An Integrated Waste Solutions Partner

The challenge

In 2009, Veolia North America was approached by Johnson Controls, Inc. (JCI) about providing hazardous and non-hazardous waste services for 150 of the company's manufacturing and service locations in North America. The scope of this program presented some unique challenges to Veolia. The company needed to overcome several operational obstacles related to the successful execution of a long-term, multi-site, national contract involving the services of multiple Veolia business units, in addition to developing customized solutions for JCI’s customer service, AP, billing and reporting requirements.

The project challenges are:

• The Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) established by JCI for the success of this partnership include: combining third-party brokering services with work self-performed by Veolia, a strong focus on compliance, maintaining low management costs and increasing sustainability performance.
• Veolia accepted this new and exciting challenge. It had the capabilities to provide all the services requested, but needed a way to integrate its offering and back-office systems to provide a seamless solution for JCI.

The solution

The services included:

• To start, Veolia organized a team of dedicated resources in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to service JCI. From fielding service requests at a dedicated phone line or email address, to brokering waste through approved suppliers, this team is responsible for the scheduling of work, coordination of third-party providers, customer service, billing and reporting.
• The scope of work managed for JCI was also broadened, tapping into every area of Veolia's diverse service offering.  Service areas include the management of solid waste and recyclables, highly-diversified hazardous waste and universal wastes, as well as emergency response to ensure compliance in case of emergencies at JCI locations or over the road spills and incidences.
• Reporting is an essential component of the service agreement with JCI. All waste activities are reported, tracked and made available through Veolia’s proprietary web-based customer information management tool.
• During 2011, JCI’s sustainability performance metrics placed a strong focus on recycling. Through site audits and waste surveys, Veolia was able to identify several reoccurring operational issues that hampered recycling rates and contributed to more waste going to landfill than was necessary.  To temper these challenges, Veolia has implemented standardized on-site signage focused on employee engagement, clear communications and waste-recycling awareness initiatives.
• As a result of these continuous improvements, JCI has expanded its partnership with Veolia in 2012, adding over 150 branch locations in North America, as well as several manufacturing and service sites in six European countries, to the contract.

Benefits for our clients

Results:

Veolia is providing seamless, integrated services to manage JCI location’s waste streams by:

• Evaluating all current third-party providers and leveraging savings for JCI, realizing over $200,000 of solid waste management savings in 2010 alone.
• Centralizing customer service call center functions.
• Centralizing AP, billing and reporting activities.
• Offering web-based reporting through Veolia’s customer information management tool.
• Focusing on continuous improvement in cost savings and recycling opportunities.
• Adding value through employee engagement and communications coordination, including the development and deployment of "Recycle Across America" standardized waste stream signage in English and Spanish for all JCI facilities.

An award winning partnership:

In recognition of the service and value provided to JCI, Veolia has been awarded several prestigious awards by the company.  In 2011, Veolia was awarded both Sustainable Supplier of the Year awards, given out by Johnson Controls’ Building Efficiency Division and its parent company Johnson Controls, Corp.  And in 2012, Veolia was named the recipient of both the Building Efficiency and Corporate JCI Global Growth Leadership Awards — one of the company's most esteemed supplier recognitions.
 

"Our partnership with JCI is an excellent example of the value Veolia can bring to an enterprise-level organization who is looking for one supplier to effectively manage all their waste streams, while improving compliance and sustainability performance."
—Kevin Zenkevich, Senior Director, Business Development Veolia's environmental services