One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.
Undoubtedly a familiar expression and it is especially true in the waste management
industry. There’s much-untapped potential but the industry has to evolve if we are to
establish a circular economy. For example, only 1% of waste gets audited and about 85%
of recyclables end up in landfills or oceans every year. Inadequate waste management
and disposal practices can have significant environmental and health impacts. Reduced
recyclables’ quality and unnecessary disposal stem from a lack of transparency and
traceability throughout the recycling process. Manual sorting alone is error-prone,
time-consuming, and audit is virtually impossible. However, waste auditing can reveal
opportunities, new revenue streams, and increase efficacy to address environmental
concerns. Therefore manual labor needs to be paired with technology to yield greater
productivity and efficiency.
Diwama is one of the pioneering companies using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to
modernize waste management offering solutions on individual, corporate and
governmental levels. Diwama, founded in 2021, recognizes the urgent need of reshaping
the waste management industry and brings tech-driven disruption to optimize waste
management processes and meet today’s challenges. The company’s vision, skillset, and
expertise led to the development of smart waste monitoring and auditing software
products: Vitron, Widen, Wibin.
Vitron is an AI-based image recognition software capable of automating waste analysis
in plastic and material recovery facilities. The system offers a waste characterization
solution that allows waste sorting facilities to optimize, control and audit their
processes. Vitron is being deployed in the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region
and Europe. It is designed to withstand harsh conditions and can operate in both dry
and wet material recovery facilities. Vitron’s monitoring unit, consisting of an RGB
camera and a processor, is sealed in a box that can be installed over conveyor belts on a
steel frame. It can be implemented at various stages of the recovery process depending
on the facility’s needs. Vitron categorizes recyclables by weight, type, count, and even
brand with high accuracy. Vitron analyzes and categorizes the most challenging waste
streams, including mixed municipal waste, increasing the recovery and purity of
recyclables. Implementation of this AI-based image recognition software does not
replace the workers but makes their job easier. Live detection of materials is
empowering workers to sort better, resulting in reduced contamination. Vitron is
connected to a dashboard that is remotely accessible via a desktop or mobile. It provides
waste data analytics visible in real-time, KPIs, and historical analysis, enabling waste
managers to make data-driven decisions to improve sorting operations.
There are multiple benefits of utilizing Vitron, such as:
● Proficiency over end to end operations
● Real-time data
● Flexibility of deployment on input, sorting, product, or residue lines
● Enhancing operational efficiency
● Increasing the recovery of recyclables
● Improving product value
● Auditing facility performance
The complexity of mixed material streams and the ever-changing consumer packaging
poses multiple challenges for the recycling industry. Nevertheless, AI-powered
solutions, such as Vitron, track the changes in waste composition over time to provide a
high degree of plant flexibility and robustness. Vitron automates processes, provides
smart data, visibility, transparency, and traceability.