Welcome to the latest Collection and Transport Special. The first thing to note here is the change of timing – from the beginning of the year as it was previously, to the middle. May/June is a far better time of year to judge how both product trends and the operational aspects of our industry are unfolding. I hope you agree.
At the time of writing, several brands of equipment from mainstream manufacturers were in the process of coming under one sort of ‘marketing agreement’, or another. While that’s not necessarily a bad thing from the potential purchaser’s point of view, it can result in less customer choice, or with larger manufacturing groups undertaking less research and development, rather than more. On the other hand, from a manufacturing viewpoint, the waste and recycling industry probably has more independent competitive brands fighting for global market domination than the total market can realistically support.
There’s a dilemma for everyone in the market for new equipment here – do you favour the larger, multinational brands because, generally speaking, they’re the safe option? Or do you reward a still small, but expanding manufacturer, keen to try out innovative new ideas, with your business?
As you will observe from our cover story on the Italian manufacturer Iride, it is often the smaller manufacturers that are able to translate clever ideas into reality in a shorter timescale. And as the increased costs of fuel and finance start to impact on the global community, putting new ideas into action quickly becomes even more crucial, in that it can save energy, as well as money. The tough part for the smaller players is convincing customers in more distant markets that their after-sales service back-up can match that of the big boys.
Interestingly, as several major manufacturers merge, or reach marketing agreements, Iride is keen to expand both its product range and the extent of its market – it’s going to be one to watch.
Low emissions vehicles – such as diesel–electric hybrids – are also very much on the manufacturers’ agendas, as evidenced by the new offering from Isuzu. Meanwhile, sweepers running on natural gas and with filters to reduce dust emissions were on show at the recent IFAT 2008 exhibition, along with new technology for all aspects of waste collection, recycling and street cleaning – see our report on page 18. And you can see more from IFAT by visiting our website www.waste-management-world.com – click on waste management industry videos.
It’s now very much up to the operators of waste and cleansing vehicles to push the manufacturers forward. Whether solutions to vehicle emissions, greater community involvement or dust emissions will come from large international groups or the smaller manufacturers is hard to say at this stage.
But time is running out for the environment. So the innovators have it all to gain.
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Malcolm Bates
Transport Correspondent
