The waste industry is undergoing a significant transformation. Traditionally distinct roles of waste brokers and haulers are converging, leading to a new era of vertical integration. This shift is driven by the desire for enhanced service control and improved profit margins.

A New Era of Vertical Integration

Historically, waste haulers focused on collection and disposal, while brokers coordinated services across multiple haulers to provide clients with comprehensive solutions. However, the boundaries between these roles are blurring. Haulers are establishing brokerage arms, and brokers are acquiring hauling capabilities.

Why is this happening?

1. Enhanced Customer Experience: By integrating services, companies can offer more consistent and reliable waste management solutions, improving customer satisfaction.
2. Improved Margin Control: Owning both brokerage and hauling operations allows companies to streamline operations and reduce costs, leading to better profit margins.

Industry Examples of Integration

This trend is evident across the industry:

• Casella Waste Systems: Casella's Resource Solutions segment, which includes its National Accounts brokerage operations, is a significant growth area. In their 2023 annual report, Casella emphasized the importance of this segment in meeting the growing resource management needs of customers. The company has also made strategic acquisitions, such as Whitetail Disposal and LMR Disposal, to expand its footprint in the Mid-Atlantic region.
• Recycle Track Systems (RTS): In 2022, RTS acquired Elytus, a third-party administrator of waste services, significantly expanding its brokerage capabilities and presence across the U.S.
• Waste Harmonics and Keter Environmental: These two companies merged to create a leading managed waste service provider, combining technology platforms and expanding service offerings.
• Republic Services: In 2025, Republic Services acquired Shamrock Environmental, an industrial waste and wastewater treatment company, enhancing its brokerage and environmental services capabilities.

Implications for Smaller Players

For regional haulers and brokers, this trend may seem daunting. However, integration doesn't necessarily require massive acquisitions. Leveraging technology can provide the visibility, flexibility, and control needed to compete effectively.

DSQ's Take: The Market is Headed Toward Integration

Most waste businesses today run on patchwork systems: billing in one place, customer support in another, sensor data in a third. That creates friction, delays, and costs. The companies that win will be the ones who can operate like an integrated platform, where a customer record, billing status, site information, and service history all live in one place.

By consolidating these functions into a single platform, businesses can:

• Streamline Operations: Reduce the complexity of managing multiple systems.
• Enhance Data Visibility: Gain real-time insights into operations and financials.
• Improve Customer Service: Provide consistent and reliable services to clients.

That’s the future we're building:

• DSQ Discovery – Invoice automation and auditing that helps brokers and waste managers process, verify, and act on their bills, without lifting a finger.
• DSQ Pioneer – Compactor monitor that gives you the data to hold vendors accountable, manage costs, and spot service issues early.
• DSQ Hauler Software – Digital tools to run a modern hauling business: route planning, mobile work orders, service verification, and more.

The convergence of brokers and haulers is reshaping the waste industry. Companies are integrating services to enhance customer experience and improve margins. For businesses of all sizes, embracing integrated software solutions like DSQ can provide the tools needed to thrive in this evolving landscape.

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