From Chaos to Control: How Software Can Transform Your Sanitation Business

This episode of "Get Flushed" delves into the crucial role of information technology in managing a portable sanitation business. Pete explores how modern software systems can help streamline operations, from recording customer interactions and tracking assets to planning service schedules and managing invoicing.

Pete identifies ten key business functions that can benefit from technology, highlighting the importance of a cohesive platform that integrates these tasks efficiently. While acknowledging that some operators still thrive using traditional methods like paper logs and spreadsheets, Pete emphasizes the potential advantages of adopting innovative solutions for increased efficiency and profitability. Throughout the episode, he raises thought-provoking questions about the effectiveness of current software options and the quest for a comprehensive solution in the industry.

Takeaways:

• The role of information technology is crucial for managing a portable sanitation business effectively.
• A versatile CRM system is essential for recording customer interactions and managing work orders.
• Tracking assets like toilets and trailers can be simplified with unique identification and software integration.
• Planning service schedules should prioritize time-sensitive jobs to maintain customer satisfaction and efficiency.
• Route mapping can significantly reduce staff hours and improve service delivery without expensive software.
• Health and safety management should be integrated into daily operations to ensure worker safety and compliance.

Companies mentioned in this episode:

• Arcadian Sanitation
• Apple
• iAuditor
• SafetyCulture

Episode Transcript

(00:16):
Hello and welcome to GetFlushed, the Sanitation podcast.
My name's Pete. So far in GetFlushed, I've taken a very hands
on approach to my analysis ofthe industry. I've enjoyed a ride
along with some drivers. I'vespoken to suppliers and manufacturers,
and I've built a toilet. I'velooked at pumps and tanks, toilets
and paper, and I've heard froma new entrant to the industry, Ryan

(00:38):
Granger at ArcadianSanitation. This week, I want to
think about the role ofinformation technology in the way
you manage a portablesanitation business. Over the past
few weeks, I've noticed quitea few chats online about the software
and systems that operatorsuse. People have typically asked,
what systems do you use? Howmuch do they cost? Is it easy to

(01:00):
use, and does it actuallyhelp? Now I've been thinking about
how to approach this subjectfor a while, and those conversations
have pushed me along and givenme the momentum to put this episode
together. I can't promise thatI'm going to give you a definitive
solution, and I probably sharemore questions than I answer, but
it's a really important partof the industry that I haven't mentioned
yet. Now, in greek mythology,Pandora's box appeared to be a valuable

(01:24):
gift, but it actually turnedout to be a curse. I don't want to
sound cynical or sceptical,but I sometimes think that's a good
way to describe moderntechnology. It's supposed to make
things easy and save us timeand effort. But unless it's really
well produced and you know howit works, it can cause more dramas
than it solves. Now, I'llqualify that by saying that I've
been an Apple user for manyyears, and that's because my experiences

(01:47):
with PC and Android turned meinto the incredible Hulk. I know
that the haters will hate andpeople will criticize me and say
that apple products aredesigned to become obsolete when
the next generation isreleased. But honestly, I can live
with that because they work.Now, I want to start by setting out
the functions and tasks withina business that can be handled with

(02:10):
software. Now, most of thesewill apply to any business activity,
but there are a couple ofspecial dimensions which are maybe
not unique, but very specialto portable sanitation. I have identified
ten areas where portablerestroom operators need some sort
of system. Now, I've thoughtabout how to present this. I'll run

(02:31):
through all ten, and then I'llcome back and unpack each one in
turn. Here we go. Recordingcustomer contacts. Recording activity.
Tracking toilets. Planning thecalendar or service schedule. Mapping
the route invoicing orbilling, payroll, inventory ordering,

(02:53):
stocks and spares, vehiclemaintenance, and health and safety.
So there are ten now. Let's gothrough them each in turn, and I'm
going to talk about myexperiences of software and the way
that some providers operate.I'm not going to judge anybody. I'm
not calling anyone out. I'mtrying to explore whether modern
technology helps or hindersthe portable restroom operator. Before

