1. Fuel contamination
Static tanks for red diesel in waste transfer stations should be cleaned out and checked for water on a regular basis, especially during the winter. Also change fuel filters on loading shovels and excavators more often in the winter.
2. Fire extinguishers in vehicle cabs
This week while doing NVQ level 2 training in the Wigan area I noticed fire extinguishers in two vehicles were only 2 kilos. Skip operators should ensure that the fire extinguishers being carried in the vehicles are adequate to put out a vehicle fire and any possible fire within a load (if it is a compaction vehicle or open skip vehicle).
3. Credit control
More building companies are going bust. Keep credit limits to the minimum and check people out using Experian to make sure that someone in the organisation is designated as a credit controller. It is easy to find customers who want skip hire, it is harder to find the ones that will pay.
4. Skips on driveways and damage claims from local councils
I have been contacted by several readers of The Skip magazine regarding damage claims from councils. My advice is to get the customer to sign a disclaimer and take responsibility for any damage caused crossing the public highway (and pavement) to gain access (to the customers property). In the meantime, I am taking legal advice and opinions from skip operators in different parts of the UK in order to try to draw up a standard disclaimer that would be of use to The Skip readers.
5. Cash in a flash for PVC window frames
All you have to do is bash the glass out. Plasgrind in Burnley, Lancashire will pay 40 pounds per tonne. To find your local PVC buyer check out www.recovinyl.com or call Axion Recycling Ltd on 0161 426 7731 and ask for Jane ‘The Green Goddess’ Gardner, or visit www.axionrecycling.com
Roger Hudspith is a director of A2Shred Ltd in Winsford, Cheshire. He also holds the level 4 COTC for waste transfer treatment and hazardous waste treatment. Email the Garbage Guru at theguru@theskip.net to ask any questions about the murky world of waste.
