Ekocharita uses sensors to streamline textile waste collection service

A textile waste collection company in Slovakia has reduced its waste collection costs by 20% through a pilot smart bin project integrated with sensors.

In January 2021, Ekocharita began installing waste sensors provided by software company Sensoneo. By the end of June, the firm had determined that the use of Sensoneo’s sensors had cut the collection time for 1 tonne of textile waste by 30%, decreased total waste collection expenses by 20%, and made the entire logistics of the operation more streamlined, based on data from 600 containers.

Within a 16000 km² region, Ekocharita handles 1300 containers for clothing, shoes, toys, and home textiles.

Consumers deliver unwanted garments to collection depots or drop-off locations at irregular times, making textile waste collection difficult. As a result, it’s impossible for waste drivers to forecast when bins will be full, making waste collection logistically problematic and putting management under a lot of financial and time strain. Real-time online monitoring via sensors might assist streamline the process while lowering expenses.

Sensoneo sensors are in place to monitor container fill levels 24 times per day. They also include fire and tilt alarms, as well as temperature monitoring. Ekocharita drivers, who were once hesitant to adopt new technology, are now eager to utilize the service.

Juraj Kunak, an Ekocharita driver, said that even those who say, who won’t use it; who can’t do it with a smartphone,’ are the first to open a smartphone at six in the morning, draw 12 red dots along the route, and return with a full car at 10:00. They drove for 8-9 hours to fetch a fully-loaded vehicle. They were going in loops, and let’s assume the drivers were absolutely burnt up after six months. They may now start at 7:00 or 8:00 a.m. and finish by 12:00 or 1:00 p.m., returning home to their families.

According to Kunak, this technique not only helps drivers manage their time more effectively but also helps to speed up garbage collection by ensuring that drivers do not leave empty-handed when conducting collection excursions.

Drivers can now quickly detect which containers actually need to be picked up thanks to smart monitoring, which has helped them to perfect collection routes. Before the entire procedure was digitized, drivers gathered textile waste based on their own estimates.

Ekocharita states that smart monitoring does not only allows for quick and efficient waste collection while preventing container overflow, but it also provides a distinct advantage when expanding business operations into new, relatively unknown areas, as the technology allows for the easy replacement of competitors working in those areas.