Waste Connections
Safety as a Core Value
“With safety being our top priority, we are continually battling the bottom part of the Heinrich Pyramid to eliminate unsafe driving behavior and accidents,” explains Darrell Chambliss, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Waste Connections. “When you talk about drivers on the road operating on their own, it’s very difficult for us to observe bad behaviors and habits as they occur. Over the years, we’ve tried a number of ways to improve the situation (ride alongs, videos, observations, etc.), but nothing has proven long-term or practical.”
This statement goes to the heart of Waste Connections and its core values.
Waste Connections differentiates itself from other companies in the waste industry through its set of five core values: safety, integrity, customer service, to be a great place to work and to be the premier solid waste company in the United States. Starting with safety, these values set the course for Waste Connections’ growth and future.
We strive to assure complete safety of our employees, our
customers and the public in all of our operations. Protection
from accident or injury is paramount in all we do.
Waste Connections (NYSE: WCN), based in Folsom, CA is the third largest public solid waste company in the United States. Celebrating its tenth anniversary in 2007, Waste Connections has grown exponentially each year through a combination of both organic growth in its existing markets and acquisitions of selected companies in high-growth markets. Waste Connections’ focus is on secondary and suburban markets that have strong demographic growth trends and where competitive barriers to entry can be developed; this has allowed it to grow by $100 million a year to a projected $1.2 billion in 2009. Adding to Waste Connections’ strength and stability is its long-term franchise or exclusive contracts, which contribute more than 50 percent of its revenues.
Leading-Edge Video Solution Solves Ongoing Problem
What differentiates waste drivers from others on the road is that they make a tremendous number of starts and stops throughout the day – 400 to 450 or more. And because they typically drive in tight neighborhoods, they face a great deal of motion occurring around the vehicle, such as cars, pedestrians, bicycles and children playing.
“Because we look to technology to help our customers, employees and shareholders, we wanted a high-tech video solution to reduce risky driving behaviors fleet wide,” commented Chambliss. “We started with DriveCam by installing it in 100 vehicles using a Wi-Fi system in our Knoxville, Tenn. District. Based on the success and outcome of this project, we quickly moved to expand the program and replaced the Wi-Fi system with cellular for Knoxville and the fleet-wide expansion.
Cellular Makes Expansion Possible
“Prior to expansion, we looked at other providers but none compared to DriveCam. They either didn’t have cellular download, weren’t as technically capable or were still struggling with many of the issues that DriveCam had already put to rest.
“We started with our largest districts and worked our way down from there, with an initial order of 1,200 event recorders. By the end of 2008, we had installed approximately 1,835 DriveCam units. With our recent growth and acquisition of Harold LeMay Enterprises, we look to install DriveCam in another 1,200 trucks in 2009. By the end of 2009, we will have in excess of 3,000 units in place.”
Waste Connections experienced some opposition from its drivers to installing DriveCam in its fleet, but quickly overcame this by being truthful and upfront regarding the goal of this technology. They made a very strong attempt early in the process to explain the program to their drivers and district managers, even prior to units arriving on site. They made sure that drivers understood the system, how it worked and the benefits of having a DriveCam video event recorder in their vehicle. They also made sure that managers understood the program since its success relied on their enthusiastic participation.
Open Communication and Exonerations Prove Program Success
The result of this open communication created an atmosphere of willingness. Although some drivers may not have been totally on board with the program, they were willing to give it a try. This willingness became even more enthusiastic as drivers began to be exonerated due to DriveCam. Prior to DriveCam, a driver was usually found at fault when an incident occurred. Now, with the video evidence proving their innocence, the drivers had something other than their word to help in these situations. “The news spread like wildfire and soon, everyone was willing to give it a try,” explained Chambliss. “We also found that the better the driver, the more willing he or she was to accept DriveCam as a tool to help in the event of a situation where they could be blamed. The ones who don’t accept the program are usually our poorer drivers.”
DriveCam as Hub of Risk Management Program
“Without a doubt, DriveCam is having an impact,” stated Chambliss. “We know we are changing driver behavior and incident rates are going down where DriveCam is in place. It has assisted us in claims defense where we know that with the absence of having the DriveCam video clip, we would have been found at fault. It’s helped our defense immensely in several instances.
“As stated earlier, safety is integral to our corporation. DriveCam fits into our safety culture like a hand in glove,” Chambliss continued. “I foresee DriveCam actually becoming the hub of our risk management program because it provides such an opportunity to change driver behavior. Once DriveCam becomes the hub of anyone’s risk management program and it’s used religiously, it will change driver behavior and have a tremendous impact on your bottom line. We have not found a better system for doing this than DriveCam.”