LONDON – Smart bins and remote fill-level monitoring solutions for refuse collection are set to grow at a 43% CAGR between 2014 and 2020, says ABI Research.

Driven by the need for municipalities and waste management companies to reduce the costs of waste collection and improve efficiency, operational smart bins will reach into the hundreds of thousands over the next 5 years, says the research firm.

“This sector is still in its embryonic phase, with a very low degree of penetration and an ecosystem mostly populated by small and medium-sized players that still do not have either a geographically wide coverage or a substantial volume of deployments to be identified as market leaders,” said Eugenio Pasqua, research analyst at ABI Research.“BigBelly Solar has probably gained the most attention in the smart bin segment; however, companies like SmartBin and Enevo are gaining market traction, particularly outside the US market.”

The growth of the market is initially expected to remain confined to the countries and regions where waste management markets are more mature, with the US and Western Europe leading the pack. But, organizations in less developed countries will start adopting these solutions, given immediate benefits and cost-effectiveness.

“In the vast majority of current implementations, the communication between smart bins and remote monitoring service is provided by cellular connectivity. Cellular technology represents almost 95% of smart bin connections in 2014, and from the look of it, this will remain the most popular connectivity option for the years to come,” said Pasqua.