In the Spotlight

As Seen In

Weathering the Economic Storm

Veolia Environmental Services North America:

WasteAdvantage
The Advantage in the Waste Industry

In this unstable economy, Veolia has taken action on cost-cutting initiatives and streamlining processes to better serve customers, while never letting up on their high standards for quality and safety.

Veolia ES Solid Waste services more than 1.7 million residential, municipal, commercial and industrial customers in North America.
Photos courtesy of Veolia Environmental Services North America.

As Seen In

commodities, as well as the slowdown in maintenance activities and new Delivering fully integrateD environmental solutions to projects by customers who are also suffering from the recession. In spite of virtually all industrial, commercial, municipal and residential sectors in this, the company was able to deliver higher cash flowWaste Industry than 2008. in 2009 the U.S., Canada and the Caribbean, Veolia Environmental Services North The Advantage in the VESNA also gained more customers by cross-selling services and strengthening America (VESNA), based in Chicago, IL, is composed of three complementary relationships with key clients. business units that provide a full spectrum of collection, treatment and According to Richard Burke, President and CEO of VESNA, the company recycling processes for the management of hazardous and solid wastes, as well was able to achieve these results because the recession has made them better as comprehensive industrial maintenance and cleaning services. The company business people. It forced us to take action on cost-cutting initiatives and to reported annual revenues of $1.8 billion in 2009, and employs more than 9,800 streamline our processes to better serve our customers, while never letting up employees in North America. on our high standards for quality and safety. We challenged everyone to work Veolia ES Solid Waste is a fully-integrated solid waste services company harder and smarter and look for ways to reduce costs without compromising on providing solid waste collection, transfer, recycling and disposal to more than our high service standards. 1.7 million residential, commercial and industrial customers throughout A number of the initiatives that were already underway before the recession North America. Veolia ES Solid Waste is the fifth largest provider of solid gained traction during 2009 and helped waste services in the country, with VESNA to weather the economic storm. operations in 12 states, plus Canada Through strategic supplier partnerships, and the Caribbean. its joint purchasing program continues Veolia ES Technical Solutions to generate significant savings in provides a complete range of major expense areas such as travel, fuel services for industrial and municipal and maintenance, office supplies and customers needing to dispose of equipment, telephone and shipping, to hazardous and non-hazardous waste, list just a few. including electronic recycling. VESNA also continues to invest in the These services are built upon a training and development of its employees support structure of transportation, through Campus Veolia North America, processing facilities and customer the professional development arm of Veolia. service branch field offices located The Campus Veolia program was launched throughout the U.S. and Puerto several years ago in Europe and was Rico. Veolia ES Technical Solutions identified as a global best practice for the owns and operates an integrated, ongoing development of Veolia employees nationwide network of facilities at every level of the organization. In North providing thermal destruction, America, Campus Veolia was opened in fuels blending, solvent recovery and 2008. The campus staff is dedicated to technical services. Veolia maintains active landfill gas-to-energy programs at 10 of its landfills and is developing and administering training Veolia ES Industrial Services provides committed to expanding landfill gas use to additional sites. and certification programs for employees a complete range of maintenance across all four Veolia Environnement and cleaning services for industrial, businesses (waste, water, energy and transportation management) and is rooted municipal and offshore facilities to keep them in peak operating condition. in the belief that Veolia trains Veolia and continuing education opportunities Veolia ES Industrial Services expertise, equipment and range of services have should be available to all employees companywide. developed this company into the largest industrial cleaning company within At the end of the day, Veolia is a service company and our mission is to North America. deliver value-added services that protect people and improve the environment. The Veolia Environmental Services group is the largest waste services company We rely heavily on the quality and expertise of our people to meet this goal. in the world and the only global manager of liquid, solid, non-hazardous and Without the best and the brightest on our team, we cannot help our customers hazardous waste, onsite waste processing, industrial cleaning and process manage their most pressing environmental challenges, says Burke. maintenance, and recycling, recovery and disposal for both the public and private sectors. Its parent company, Veolia Environnement, is the worldwide reference in environmental services. With more than 313,000 employees in Challenges and Achievements 74 countries, Veolia Environnement recorded annual revenues of almost $50 To remain competitive, Veolia ES Solid Waste, whose footprint lays billion in 2009. primarily across the Midwest (but also includes facilities in southern, western VESNAs business units provide services throughout the U.S., Canada and and northeastern states) works hard to build partnerships with other regional the Caribbean from over 300 locations across 28 states, four Canadian provinces, players in markets where they do not have operations. The company also Puerto Rico and the Bahamas. leverages the capabilities and relationships its sister companies (Veolia Water, Veolia Energy and Veolia Transportation) have across North America. Says Burke, This, combined with our truly integrated service offering, allows us to Weathering the Economic Storm pursue business opportunities that are national in scope. Like the rest of the industry, VESNAs revenues were down slightly in 2009, results that reflect reduced waste volumes and lower prices for recycled

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veolia environmental services north america: Weathering the economic storm

Veolia ES Industrial Services provides a complete range of maintenance and cleaning services for industrial, municipal and offshore facilities to keep them in peak operating condition.

