Pickup Artists: Winners of the 2012 Waste Age Equipment Color and Design Contest

You hear it time and again, and it’s true: the vehicles and containers we deploy to service our customers are the vanguard of our industry. There’s a reason so many garbage trucks have become rolling billboards – it’s a great way to get a message out and engage the community.

The Waste Age Equipment Color and Design Contest is an effort to recognize the firms and municipalities that are going above and beyond when it comes to fetching-looking fleets. In the following pages you’ll find a collection of waste and recycling vehicles and containers that demonstrate that it is possible to do a dirty job and still look good doing it. Manufacturer information and design comments are included for those entrants that provided them.

The Waste Age editorial staff selected winners based on the aesthetics of color and design, effective communication of message and sheer uniqueness. Some strive to convey an environmental message, while others seek to anchor themselves within the communities they serve. Some are elaborate and eye-popping, while others sport a tasteful economy of design. All help elevate our industry beyond simple waste and recycling collection and transport.

Congratulations to the winners, and thanks to all who entered! – Steven Averett, Editor