(03:15):
we move on, I'd say that it'sperfectly possible to run your business
without any software. Thereare plenty of operators who manage
with a diary or a journal or asimple spreadsheet. There's nothing
wrong with that. If it worksfor you, it's fine. My purpose today
is to think about some of theinnovations and some of the developments
that might help when you wantto grow your business, claim back

(03:36):
some personal time, or justimprove your efficiency, effectiveness,
reliability and profitability.Number one on my list was recording
contact with customers. Haveyou got a platform that allows you
to log details of every name,address, telephone number and email
every time somebody gets intouch with you or your staff? And

(04:00):
if that contact results in anorder, will your system let you produce
a work order or a dispatchnote that sets up the delivery, cleaning
or collection and alsogenerates an invoice to make sure
you get paid? That platform isusually known as a customer relationship
management platform, or CRM.Now, a versatile CRM will let you

(04:20):
track and record everyinteraction between your customers
and staff, and it willdovetail perfectly into your billing
system and your email system.That way, you won't need to type
in names and addresses everytime you raise an invoice, and you'll
be able to set up automaticemail drops to share newsletters
and information with customersto let them know about your latest
availability and deals. I'mnot going to recommend a CRM today.

(04:45):
There are literally thousandsof different options out there. My
question for the industry is,is there a software platform that
includes a CRM function andalso does everything else that you
need to do within thebusiness? Number two on my list was
recording activity, and bythat I mean every delivery service,

(05:06):
clean and pickup. As soon asthat call from a customer turns into
a confirmed order or requestfor service, you need to set up a
dispatch, and you also need torecord when that work has been carried
out or completed. Now, I'veseen handwritten job sheets work
really well even in a largerbusiness that operated ten or eleven
trucks across four or fivedifferent cities and towns. But the

(05:29):
limitations of paper meantthat some work was always missed
the office would forget tofill out the form, drivers would
forget to take it, or they'dlose it, or forget to hand it in
when the job had been done.All of those mistakes affect the
quality of service that yourcustomers receive, which in turn
can affect your reputation andmaybe even your revenue. No software
will solve all of thoseproblems, and mistakes are always

(05:51):
going to happen. But having aclear and concise process that everyone
follows every time, withoutfail, will almost certainly reduce
the opportunity for errors tooccur. Is there a software application
that will tie into the CRM andallow you to create and track work
orders in real time, whetheryou're in the office or out in the
truck? And that doesn't cost afortune or need users to complete

(06:12):
a degree in informationtechnology before they're able to
use it. Number three on mylist is keeping track of assets.
Where are your toilets,trailers, showers and sinks at any
given time? Are they on site,on the truck or in the yard? Are
they on hire or off hire? Arethey ready to send out, or do they
need cleaning or repair? Now,this is really straightforward and

(06:36):
a whole lot less complicatedthan most people might think. Every
toilet in the fleet shouldhave its own unique number. Now,
you can do this easily andcheaply by writing numbers onto the
toilet with an indelible penor engraving them into the plastic
using a dremel. You could alsomake your own tags using a flat aluminium
bar, and again, engraving thenumbers with a dremel or stamping

(06:58):
them with some numberedpunches. But for just a few dollars,
you can go online and buymetal tags with stamped or embossed
numbers. Tree tags used inforestry are absolutely ideal for
this. It doesn't really matterwhat numbering system you use, but
I would keep it really simple.I'd start at number one and I'd carry
on. You might want to use acode to identify different types

(07:20):
of toilet. F one for the firstflushing unit, s one for your first
standard long drop. It doesn'treally matter. The point is that
keeping track of your toiletsbecomes a whole lot easier if you
can identify each and everyunit by its own unique number. Now,
you don't need to invest in anexpensive gps platform or anything

(07:40):
else to keep a track on whereyour toilets are. I use an app called
iAuditor. It's a health andsafety inspection app. There is a
free version, but the paidversion is less than $20 a month.
It allows the user to recordlocation with a timestamp and take
photographs whenever theycomplete an inspection report. And
that makes iauditor ideal fortracking deliveries, pickups, inspections

