You’re a large nationwide company employing tens of thousands of people. Who do you call to handle complex, out-of-the-ordinary waste and recycling? RoadRunner’s Enterprise Team led by Dean Liappas.
Liappas leads the way to finding out-of-the-box solutions for some customer requests. We’re asking him about what his team does, some of the big challenges facing the Enterprise Team, and how the team can solve major e-waste problems.
how does the enterprise team at roadrunner work to help customers meet their sustainability goals?
“In short, our team historically and currently solves a lot of the more challenging or unique or out-of-the-box material streams,” Liappas said. “We’re trying to find creative and scalable solutions to traditionally structured and time-intensive projects, like outlets for really odd materials.”
RoadRunner has the engines to sell and strategize traditional waste services customized for each unique situation. The Enterprise team deals with larger volumes and complex types of materials. Liappas explains that it’s constantly evolving and increasing in complexity.
Liappas offered a shortlist of materials his team deals with frequently in large volumes:
• Cardboard
• High grade paper (book stock, sorted office paper)
• Aluminum
• Organics (sludge, packaged food waste)
• E-waste (computers, mice, TVs)
• Textiles
Liappas adds RoadRunner also connects directly with facilities that can handle specialized waste. Individual customers might not have the time, ability, or resources to cultivate those working relationships. These efforts save time and money for clients.
“In this environment of increasing costs, as a one-stop shop, we’re able to find savings on certain processes that can often be subsidies for other things,” he said. “Moving a certain type of material might be expensive. But, as part of an overall plan, there might be savings.”
what are some of the biggest challenges the enterprise team has to overcome?
Liappas said one of the biggest challenges his team faces is changing customer behavior.
“Larger enterprise clients are very process and safety driven, such as a manufacturing floor,” Liappas said. “Everything is designed to work in sync with the available real estate and systems.”
For example, the waste solution for a manufacturing plant could very often disrupt those processes and throw things out of sync operationally. Employees might need new training, new processes might need to be put in place, and new equipment might be needed in order for the business to divert a volume of material from the landfill. It’s not always a simple fix for companies to meet their green goals.
"There's not always an available outlet, reuser, recycler, digester, or composter nearby," he said. "Infrastructure for that can often be few and far between."
Another major challenge Liappas’s team deals with has to do with logistics. He explains that once a company decides to implement changes, his team jumps into action to find somewhere to take the materials.
The market for many of these materials varies. Moving it in large quantities is becoming increasingly more expensive, especially as rising fuel costs and labor shortages are factored into the equation.
how can the enterprise team help overcome hurdles with e-waste?
Liappas said electronic waste, or e-waste, is becoming something more clients are asking his team to deal with.
“It’s something that everyone has. There is generally more awareness and initiative taking place to properly dispose of this stuff,” Liappas said.
E-waste is one of the fastest-growing waste streams in the world. Liappas said his team gets called to find solutions for mountains of headphones, seas of charging cables, and boxes of old computer parts.
"Now I think companies are saying, 'Can we recycle this stuff and get data so we can include it in our reporting?'," Liappas said.
Identifying what exactly the client needs to manage, finding a recycler, and then figuring out the best way to get it to that facility are all part of the e-waste journey for the Enterprise Team. Additionally, the team is able to track the carbon emissions associated with managing the materials. This gives clients another trove of data to show how they’re meeting sustainability goals. The Enterprise Team is able to use RoadRunner’s green technology to fully manage the entire portfolio of waste operations for electronics, including ways to save money, ensure the best equipment is being used, and navigate local regulations. That’s all boiled down to an easy-to-understand single report for some of these massive companies.
RoadRunner is helping some of the largest companies in the U.S. across a wide range of industries meet their sustainability goals. From saving money on waste and recycling to tracking carbon emissions for ESG, we have the ability to meet the needs of your business. RoadRunner’s green technology engines power a new wave of innovation. Our goal is to make it as easy as possible for our customers to improve their waste streams. Whether it’s a simple solution or a complex program, we can create a customized way for your business to meet its green goals.
