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Product Summary
BigBelly Solar offers the world’s first integrated system that uses renewable power and information technology to dramatically lower the operating costs, fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions associated with the waste collection process.
The BigBelly Solar intelligent waste & recycling collection system combines solar-powered trash compaction, integrated recycling solutions, and network management software and services into a powerful approach that enables municipalities, parks departments, universities and many other customers to reduce the operating costs associated with collection by up to 80%.
The operating savings are often greater than the equipment lease expenses, making it cheaper to replace all receptacles system-wide than to continue with business as usual.
Proven successful in cities, parks, beaches, zoos, arenas, and college and university campuses – in all weather conditions – BigBelly Solar is making communities cleaner and more efficient in 48 states and 30 countries. Made in USA.
BigBelly Solar: The Smart Grid for Waste & Recycling ™
Downloads:
- Product Photos (zip file)
- Logo Files (.jpg): BigBelly Solar, BigBelly Solar (no tagline), BigBelly Compactor
Please contact BigBelly Solar to inquire about other images or more information about the BigBelly system.
Facts and figures about the BigBelly system
- Collection is far more expensive than the initial cost of trash receptacles: Ornamental public space trash receptacles typically cost between $500 and $1,800 each, but the real expense associated with waste collection is not the purchase price of the container; rather, it is the cost of sending crews in trucks around to empty those containers and take the waste away. A city may spend $1,000 to $4,000 per year per can on collection operations.
- Compaction ratio: each BigBelly compactor can hold up to five times the volume of ordinary trash receptacles, reducing collection demand up to 80%
- Displaced trips: by automatically compacting at the point of disposal, the BigBelly system can eliminate four out of five collection trips, saving time, money and fuel.
- Greenhouse gas reductions: by eliminating the demand for collection by garbage trucks and other fossil-fuel burning vehicles, the BigBelly system can cut CO2 and other vehicle exhaust emissions by as much as 80%.
- Capacity: each BigBelly compactor can hold approximately 160 gallons of trash, compacted into a single 32-gallon inner bin (most customers use a liner bag as well).
- Force: the BigBelly compaction mechanism exerts up to 1,200 pounds of force.
- Energy efficiency: the BigBelly compactor gets 100% of its energy from the sun, and uses less than 5 Watt-hours per day.
- Recycling: the BigBelly system can be configured to support single- and dual-stream recycling programs, with modular recycling units attached to the trash compactors to make “kiosks”.
- Wireless monitoring and notification: the BigBelly system includes an optional wireless network option called “CLEAN” (Collection Logistics Efficiency and Notification). Each BigBelly unit in the field wirelessly communicates via SMS technology (essentially sending a text message) to a central server when it is ready for collection, allowing users to log in from any Internet-enabled device to see fullness and collection information in real time. CLEAN also provides historical reports on status and collection activity to help managers derive greater efficiency from their assets and crews. For more information, click here.
- The BigBelly intelligent waste collection system is made in the USA.
Fun Facts about BigBelly solar compactors
- BigBelly solar compactors are so energy efficient they can operate:
- for a day on the equivalent energy it takes to make a piece of toast
- for a week on the equivalent energy it takes to brew a pot of coffee
- for four months on the equivalent energy it takes to drive a Prius one mile
- for eight years on the equivalent energy it takes to drive a garbage truck one mile
- The first BigBelly compactor was installed at Vail Resorts, Colorado in February 2004
- The BigBelly side panels and front hopper cover are made from 100% post-consumer recycled car bumpers
- BigBelly compaction system is helping to keep communities clean and efficient in 48 states and 30 countries worldwide
- Some high-profile customer locations include:
- Boston’s Faneuil Hall
- Walden Pond (of Henry David Thoreau fame)
- Baltimore’s Inner Harbor
- US Military Academy at West Point
- Chicago’s Millennium Park
- The Alamo in San Antonio, Texas
- Harvard University
- Fenway Park (home of the Boston Red Sox)
- Trinity College Dublin, Ireland (home of the Book of Kells)
