Calculating ROI: How Balers and Compactors Save Your Business Money
Balers and compactors can significantly reduce your costs in the long run. However, it’s important to understand the ROI on your recycling equipment so you can assess future profitability and maximise the value for your business.
Here’s how to recognise your waste management cost savings.
How can balers and compactors save you money?
Before we look at how to calculate ROI on your waste management equipment, let’s explore how balers and compactors can reduce your overall operational costs.
Reduced waste volume
Investing in horizontal balers can result in major cost savings. Baling waste for recycling minimises the number of collections and reduces waste volumes, significantly driving down your waste management costs.
Operational efficiency
Modern balers use automated processes to ensure consistency and reduce labour costs.
Reduced landfill tax
The landfill tax in the UK is currently £126.15 per tonne, rising each year. By recycling waste such as cardboard, paper, and metals, you’ll make significant landfill tax savings and align with the increasing demand for environmentally aware business practices.
Regulatory compliance
The UK has stringent waste disposal regulations. Failure to comply can lead to fines and impact your business reputation. Investing in recycling equipment, such as small-scale vertical balers, enables SMEs to meet their recycling needs while also saving money.
Additional revenue streams
Selling your cardboard waste can turn your recycling into a valuable revenue stream. Horizontal and vertical balers make cardboard disposal easy for any size of organisation. As a bonus, they incentivise you to recycle and help to cover operational costs. Read more about making money from cardboard waste.
Learn more about saving money with a baler or compactor.
How do equipment expenses affect your ROI?
When working out the ROI on your baler or compactor, there are several costs that are often overlooked. Consider the following expenses:
- Transfer and disposal: Your transfer and disposal costs include landfill tax and tipping fees. These vary based on the type and volume of waste.
- Labour: Alongside the financial cost of waste disposal, account for the time it takes to dispose of your waste — which impacts labour costs.
- Waste types: Collection and disposal costs vary based on the type of waste. Cardboard, paper and food waste are the cheapest to process, but expect to pay more for metals, plastics and any waste that requires special handling.
- Waste volume: Another factor impacting your waste disposal costs is the volume of waste your business generates
- Collection frequency: How often you have waste collected impacts your costs. The more frequently you schedule collections, the higher your costs are likely to be.
Tips for maximising baler ROI
While investing in balers and compactors comes with an upfront cost, they can deliver excellent value in the long term. Here are some tips to help you get the most out of your and further maximise your ROI.
- Select the right equipment for your needs: Before purchasing any equipment, arrange a waste audit to assess the type and volume of waste your business produces. If you mainly process low volumes of paper and cardboard, for example, a vertical baler is more than adequate.
- Prioritise regular maintenance: Optimise the energy efficiency and processing capacity of your baler with proactive maintenance. Scheduling a preventative service and maintenance plan reduces costly breakdowns, catches potential issues early, and extends the lifespan of your equipment.
- Consider total lifecycle costs: Before you purchase, consider lifecycle factors such as energy consumption, maintenance, and potential resale value. Equipment with a longer operational life and easily available spare parts typically represents better long-term value than cheaper alternatives.
- Monitor performance: Monitoring key performance metrics, including energy consumption, throughput rates and downtime, ensures your equipment is delivering maximum value for money.
Save money, energy, and space with balers and compactors from phs Wastekit
Calculating and maximising baler ROI is the key to investing in the right equipment for your business. At phs Wastekit, we can help you save money, space, and energy with our high-quality balers and compactors.
If you’re unsure where to start, try our waste-saving calculator and book a waste audit to see how you can streamline your business waste disposal.