When performing waste assessments, one of the most common questions we are asked is:

Why do I need a baler?

There are a number of reasons, but one of the most important reasons for businesses is ‘money’. The bottom line is that a baler makes your waste more valuable. Waste that is not baled like:

• Cardboard & Paper
• Pallet wrap
• Bulk bags
• Plastic material bags

cannot realise its true value as any recycling company collecting is is essentially transporting a large amount of fresh air. The consensus within the recycling industry is that recyclers would rather pay businesses to collect baled waste than they would collect loose waste free of charge.

The Advantages of Balers

There are many advantages to having a baler. These include:

• Rebates – baled materials can earn rebates for companies that loose ones can’t
• To maximise space – a baler can compact large amounts of material into one bale. Balers come in all shapes & sizes but the most common produce bales ranging from 60 – 500kg in size
• To reduce waste disposal costs – companies are regularly paying to have valuable materials removed & they are paying for skips when much of the material can be baled & space can be saved
• To reduce guilt – the business is taking a positive stance to recycle & everyone can do their bit to ensure that materials are reused
• To gain valuable recycling credentials & clients – many of our clients use their recycling credentials to win clients & green accreditations that help them generate business at a higher level

The Maths - Case Study

Let’s look at an example:

One of our clients was producing cardboard & plastic waste like it was going out of fashion. This meant:

• Their yard was full on a regular basis
• They were paying £150 per week for waste collections which were taking away a lot of ‘fresh air’ as the materials weren’t baled & properly compacted
• They were paying to have valuable materials taken away (cardboard, paper, shrink wrap, bubble wrap & film)

We offered the company a twin chamber baler free of charge for a month so that they could:

• Use the baler and to see how it worked within their current processes
• See whether the baler is right for their needs
• Reduce the risks of installing a baler

The benefits of a twin chamber baler in this instance were:

• Saving handling time with multiple chambers: free to load one while other chamber compacts
• Multiple chambers offer an efficient way of separating different materials before baling – the chambers acted as stillages for the different materials
• The baler could be extended to up to 6 chambers in the future if necessary

The overall maths were:

• The client was paying £8,000 per year in landfill
• The client was getting no rebate
• Renting a twin chamber baler would cost £28 per week

The Value

After 12 months, the value to the client was huge:

• £612 per annum in savings from landfilling skips of material
• £400 rebate on cardboard & office paper for recycling
• £1,200 rebate on shrink & bubble wrap
• £1,050 rebate on clear & jazz film
• Better value from each skip load
• More space in the company yard

This came from an outlay of £28 per week (may clients choose to purchase the balers outright but, in this example, they hired one).

& so, in answer to the question “Why do I need a baler?”. If you are producing waste that can generate a value from recycling companies in any volume, there are many good answers & the question should be “Why not?”