Choosing the Right Fill Level Smart Bin Sensor

Draffin working with FarSite Communications

At Draffin, we have a keen interest in smart cities and everything IoT. Over the past few months, we have been trialling bin fill level monitoring sensor technology available on the Australian market. The aim was to find an exceptional product from a supplier that shares our core values. We are excited to announce that Draffin is now a distributor for FarSite Communications netBin suite.

Draffin Street Furniture’s Managing Director, Ian Draffin on FarSite – “at Draffin we believe that the success of our business is reliant on an absolute dedication to quality and service. To tick all the boxes, we put the sensors through some pretty rigorous testing. We wanted to ensure the smartbin solution we offer our customers is the best on the market. Farsite and the netBin suite were clearly the right choice and we are very excited to work together to offer our customers this solution”.

Steve Scott, Director at FarSite Communications, adds: “We are delighted that netBin has been selected by Draffin for their smart bin product offerings. Draffin are renowned for the manufacture of quality products, customer support and is a company we particularly wanted to be in partnership with as they reflect the same ethos as FarSite. They certainly put netBin through it’s paces during their competitive selection phase and particularly pleasing that the quality and breadth of the netBin product range was well recognised.”

So we are kicking off the New Year with a focus on IoT based smart sensor technology.

The netBin suite in a nutshell

FarSite’s netBin fill level monitoring suite offers optimised bin monitoring and collection system for smarter cities. This end-to-end suite includes HUB, COLLECT, nPod and ANALYSER.

• At the core of the netBin system is the HUB, a comprehensive web based management platform that becomes the centre for your decision making, route creation and analysis.
• COLLECT smartphone app is used by drivers to receive jobs assigned from the netBin HUB. Suggested routes and estimated job times can be sent directly to the driver. The app also has the ability to upload photographs and notes on any problems. The network manager can determine action required on the spot.
• The nPod sensor continuously feeds real time data – such as fill levels, temperature and position, back to the HUB. The sensor can detect fire, or if they have been moved or knocked over.
• ANALYSER is an exel based analytics tool that allows you to take an in-depth look at your historical raw data. Produce spreadsheets that show performance statistics over the requested period in just a few clicks.

6 reasons why the netBin suite is superior

1. Dual Ultrasonic for more accurate levels – bin level sensors determine fill level much like sonar in a submarine. To achieve accuracy, sensors need a clear line of sight to the bin base. Unlike other single sensors on the market, nPod’s dual ultrasonic system allows for more accurate measurements.
2. Bin enclosure compatibility – Draffin recognise that bin enclosures come in all shapes and sizes. During testing, we found some restrictions with sensors functionality. This limited bin enclosure compatibility. The flexibility of nPod’s rotating barrel really stood out. It makes it simple to retrofit the sensor to all types of bin surrounds. The dual sensors work particularly well in existing bin surrounds with very little space between the wheelie bin and enclosure.
3. Superior Durability – We needed a rugged sensor to match the durability of a Draffin bin surround. Constructed from thick ABS Polycarbonate and tested to IP66 ingress rating, nPod’s casing is tough enough to endure the rigours of our harsh Australian climate.
4. Australian Network Compatibility – Todays world of wireless communications is fast moving and ever changing. The IoT revolution is gaining momentum across Australia, with telco’s starting to introduce a range of affordable network communications. The sensor had to be compatible with current Australian networks and future networks, such as NB-IoT. The nPod meets both criteria.
5. Easy to use software that delivers powerful insights – testing didn’t just stop at sensor performance. Draffin also tested each sensors web based management software for usability and functionality. Upon conclusion, netBin’s HUB stood out as the most user friendly. It has the ability to deliver the most powerful insights.
6. Ongoing support – we pride ourselves on providing the best backup and support for products and solutions.

At Draffin Street Furniture, we strongly believe technology and innovation is key to tackling Australia’s waste problem. We are currently working with councils and IoT industry leaders to combat littering, by incorporating smart waste technology into our bin surrounds.

Contact us if you are interested in fitting sensors to your new or existing bin surrounds, or for any other custom waste management needs.