Focus on…Southend Recycling Centre

GBN’s Southend depot near Rochford serves a large part of Essex and is one of the biggest recycling and waste transfer stations in the area.

Licensed to handle 75,000 tonnes of waste a year, the depot sends out 100 skips to construction, commercial and household customers every day.

“Customers choose us because we are reliable, we are one of the larger skip companies in this area and because we offer very competitive prices,” explains site manager John Golding.

“Being part of a bigger business also means we offer a bigger service as a company. We are one of eight depots operated by GBN.”

Based on the Purdeys Industrial Estate, the two-acre site was previously operated by Eco Logic before the company was acquired by GBN in 2006. Since then, GBN has invested considerably, allowing the operation to grow.

“I’ve been here just over a year and in that time alone GBN has spent around a million pounds in new kit, refurbishing the yard and new equipment”, says John. “Business is growing and we have had to take on more drivers.”

Today, 15 vehicles operate out of GBN Southend and the depot employs 25 members of staff including drivers, yard staff and those who work in the on-site workshop. All the vehicles produce low emissions and are fitted with the latest safety technology.

Vehicles that enter the site pass over a weighbridge before being safely guided into the yard to tip their waste. Material is then mechanically and manually sorted into different bays for recycling.

The site features a dedicated picking line for hardcore material and also a line for shredding waste to produce refuse-derived fuel (RDF) which is sent to energy-from-waste plants to generate energy.

The vast majority of waste—85-90%—is recycled or sent for energy recovery, with only a very small fraction sent to landfill.

As a former driver himself, Mr Golding knows the Southend operation inside out and is passionate about delivering top customer service.

He says: “The importance of customer service is something I personally like to drill into people. Keep everyone happy and they will keep coming back.”