Statewide Recycling Services has saved thousands of dollars each week in transportation costs after purchasing a PBS-approved Freighter six-axle Dog trailer.
Since the introduction of the high productivity Performance-Based Standards (PBS) scheme in 2007, the heavy vehicle industry has achieved significant cost-savings.
The scheme allows for the design of optimised truck and trailer combinations which can carry additional loads over conventional combinations.
In order to be approved for use, PBS vehicles must pass a series of performance tests relating to safety and infrastructure standards to ensure that they are as safe, if not safer, than all other combinations on the road.
Australia’s largest semi trailer manufacturer, MaxiTRANS, has been one of the manufacturers leading the charge, having placed thousands of PBS-approved units on the road since the program began.
PBS has provided an enormous boost for the waste industry, with experienced professionals such as Anthony Weinberg, Statewide Recycling Services Operations Manager, boasting increased productivity and cost-savings. Statewide Recycling Services Pty Ltd is a family-owned company with operations in Warrnambool, Hamilton, Stawell and Melbourne.
It operates an Environmental Protection Authority licensed landfill, compost facility and series of transfer stations.
Increasing productivity has been a key focus for Statewide since day one and Anthony states that any time saved for the business is crucial.
“We’re servicing the growing body of waste in Victoria, which is only expected to increase,” he says.
Anthony’s team carries waste in hook lift bins from the sprawling Victorian regional city of Warrnambool to its landfill based in the town of Stawell, travelling a considerable 250km each way.
He says he could previously only carry two bins at a time, one on the truck and the other on the trailer, whereas with the Freighter six-axle PBS Dog trailer, he can carry two bins on the trailer. It means he can now carry a total of three bins, providing him with a 50 per cent increase in productivity.
“We carry 30 m³ purpose-built hook bins and can now accommodate a payload of up to 43 tonnes of waste for each trip. Before it was about 26,” Anthony says.
“We used to carry our waste with a hook truck and three-axle superdog. Since purchasing the Freighter six-axle PBS Dog trailers, we’ve reduced our truck trips by at least three each week, saving the company in the long-term on fuel and maintenance.”
Statewide Recycling Services recently purchased its second Freighter six-axle PBS Dog trailer from MaxiTRANS, resulting in further savings for the company. Anthony says he purchased the first trailer 18 months ago, but was so pleased with its effectiveness that he opted for a second.
While the PBS application process can be a daunting task for first-timers, finding the right suppliers can help smooth the process, and for Anthony, MaxiTRANS’ expert PBS team did just that.
Anthony says a key factor to his purchase was the assistance he received from MaxiTRANS, as the company guided him through the entire process, from designing a combination that suited his specific transport task, through to obtaining final PBS approval.
“They were very professional and experienced, it was explained to us how long it would take to obtain approval and we were directed to the appropriate people throughout the process,” he says.
Anthony adds that MaxiTRANS’ philosophy of designing fit-for-purpose PBS combinations rather than off-the-shelf solutions appealed to him due to the additional productivity gains that could be made.
Read the full story on page 50 of Issue 13.