The story started in 2009, when NTM in partnership with V-KRAN participated in a tender for new waste collection equipment in Sochi. The end customer in Sochi is a privately held company, OAO SAH, Sochi, that recently took over the handling, collecting and sorting of municipal waste from the local government. 

The company has about 700 employees and more than 120 refuse collectors as well as skip loaders, tipper trucks and special trucks for bio waste.

“The reason that we were interested in NTM’s solution, was that their loaders offer an outstanding capacity compared to the equipment we were using”, says Sergei Komunenko, head of the maintenance and service department at OAO SAH. “The equipment was also competitively priced and has proven to be very robust and easy to use. In fact, they are the most popular refuse collectors among our staff.”

Multi-purpose

 NTM is not the only new brand of refuse collectors that the company uses in Sochi. However, Lauri Rakki, head of the company’s operations in Russia, has learned from the customer that NTM in many aspects outrivals its competitors.

“As a matter of fact, the capacity of one new NTM refuse collector is equivalent to almost three of the old collectors", Rakki says. “This means less drivers and smaller running costs. And the new Scania chassis we use for our equipment is very economical and easy to drive.”

Sochi has approximately 350.000 inhabitants and the customer is by far the biggest refuse collecting company in the region.

“We have mainly delivered rear loaders mounted on Scania chassis that offer a high-quality surrounding also for the personnel,” Rakki says. “Since the customer is also using competing brands in their operations, we must really deliver excellent products to be able to expand our sales,” Rakki says.

As different types of bins are used in the area, it is essential that the trucks for example offer multi-purpose solutions.

"In addition to normal waste bins, some of the trucks must be able to handle also large 1 100 litre bins. For that purpose these trucks are equipped with integrated lifting arms in bin lift.

Silent

Lauri Rakki says that NTM always customizes the trucks according to the customers’ needs.

“We have more than 30 years of experience in building refuse collectors. Against this background it’s no surprise that we can design and deliver the right solution for each and every customer, regardless what kind of waste the truck will collect,” says Rakki. “In Sochi, however, our refuse collectors are mostly standard rear loaders, though some of them are supplemented with special equipment, like the lifting arms mentioned earlier.”

Rakki points out that waste sorting is becoming trendy in Russia as people now are realizing the importance of the environment.

“We see a constantly growing need for waste collectors that can handle different types of refuse economically, efficiently and silently”, he says. “This development is an advantage for NTM, since we already can offer collectors that are able to handle different waste fractions on the go.”

Easy to maintain

One of the advantages with NTM’s loaders is that it is possible for the customers to do a lot of the maintenance by themselves.

“But if help is needed, we can offer efficient service and spare parts all over Russia through our several partners, Rakki explains. “NTM has a service network for a vast range of heavy-duty vehicles all over the country.”

But what do the drivers say about the trucks?

Says Sergei Komunenko; “Our employees are really happy to work with NTM’s refuse collectors. The trucks are working smoothly and without vibrations, and according to the drivers they are also very silent and easy to handle compared to the old equipment.”

Growing market

NTM sold their first trucks to Sochi in 2010. Rakki says that the competition is very tough, since it is a growing market.

“Our customer in Sochi is very aware of what the different manufacturers can deliver”, Rakki says. “We have good hope to sell more refuse collectors to Sochi in a near future, since the customer is satisfied with the ones we already have delivered.”

One of the main drivers for NTM's business in the Sochi area is that the region is developing very fast.

“When people get aware of the new technologies that are available, the demand for clean and quiet refuse collectors will increase,” Rakki believes. 

Overall he is quite pleased how NTM’s business has developed in Russia recently.

“We have got new customers that have found us based on recommendations from our present customers.”

Caption 1: NTM's refuse collectors mounted on Scania chassis is a common sight in Sochi. © Närpes Trä & Metall Ab

Caption 2: The customer can do a big part of the maintenance of NTM's trucks in the own garage. Through partnership with V-Kran, spare parts and services that are more demanding are at a convenient distance all over Russia. © Närpes Trä & Metall Ab

Caption 3: Some of the refuse collectors NTM has delivered to Sochi are equipped with integrated lifting arms in the bin lift. © Närpes Trä & Metall Ab

About NTM

NTM is an engineering company that develops, manufactures, sells and maintains transport equipment for heavy goods vehicles and refuse and recycling material collection vehicles. The NTM Group has evolved into one of the biggest players in the Nordic region. NTM’s market reach stretches beyond the Nordic countries, with the company having a presence in the UK, Russia, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland and the Baltic states. 

NTM offers a wide range of refuse collectors, comprising a wide range of vehicles, from traditional rear loaders to side and front loaders, as well as a number of different variants and equipment alternatives, focusing particularly on units suitable for the collection of material sorted at source. These include multi-chamber vehicles, different types of bin lift and balance systems.

NTM was founded in 1950 and currently has around 400 employees.

For more information, please contact:

Lauri Rakki

Närpes Trä & Metall Ab - Närpiön Puu ja Metalli Oy

Kristinestadsvägen 417, FIN-64200 NÄRPES / NÄRPIÖ

tel. + 358 62 62 6 200

tel. + 372 555 14 670 (Direct)

lauri.rakki@ntm.fi

http://www.ntm.fi/