Yet the waste business is tough on trucks, requiring them to operate in landfills, transfer stations and other treacherous environments that present the constant risk of tire failure, body damage or worse. If you don't have a good support system in place to get trucks back up and running, Got Junk's Galliher says, the resulting downtime and repair costs can eat into a small player's bottom line.

Galliher contracts with a local maintenance provider, G&C Express, and says the personal attention is worth the extra expense. “They are dependable; they provide fast service; and they help me if I have an unusual problem,” he says. “For my operation, price isn't so much a factor as service. Sure, I can get my maintenance done cheaper; but when I need it fixed, I need it fixed fast and permanently.”

Flexibility to find the best service option highlights one of the key advantages enjoyed by smaller players, says Darry Stuart, president of DWS Fleet Management Services in Wrentham, Mass., a firm specializing in fleet maintenance issues.

“The smaller companies can turn left or right so much faster than the big guys,” he says. “Everything is closer to the top; there are few if any layers separating the owner/chief executive from the trenches.”

Smaller players also avoid much of the corporate overhead shouldered by the big guys, he adds. “Sure, maybe Waste Management can buy trucks a little cheaper, but that advantage is not significant when comparing overhead costs,” he says. “It's not enough of an advantage that smaller companies can't be in the waste business and be in it successfully.”

Bottom Line Basics

Stuart says small players need to be nimble to be successful in the waste business. This can be difficult, as small, family owned refuse companies often are so focused on day-to-day business issues that they fail to look for ways to make things simpler and easier.

“You've got to get out in front of the eight ball, especially when it comes to trucks, because that's where a lot of your capital is going to be tied down,” Stuart says. “For example, if you have really old trucks, get new ones. Yes, it costs money, but not as much money as you spent on repairs and downtime when the older ones [broke] down on a route.”

The key, Stuart says, is to take money out of the equation. “When you attach money to a solution, that becomes the focus, and that fogs up the thought processes, causing confusion and a lack of clarity,” he says. “Focus on the process and the solution. Because at the end of the day, you are going to spend money anyway. The key is to spend it wisely on the best solution for your business.”

For example, many smaller fleets may feel pressured to invest heavily in computer technology to track part numbers, log in repair orders, compile reams of data of truck life cycle costs, etc. But Stuart says a lot of these investments may not pay off for a smaller firm.

The operative word, Stuart reiterates, is maintenance, not repairs. “Inspect the radiator, coolant, brakes, electrical cables and tires constantly,” he says. “That's where you have most of your failures.” The rewards for this vigilance over the long run, Stuart adds, are less downtime, savings on equipment and a better ability to compete.

Stuart adds that as Republic Services prepares to merge with Allied Waste (despite WM's recent attempts to buy Republic and head off the massive expansion of one of its biggest rivals) small players will see more, not less, opportunity.

“[If] Republic and Allied come together, they'll divest in many places to find synergies and that will create opportunities for smaller players to grow their business,” he says. “There are going to be tremendous opportunities for the mom and pops and smaller companies. They just [need] the right service and cost structure to go get them.”

Sean Kilcarr is a senior editor of Fleet Owner, a sister publication of Waste Age.