Improving Waste Management Wirelessly

Case StudySan Diego Environmental Service Department

Efficient Coordination is Key.The Environmental Services Department

(ESD) of the City of San Diego is

responsible for collecting the waste

of their 1.25 million residents in the

seventh largest city in the country. In

just 72.7 square miles, ESD provides

weekly refuse collection to 318,000

customers and bi-weekly curbside

recycling to 276,000 customers – totaling

380,000 tons of waste per year.

Because the City is responsible for

providing refuse, recycling and yard waste

collection free of charge to residents,

there’s a constant need to make sure

that the collection process is coordinated

in the most efficient manner. The ESD

was constantly faced with residents who

claimed that the “truck never arrived,”

causing the ESD to dispatch an additional

truck, even though the regular route truck

had already been to that location. The ESD

needed a way to charge-back residents for

“missed pick-ups,” rather than absorbing

the cost of redundant services.

Plus, as the number of households and

waste volume increased with new state

regulations imposed, ESD needed to

identify ways to generate efficiencies

without compromising the quality of

service, and at the same time, reduce

harmful environmental impacts.

Developing a Plan for Maximum Results.To meet these key objectives, ESD

developed a Rerouting Program utilizing

a Wireless Wide Area Network to

improve the time and scheduling of

garbage and recyclable collections. By

remapping all routes throughout the

City, ESD had a unique plan designed to

increase the productivity of their current

drivers and equipment, while enabling

dramatic fuel and emission reductions.

A key component of the Rerouting

Program included a wireless Sanitation

Truck Monitoring system (STMS) for

tracking the location of each vehicle

and overseeing the mechanical

performance of the trucks on the road.

Company:San Diego Environmental Services Department

Industry:Government

Challenges:

• Reduce overall expenses while providing quality service to the public

• Evenly balance driver assignments and scheduled pick-ups

• Eliminate fine assessments for drivers, Environmental Services Department (ESD) and the City of San Diego

• Expand yard waste collection services to more households

• Reduce environmental impact of waste and emissions

Results:

• Dramatically reduced expenses including manpower, fines, overtime and fuel

• Projected savings of over $10,000,000 over the next 10 years*

• Streamlined routes to reduce fuel consumption and emissions

• Distributed driver workload and collection routes more efficiently while enhancing quality of service

*“San Diego tracks its trash, sees savings” Los Angeles Times, Aug. 1, 2005

T H E B R O A D E S T A N D D E E P E S T P O R T F O L I OO F W I R E L E S S B U S I N E S S S O L U T I O N S .

A P P L I C A T I O N S

N E T W O R K E X P E R T I S E A P P L I C AT I O N S S E R V I C E

C I N G U L A R M A K E S B U S I N E S S R U N B E T T E R

This second-generation solution was

designed to deploy the latest GPRS

and GPS technology, providing a

combination of advanced functionality

to reduce expenses and improve

their services to the public. The STMS

enabled various teams at ESD to have

real-time access to fleet vehicles’

locations and performance, on-demand,

providing visual mapping and exact

coordinates. With ongoing wireless

data transmissions between all ESD

business units – Field Operations,

Support Services, Code Enforcement

and Collections – 400,000 to 500,000

communications are transmitted daily,

providing exact location coordinates

and mechanical performance of

the sanitation trucks for enhanced

responsiveness. Cingular’s ability to

integrate GPRS and GPS technology

with ESD’s back-end system was key.

“Speed and network reliability were

key factors in selecting Cingular as

our carrier – as well as their advanced

expertise to integrate our existing

system with the latest technology,”

said Nader Tirandazi, Assistant to the

Director, ESD. The Sanitation Truck

Monitoring system is designed to

provide real-time communications

between drivers on the road and

management support at home base.

Work assignments are distributed to

drivers and updated while they’re in

transit, enabling up-to-the-minute

changes to be implemented when

situations demand attention. By

monitoring exact locations, nearby

drivers can respond to urgent situations

in less time, reducing the need to send

extra trucks out on the road. The system

has been instrumental in better meeting

the public’s needs. “When we get a

service request in the middle of the day,

we can reassign the nearest vehicle,

rather than sending out additional

trucks or waiting until the next day,”

Tirandazi said.

This advanced system even monitors

vehicle speed, fuel consumption and

mechanical performance, providing

ESD with valuable information to

manage every situation. In addition, the

system has helped project performance

expectations for the Equipment Division

and has helped improve safety through

preemptive mechanical repairs. The

advantages of a wireless solution

with global positioning have saved

administrative and legal fees as well.

In situations where there have been

accidents or property damage, ESD can

rely on data archives to provide facts on

the exact details of a particular vehicle’s

location, speed and even mechanical

activity. In one situation, the City used

the system to successfully dispute an

alleged HOV lane violation. Date, time,

speed and location information data

that confirmed compliance with HOV

regulations was retrieved from the

system and provided to the court. The

case was immediately dropped, saving

administrative time, court time and

legal fees. With in-depth data archives,

ESD is prepared to have access to the

facts regarding their fleet and driver

performance, which has greatly assisted

in defending activities and protecting

the drivers, as well as reducing overall

ESD expenses.

