormous profits. But, that the manufacturers are forced into the position of trusting that the advice of the hauler is in the best interest of the manufacturer and believing the image that the haulers are being efficient and fair with the service they are providing.

There are answers out there that stop the haulers from using their tactics. The trick is to ask for the answers from someone in the industry other than the hauler that stands to profit the most.

Mr. Robert Kamppi has been in the Waste industry here in the United States and in Europe for over 20 years. He has worked with National Waste Haulers, Equipment Manufacturers and as consultant to Manufacturers and industry. He has also become an independent, trusted and valued expert nationally on waste hauling efficiency and reduced environmental impact strategies for many companies. He is currently involved with the introduction and placement of next generation High efficiency waste control equipment. Mr. Kamppi firmly believes that Manufacturers and Industry leaders that are looking to lessen their impact on the environment and lessen the impact of waste removal on their bottom line profits should investigate this new equipment.

Authors Name: Robert Kamppi