This project was to create a new business proposition based upon a case study for the waste industry. The company pursued was Rumpke Waste Management and the following projects the the business side and all contents that goes into it in order to create a service.
This project describes, in detail, a business venture called "Fresco" for Rumpke Waste Management.
Many aspects were taken into account in order to fully develop and implement these ideas.
The following is information on Rumpke Waste Management as it stands currently, the targeted user segments, the offering and differentiation of the new business venture, followed by the delivery of the product-service system and the performance indicators that reflect this endeavor.
About Rumpke
Rumpke Waste & Recycling began in the first half of the twentieth century when founder William Rumpke was paid for his junkyard services in pigs. Family owned with 75 of their 2,300 employees being part of the Rumpke family, the company is now the 10th largest waste management company in the U.S. bringing in about $500 million a year.
Facts
Waste Industry Facts
In the United States, on average, 14% of waste is organic waste
A U.S. citizens dispose of approximately 1.5lbs of food waste every day. That’s 474lbs a year for the average household
About 30% of produce is rejected by supermarkets who refuse to put it on the shelves due to cosmetic standards
In the U.S., bins around 50 million tons of electrical waste every year
Waste Industry Trends
Best practices and new technologies are aimed at safety practices
Automated collection is expanding
Composting programs will expand CNG technology will grow (compressed natural gas )
Methane will be turned into clean renewable electricity
Implementation of programs to reach zero waste goals
Municipalities are taking action to cut food and organic waste
Bans and fees are being placed on common products ( styrofoam and plastic bags ) Companies are creating more innovative trash and recycling containers
User Research
Homeowners
20 individuals
Scripted questions
In person and over the phone
Ages between 20 - 55 years old
Organizations
1 organization
Scripted questions
In person
Insights from Interviews
Most people want to be aware and more eco-friendly but just don't have the resources
A lot of people choose not to be "green" because it's too much of a hassle
If you're not passionate about it, it's even harder to change your lifestyle
If companies provided the tools and informations, then people will be more likely to jump on board
People do not compost because of lack of knowledge necessarily, but because of lack of space or time
Some want the end result of compositing such as fertilizer, but aren't willing or are unable to put in the work
User Archetypes
The Offering
Fresco is a service delivered by Rumpke companioned by a trash can and a cloud-based app.
Fresco cans break down compost and produces fertilizer within 24 - 48 hours. In addition, it provides analytics of the user’s organic waste intake directly to the app.
Fresco encourages and simplifies the act of a more sustainable lifestyle.
Value Proposition
Growing and improving community through education and tools on proper compost disposal, offering individuals a way of producing their own fertilizer and choosing what happens to it afterwards, while also providing organizations a way to better their identity and encourage relationships within through a communal garden.
Facts
Composting
To compost is to create the conditions for organic waste—dead plants and food scraps—to decompose and return to the soil
Though proportions vary, the general recipe for compost is: Organic matter + water, air, carbon- and nitrogen-rich materials, worms, fungi, aerobic bacteria + time
Less waste winds up in landfills
Organic matter doesn’t decompose in between matter than is not biodegradable and therefore it creates methane gas which is a methane is a major contributor to climate change
It reduces the amount of new pollution
Encourages plant growth
Community Garden Benefits
Community gardens build leaders, ownership and relationships
Community gardens reduce crime in areas
Those that garden eat healthier diets than do non-gardening families
Environment - Gardens help reduce the heat-island effect in cities, increase biodiversity, reduce rain runoff, recycle local organic materials and reduce fossil fuel use from food transport
Community gardens increase:
Education Youth involvement
Income opportunities
Property value
Food production and access
Mental health Nutritional value
Exercise and being outdoors
Fresco Offerings
Rumpke’s offering allows customers to be co-designers. Rumpke is selling a composting machine that will breakdown compost into fertilizer, offered to both individuals and organizations. Individuals will have the opportunity to use the fertilizer or give it back to Rumpke. Organizations that purchase Fresco (such as apartment complexes and schools) will work with Rumpke to build a community garden in their area.
Fresco is a smart composting bin that breaks down organic waste and turns it into fertilizer within 24 to 48 hours, while tracking waste produced in weight
The input is waste and the output is fertilizer.
Users will be able to:
Know how much waste they are
producing
Be aware of how much of their
waste is turned into fertilizer
Yard trimmings and small quantities of food scraps can be composted on-site, using Fresco.
Meats, bones and eggshells are not appropriate for on-site composting
Fresco has a companion app that can:
Store data from trashcan
Provide tips for composting
Educate on composting
Double check what foods
are compostable
Request fertilizer pick up
Request fertilizer bags
See where fertilizer is being used
Review / feedback channel
Benefits and Incentives of Fresco
Individuals will be able to start composting in a more accessible way as well as be more self aware of their waste intake and production. Fertilizer can be used for personal use or picked up by Rumpke to be used in communal gardens.
Rumpke will become more sustainable, help build community relationships, encourage others to be self aware and increase revenue stream by selling Fresco devices and companion bags.
Companys’ brand will be looked at as more green and they’ll be able to encourage their users to compost and create a community around the new garden that Rumpke will help build.
The city and Rumpke will work side by side finding spaces and lots for future gardens. The more organizations purchase the device, the more community gardens Rumpke will build. The neighborhoods and people of the city will start working together and finding common grounds from gardening and transforming their food from dirt to plate.
Differentiation
Rumpke's New Target Segments
Rumpke is a multi-sided platform business that targets:
Homeowners
In need of waste removed from home
Need of fertilizer
Wanting the opportunity to help others by
giving back
A way of making money
Organizations
Apartment complexes, schools, hospitals
Educate the members within
Build a community within Create a sustainable
company
Desired Position in the Market
Service Offering Maps
Before Fresco
After Fresco
The Service Delivery
Marketing Strategy
Currently, Rumpke collects waste from homes and businesses throughout Ohio, Indiana, West Virginia and Illinois as contracted by the state. Rumpke will begin to target users through psychographic and needs-based segmentation, addressing individuals and companies that strive to be more eco-friendly. Rumpke’s service-focused positioning allows them to compete with other smart waste bins.
Marketing Strategy Goal
Rumpke’s goal is to encourage their users to live a more green lifestyle by building relationships within their community and take advantage of readily available resources.
Stakeholders Map
Business Model Canvas
Individual
Orginization
Encounters Map
Individual
Orginization
BluePrints
Individual
Orginization
Performance Indicators
Rumpke’s overall vision is made up of holistic and long term goals. After they were created, we were able to determine the critical success factors. These are the ways in which each goal is measured. Lastly, the indicators, these are the ways in which you know that a goal is completed / or accomplished. The KPI’s should be easily understood by our employees as well as our users. Many people can view this information to answer different questions. The visualizations are aimed to be engaging and informative.
Strategic Goals
Critical Success Factors
Build waste awareness
Closing loop of farm to face (making sense of waste and addressing environmental issues)
Impact in community
Accomplishing this in a profitable way
Quality of info
Ease of access
Channels
Website and App
Efficiency of process
Removing compostable waste
from landfills
Involvement of users
Change of lifestyle
Cost
Efficiency
Price
Indicators
Apps and website
Number many visits
Conversion rate
App flow
Time
Waste Vs. compost
Amount of fresco sold
Volume
Track through app and the
dashboard
Revenue charts
Conclusion
Because Rumpke Waste & Recycling is such a large player within US waste management, enabling a system such as Fresco will allow a simple transition into a better lifestyle for a large sector of people, aiding the country to move forward with sustainability practices.
Clarissa ter Maat
Carly Thompson