The Resources that Power the ESD Wireless Solution.The ESD solution requires minimal

resources and includes a support team

comprised of:

• One senior route analyst

• Two route analysts

• One GIS coordinator, and

• One information systems analyst

The hardware and software requirements

included GPRS modems, an Oracle

database and various software

applications. This custom application

provides ESD with one central control

deck, leveraging a wireless GPRS

connection to transmit information with a

GPS receiver for all real-time monitoring

and location tracking Planning and

deployment took place within a one-year

timeframe, leveraging the latest software

and hardware along with the Cingular

network to enhance the speed and

reliability of the application. With over

138 trucks utilizing this solution, general

application costs average $750 per

vehicle, including application costs and

wireless service fees. This new approach

has enabled ESD to evaluate fleet size,

reducing the number of leased vehicles.

Accurate Information Provides All-around Satisfaction.The overall satisfaction has been

positive from all groups, from

management to drivers, administration

and even the public. “In the first year

of implementation, this program

has provided additional services to

residents while making better use of

their tax dollars,” said Council Member

Brian Maienschein.

It was assumed that drivers would be

resistant; however, acceptance has been

overwhelming, as the data captured has

actually exonerated drivers in accident

situations and moving violations. Drivers

feel that work assignments are more

equitably managed, and overall, other

than a GPRS connection in their vehicle,

there has been a positive perception

among drivers and management.

Management satisfaction has been highly

regarded, as critical data is accessible to

key operations groups including Field

Operations, Support Services, Code

Enforcement and Collections. With factual

resources at the touch of a button, analysis

and assessment has improved for the

organization as a whole, delivering higher

team productivity and responsiveness.

The increased access to real-time information

has provided greater accountability; driver

workloads are distributed more equitably,

proper scheduling can be achieved,

management supervision has been

improved, and issues have been resolved

in a swift manner. Overall, the public has

received timely, improved services that have

directly resulted from this new approach.

Realizing Success and Planning Expansion.This program has provided great success

in many ways, starting with the elimination

of 50 routes per week, decreasing the

mileage traveled by City Collection trucks

by 900 miles per day – or 390 gallons

daily. Environmentally, reduced mileage

and decreased fuel consumption has

yielded savings.

In the first year alone, over $700,000 in

savings have been realized, with over

$800,000 in year two and approximately

$10 million projected over the next

decade. The cost savings have enabled

the City to expand yard waste collection

from 150,000 to 200,000 homes, reducing

the landfill materials and enabling the

City of San Diego to comply with state

waste reduction mandates. Additionally,

by having confirmation that pick-ups were

attempted on-time, the City no longer

incurs costs for redundant pick-ups and

can now charge the customers back for

this service.*

*“San Diego tracks its trash, sees savings”

Los Angeles Times, Aug. 1, 2005

With the success of this program, the City

of San Diego has deployed this solution

for use by other departments outside of

Environmental Services, including:

• Metropolitan Wastewater Department (94 vehicles)

• General Services (20 vehicles, with a planned expansion to 50 vehicles), and

• Water Department (60 vehicles, with a planned expansion to 425 vehicles)

This program is “an excellent example of

how the City can find more efficient ways

to provide quality customer service while

reducing expenses,” said Dick Murphy,

former mayor. This innovative solution

may even be leveraged as a service

bureau for other cities, which may

transform the ESD system into a revenue

generating business model. The City

of San Diego has set the standard for

municipalities by developing a unique

program that incorporates Cingular’s

latest wireless technology for dramatic

improvements in service and productivity.

For more information please contact

your Cingular account representative,

call 1-866-429-7222 or visit

www.cingular.com/government

Important Information Results and projected savings vary by agency, situation, and solution, and are no guarantee of similar results for your agency Eligible Cingular business/government agreement (“Business Agreement”) required. Individual service agreements for end users may also be required. Requires activation on an eligible Cingular data plan on a compatible device. Terms of service will vary based on selected devices and plans. Availability, speed of delivery and timeliness of information not guaranteed. When outside network coverage, access will be limited to information and applications previously downloaded to or resident on the device. Additional third-party software, hardware and/or service subscription may also be required. Failure to comply with terms and conditions of any applicable software licenses may result in service termination. Cingular service subject to Business Agreement, plan brochures and applicable coverage maps. Detailed local coverage maps available at www.cingular.com. Additional fees, charges and restrictions apply. Contact your Cingular representative for further details. Cingular and the graphic icon are registered trademarks of Cingular Wireless LLC. Raising The Bar and the graphic icon are trademarks of Cingular Wireless LLC. ©2005 Cingular Wireless LLC. All rights reserved.

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