In addition, by bringing together VESNAs three business units to establish an integrated services approach, the company has differentiated itself from competitors, while providing customers with a more cost-effective, inclusive service. Companies today are looking for ways to operate more efficiently and streamline their vendor relationships, comments Burke. Veolia is well-positioned to help organizations achieve this goal. There is no other waste company in North America that can offer the full complement of Veolias environmental solutions. From solid waste management to hazardous materials treatment to industrial maintenance services, we can manage all types of waste streams throughout the entire recovery or disposal cycle. On behalf of the VE Foundation, Veolia Environmental Services North

Giving Back to the Community

VESNA also supports local community outreach programs through its business locations, encouraging employees to give back
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America (VESNA) recently donated more than $30,000 to OAI, Inc., a Chicago-based non-profit agency committed to training and workforce development. Pictured from left to right are: Jim Bell, president and CEO, Veolia ES Technical Solutions; Tipawan Reed, president, OAI; Marguerite Ulrich, VP of human resources, Veolia ES Technical Solutions; and Richard Burke, president and CEO, VESNA.

to the communities they serve. At a national level, the company supports not-for-profit organizations through the Veolia Environnement (VE) Foundation. The VE Foundation, a global program, supports community-oriented projects contributing to sustainable development, with a special focus on outreach, workforce development and environmental conservation. The VE Foundation also fosters and encourages employee volunteering, providing the expertise of its employees to the associations or institutions active in the areas of emergency aid and humanitarian development. Examples of recent VE Foundation grant recipients include the Northern Illinois Food Bank, Hawley Environmental School (Milwaukee) and Glenwood School for Boys and Girls (St. Charles, IL) in the community outreach category. In the workforce development category, the company recently awarded OAI, Inc., a non-profit training and education agency in Chicago, a $33,000 grant

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veolia environmental services north america: Weathering the economic storm

Veolias state-of-the-art recycling facility in Quebec City, QC, is unique in North America and effectively handles waste streams from construction, renovation and demolition sites that are typically difficult to recycle.

to purchase a 15-passenger van to support OAIs Chicago Southland Youthbuild re-employment education and training program. The VE Foundation also played a key role in the disaster relief efforts in Haiti. Today, six months after the earthquake in Haiti, the emergency missions are continuing but the teams are now trying to make their actions durable and are working on a progressive handover to the Haitian people. Since the beginning of the disaster, more than 270,000 people have been supplied with potable water by Veoliaforce and its partners. The Foundation reacted immediately after the earthquake, deploying volunteers and more than 30 tons of equipment to produce and supply potable water. Veoliaforce provides emergency humanitarian assistance by sending experts and equipment to safeguard the water supply of disaster areas.

Service First Safety Always.

Across the board, safety is the number one issue facing our industry, according to Burke. At VESNA, Service First Safety Always has become a mantra, the foundation of everything the company does. On the service side,

customers want environmental solutions that add value to their business. Through a focused customer service program, the reward for VESNA is customer loyalty and increased revenues. In the area of safety, 2009 achievements included a 10 percent improvement in accident and injury frequency and additional locations earning OSHA VPP Star Status certification11 total across the company. This uptick is due to placing a high priority on health and safety programs and training for personnel at all levels. It also emanates from a steadfast commitment by the entire company, management and staff alike, to taking responsibility for protecting colleagues and clients in the workplace. We all share the responsibility for safety, insists Burke. Safety is the most important part of everyones job and unsafe work practices must be eliminated. | WA For more information about Veolia Environmental Services North America, contact Denisse Ike, Director of Marketing and Communications for Veolia Environmental Services North America Corp., at (312) 552-2800.

Veolia ES Technical Solutions Electronics Recycling Division is one of the largest fluorescent lamp recyclers in the world.

2010 Waste Advantage Magazine, All Rights Reserved. Reprinted from Waste Advantage Magazine. Contents cannot be reprinted without permission from the publisher.
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