(08:03):
and cleans. It can beconfigured to recognize individual
toilets using the asset tag.Or if you want to be really flash,
get some RFID tags and usingsome software coding known as APIs,
it's really easy and cheap topush the information back to the
office in real time and intoyour accounting software. You can

(08:24):
also configure iauditor tosend notifications by email and text,
which makes it ideal forletting customers know you've serviced
their unit. And because itrecords location data, it will produce
a map showing every locationthat you've visited. You can push
that data to spreadsheet andyou can import it to Google Maps,
which gives you a tremendoushead start when you start to look

(08:44):
at dispersal and density asyou plan your routes. Now it's not
a one stop shop, it won'tcreate run sheets and it won't plan
routes, but it's a tremendousasset that's really cost effective
for a smaller scale or even alarger business. Because it was designed
as health and safety software,I auditor has other advantages that

(09:05):
I'll come back to later on.Number four on the list is planning
the calendar or serviceschedule, which toilets need to be
cleaned each day. The ebb andflow of deliveries and pickups means
that the schedule is subjectto constant change. Ideally, your
planning system willprioritize jobs. Time critical ones

(09:28):
like vertical constructionwhere the toilet needs to be lifted
down by the crane driver hasto come first, followed by tip overs
because they present anenvironmental risk. Next for me comes
pickups and deliveries, andI'll put pickups first because usually
the builder has to hand over aproperty and they always leave it
until five minutes beforehandover before they give you a ring.

(09:49):
Delivery is because everybodywants their toilet on site as soon
as possible and they don'tlike to wait until a week on Thursday
when your truck happens to bein the area. And finally, routine
services. Now I don't like toaccept jobs where a customer says
or call you when it needs aclean because they like the builder.
They'll invariably call whenthe toilet is overflowing and they

(10:10):
make that your problem. Ifthey won't accept a regular clean,
charge them dollar 200 for acall out. They'll soon change their
mind and ask to go on a weeklyor fortnightly service plan. I don't
think you have to stick to arigid schedule where you service
the same toilets at the sametime on the same day every week.
And I have one operator whouses a window of six to nine days

(10:30):
for his weekly cleans andtwelve to 16 days for fortnightly's.
With a properly prepared andwell stocked toilet, a customer won't
notice the difference. Andthat window gives you the flexibility
to adjust your routines tosuit your pickup and delivery schedules.
If the toilet can't last anextra day or two without overflowing,
your customer needs anotherunit on site. Number five on the

(10:54):
list is route mapping. Onceyou've agreed your route schedules,
what is the most efficient andeconomical way to get around all
of those toilets every time ontime? Now one company I know doesn't
use any route optimizationsoftware and operates with paper
run sheets. Now, they madesavings of over 20% on staff hours
just by listing the cleans inorder of suburb on the run sheets.

(11:17):
You don't need to invest incomplicated software. You don't need
to pay for GPS units. You cando it all for free. If you're working
on a spreadsheet, you canupload 20 addresses to a website
called Root Excel, and thatwill find you the best route between
those 20 addresses for free.And you can repeat that as many times
a day as you like. Weighing inat number six was invoicing or billing.

(11:44):
You need a system that allowsyou to send the correct invoice to
each and every customer andlet you check that payment has been
made. Of course, this willrely on accurate information about
the activities you and yourstaff have carried out. If you don't
charge for every hire andinclude the charges for each delivery,
pickup and service, you'll begiving money away. I can tell you

(12:06):
some real horror stories aboutcompanies failing to charge because
their invoicing system reliedon a paper trail that was never completed.
Typical excuses where thedriver forgot to tick off the service
on the paper he forgot to handit in, or the office forgot to log
the work on the customer'sfile, or the office forgot to raise
the manual invoice at the endof the month. Thankfully, there is

(12:27):
a better way. Remember I spokeabout iauditor? Well, you can use
that to raise a draft invoicein your accounting software every
time you complete an action.And I absolutely know there are other
software packages that willtie up all of these loose ends, too.
Ideally, your accountingsoftware will tie in seamlessly with
number seven on my list,payroll. We all want to get paid,

