Let’s be honest. It’s a tough time to be running a waste business right now.
Margins are under pressure. Fuel costs, insurance, wages — they’re all climbing. And in parts of the UK, especially the Southeast, operators are being squeezed from every direction.
But here’s what’s worrying: too many business owners think the answer is to chase more work.
More skips. More bins. More miles.
Spoiler alert: it won’t work.
If your cost base is out of control, chasing more sales just accelerates the bleed. You’re not fixing the leak. You’re turning up the tap.
So what’s the smarter move?
Efficiency. Operational grip. Cost control.
And one of the fastest, most effective ways to get there?
Digital systems.
Still running on paper? It’s costing you.
It’s staggering how many waste firms in 2025 are still operating like it’s 1995:
- Thousands of handwritten tickets each month
- Paper invoices and duplicate pads
- Admin teams typing the same data two, three times over
- Drivers forgetting to hand in tickets (or losing them altogether)
- Customers not even billed because the paperwork goes missing
Let’s call it what it is: you’re doing free work, and paying staff to make avoidable mistakes.
And the worst part? You’ve built a business on shifting tonnes of waste… but you can’t even be sure you’re charging for it properly.
Tech isn’t the enemy — inefficiency is
A lot of firms I work with are hesitant about going digital. They’re worried about:
- Cost
- Complexity
- Staff buy-in
But the truth is, modern waste tech isn’t scary. It’s intuitive, proven, and designed to save time and money. And if you’ve been burned by clunky software in the past, that’s exactly why you need a better process this time — one that involves your team, is tailored to your needs, and focuses on return on investment.
The right system doesn’t just cut admin. It gives you:
- Real-time data on your skips, bins, drivers and routes
- Cleaner invoicing and faster payments
- Accurate reports to manage profitability and compliance
- Fewer disputes, because you’ve got the audit trail to back it up
You can’t manage what you can’t measure
Running a fleet of skips or trucks isn’t a measure of success. Neither is being busy.
You measure business performance by:
- The quality and clarity of your operational data
- The money reliably hitting your bank account
If you’re not confident in both, you’re working too hard for too little return.
Efficiency isn’t optional — it’s urgent
When times are tight, every pound counts. Every process needs to earn its keep. And every person in your business needs the tools to work smarter, not just harder.
That means saying goodbye to boxfuls of forms, to clunky spreadsheets, and to broken billing systems that leave money on the table.
Because in 2025, clinging to paper isn’t old-school — it’s expensive.
Let’s make technology work for you
If your business is still running on legacy systems or paper processes, and you want to modernise without the drama, I can help.
I work hands-on with waste and recycling firms to:
- Evaluate and choose the right software
- Get your staff on board
- Streamline your operations
- And unlock genuine savings
So before you spend this quarter’s VAT money on more people to push more paper — let’s talk about how to make your business leaner, smarter, and more profitable.
Because chasing sales won’t fix your margins. But fixing your operations just might.
Gerald Price is a multi-disciplined business consultant specialising in the efficiency, improvement and development of established businesses (£3m+ turnover).
Gerald is available to lead bids for tenders of all sizes and complexities, or to support and mentor internal business development teams.
Fissara is a leading provider of modern software enabling waste businesses properly to control the operational management and movement of waste materials and the associated fleet. I am proud to recommend their products to SME waste companies.
