The management of commercial waste (DAE) is a major challenge for all operators in the sector. Regulatory constraints, insufficient traceability, and optimization of recyclable material flows are all challenges that require constant evolution of management and analysis tools. Today, thanks to the integration of advanced technologies, it is becoming possible to provide concrete answers to these issues, paving the way for more efficient professional waste management.
New challenges in commercial waste management
Commercial waste collection is characterized by a variety of waste streams, volumes, and operational constraints. This requires tools that can adapt to a range of configurations, from the density of urban commercial areas to the variety of waste types produced. In order to optimize commercial waste collection operations when waste is stored in bins, operators organize shared collection routes with several customers. This reduces the costs and environmental impact of waste collection but complicates traceability and sorting quality control.
Traceability: a complex prerequisite to implement
The lack of automated tracking systems for each professional bin remains one of the main obstacles to optimal management. Initially, sorting errors could not be traced back to the producing company. Since all bins are mixed during the collection route, it has until now been impossible to associate it with a specific entity. Automated waste analysis provides a partial solution to this problem. Now, a bin containing sorting errors can be linked to a producing company.
Real-time detection versus delayed analysis
Most sorting errors in commercial waste are detected late, once the waste streams have been mixed, making it impossible to pinpoint the sources of contamination. The result is a deterioration in the quality of recoverable materials, a loss of value for recycling industries, and increased costs for collectors.
Regulatory requirements and compliance
In France, regulations now require professionals to reduce sorting errors, particularly to ensure compliance with recycling targets. Traditional tools, which are often manual and based on spot checks, do not fully reflect the reality on the ground. Collection operators must therefore rely on automated solutions that can provide representative and usable data.
Towards a new generation of solutions for AED collection
In the context of commercial waste collection, identifying sorting errors and informing companies of them is essential for all stakeholders. For the collector, it is important to ensure the quality of the waste streams collected or to be able to charge for sorting errors. For waste-producing companies, it is necessaryto be informed when sorting errors are made in order to implement preventive measures and reduce their environmental impact and financial risk. However, without accurate tools for characterizing and attributing errors, it was impossible to identify sorting errors precisely.
Artificial intelligence provides an innovative response to this challenge by enabling automated, objective, and traceable detection of sorting errors directly during collection. Thanks to this embedded technology, each non-compliant bin can be identified, documented, and precisely linked to the establishment concerned. This system enables:
- Fair and transparent application of penalty charges
- Greater accountability for professional producers through individualized monitoring
- Improved sorting practices through targeted feedback
By leveraging these innovations, operators ensure that the cost of sorting errors is no longer borne by the entire flow, but rather by the parties responsible for the discrepancies. This approach encourages companies to commit to more virtuous practices, optimizes the quality of collected materials, and ensures fairer and more sustainable management of commercial waste.
The sector is seeing the emergence of a few rare embedded analysis and automation solutions tailored to the specificities of the professional world. Why are they so rare? As mentioned at the beginning of this article, the flows collected contain a very wide variety of waste. Most analysis solutions detect around twenty types of waste.
This number is insufficient to automatically characterize sorting errors in a shopping center. That is why most operators use AI-based sorting error detection solutions with at least 60 types of waste.
If we take the example of Lixo, thanks to the latest update to their AI model, called Omnia, their detection capabilities now allow them to detect more than 90 types of waste.
Optimization of the quality of collected materials
One of the major benefits is the detection, at the collection point, of errors or contaminants in recyclable waste. This immediate check significantly improves the purity of the waste streams, limiting the presence of unwanted materials in cardboard, plastic, or other recyclable waste. Feedback indicates variability in detection rates (from 20% to 60% according to initial pilot projects), illustrating the potential for improvement in the field.
Automation of decommissioning and reporting
Thanks to automated analysis, collectors can immediately identify non-compliant containers, trigger a downgrade of the bin, and record the incident in their information system. This process paves the way for fairer, more transparent penalty billing and better information feedback to end customers, supporting the continuous improvement process.
Continuous characterization for compliance
Embedded analysis solutions complement manual audits with continuous and comprehensive characterization of residual waste. This provides collectors with reliable data and performance indicators in real time, making it easier to meet end customers' objectives and manage their collection services.
Customer loyalty and value creation
By providing accurate reports on sorting quality and CSR target achievement, collection operators become true partners for their business customers. These personalized assessments promote customer loyalty, position the operator as an innovative player, and enhance the added value of the offering in a highly competitive sector.
A rapidly changing market and expanded prospects
The French commercial waste market, estimated at around 1,500 collection trucks, is structured around major national players and local specialists. Two of the main market leaders (Veolia and Suez) have already begun to equip their fleets.
By leveraging innovation, the waste management industry is now equipping itself with the tools it needs to meet new challenges: improved traceability, reduced costs, regulatory compliance, and increased recovery of collected waste streams. This evolution paves the way for more responsible, transparent, and efficient practices that can sustainably support the transition to a circular economy.