(12:49):
right? And as the businessowner or manager, you need to keep
accurate records of hoursworked so that you can work out wages,
tax, insurance, holidays,allowances, and other deductions.
Most accounting packagesinclude a payroll function that's
usually a paid extra to theirbasic platform, but it's worth it.
If you get this wrong. Staffwill let you know and so will the

(13:10):
IRD. At number eight isinventory ordering stocks, spares
and supplies. Ideally, you'llhave enough stock in store to see
you through the current cycle,but what is your system for making
sure that you order newsupplies in time for them to be delivered
before you run out? You'd besurprised how many people wing this.

(13:31):
With the correct processes,you will know exactly how many blues,
how many toilet rolls and howmany bags of sanitizer you've got
in stock. Is there a platformthat keeps a track of all of that
without you needing to go outand count them? I'm fairly sure there
is. Maybe we'll find out laterin the season. In at number nine

(13:53):
comes vehicle maintenance andcompliance. As a transport service
operator carrying dangerousgoods, you need to make sure that
your trucks are road legal andcompliant with all the regulations
before they leave the yard.And this needs to be done every time,
not just once a week or once amonth. But you'd be amazed at how
many operators don't completerigorous checks and just assume that

(14:14):
everything on the truck isokay. Take it from me, tyres wear
out faster than you mightthink. Lights get damaged, signs
and placards fade or peel orthey get knocked off. Valves can
start to leak, which meansthat you'll spill septic waste and
drivers don't always completetheir load plans or carry the correct
documentation. Fines for noncompliance consume rack up and it's

(14:34):
not just the driver whocarries the can. The company and
its managers can also be finedor find themselves appearing before
a judge. Mechanical breakdownsalso have a detrimental impact on
your customer care. If yourtrucks out of action, you won't be
servicing toilets, and thebest way to prevent breakdowns is
through regular routinemaintenance. A proper process to

(14:56):
inspect and maintain trucks isan essential part of every restroom
operation. I've created atemplate in iauditor that allows
drivers to inspect all the keypoints on the vehicle, take photos
and record that check sothey've got proof in the event there's
an accident or they getstopped by the police. And last week
at prestige loos, I watchedthe health and safety manager use
a similar template to checkevery trunk before it left the yard.

(15:18):
If she didn't give them thegreen light, they didn't leave. It's
as simple as that. Now, ofcourse, any system relies on everyone
doing their job, but atemplate like that is easy to follow
and having a proper processmeans that you can head off the problems
before they occur. Last butnot least on my list is health and
safety, and this has become areally hot topic in recent years.

(15:39):
And quite rightly too,everyone should expect to go home
safely at the end of everyworking day. Sadly, some people still
think that health and safetyis done to them or done by someone
else, not carried out by them.Or they get so caught up in their
daily tasks that they justdon't stop to think. Now, no software
will prevent accidents, butkeeping proper records and building

(16:02):
a safe mindset into yourworking culture should be a normal
part of business, not anafterthought. And once again, I auditor
can help here. After all,that's why it was produced. You can
use it to run inspections andinvestigations, deliver safety briefings,
or conduct safety reviews.Check it [e-mail] or

(16:22):
flick me a note if you needhelp setting up. Okay, that's been
a whistle stop tour throughsome of the business functions that
I think can be easily managedby a software platform or application.
And while there are plenty ofoptions for each of these individual
functions, the real challengeis finding one platform that can
hold it all together. Now,nobody wants to run a dozen different

(16:45):
systems, and maybe it is toomuch to expect that one platform
can do everything I'vementioned today, especially at a
price that works for even thesmallest provider. Now I've got a
feeling that I'm looking forthe holy Grail. But over the next
few weeks, I'm going to talkto a number of different experts
and companies who might helpto change my mind. Once again, I

(17:05):
hope you've enjoyed today'sshow. I've been Pete and you've been
listening to Get Flushed, theportable sanitation podcast.