Waste Management Inc

(NYSE: WM)

Industry: Waste & Disposal Services
On the web: http://www.wm.com
Employees: 45,900

Waste Management, Inc. was incorporated in Oklahoma in 1987 under the name USA Waste Services, Inc. and was reincorporated as a Delaware company in 1995. In a 1998 merger, the Illinois-based waste services company formerly known as Waste Management, Inc. became a wholly-owned subsidiary of WMI and changed its name to Waste Management Holdings, Inc. At the same time, the Company's parent holding company changed its name from USA Waste Services to Waste Management, Inc. Waste Management, Inc. is a holding company and all operations are conducted by its subsidiaries. The Company is a provider of integrated waste services in North America. Using its network of assets and employees, it provides a range of waste management services. The services it provides include collection, landfill, transfer, Wheelabrator, recycling and other services. Collection involves picking up and transporting waste from where it was generated to a transfer station or disposal site. Landfills are the main depositories for solid waste in North America. At December 31, 2008, the Company owned or operated 355 transfer stations in North America. The solid waste is consolidated and compacted to reduce the volume and increase the density of the waste and transported by transfer trucks or by rail to disposal sites. At its waste-to-energy facilities, solid waste is burned at high temperatures in specially designed boilers to produce heat that is converted into high-pressure steam. Recycling involves the separation of reusable materials from the waste stream for processing and resale or other disposition. The Company provides in-plant services, in which employees of its Upstream organization work full-time inside its customers' facilities to provide full-service waste management solutions. The Company's waste management operations allow it to provide customers with full management of their waste, including identifying recycling opportunities, minimizing waste, and determining the most efficient means available for waste collection and disposal. The Company also develops, operates and promotes projects for the beneficial use of landfill gas through its Waste Management Renewable Energy Program. It currently manages and evaluates its operations through six operating Groups, of which four are organized by geographic area and two are organized by function. The geographic Groups include its Eastern, Midwest, Southern and Western Groups, and the two functional Groups are Wheelabrator Group, which provides waste-to-energy services, and WM Recycle America Group, which provides recycling services not managed by its geographic Groups. The Company also provides additional waste management services that are not managed through its six Groups. These services include in-plant services, where it works at its clients' facilities to provide full-service waste management solutions and provide opportunities for process improvements and associated cost reductions in their waste management. Other services not managed within the Company's Groups include methane gas recovery, sub-contracted and administrative services performed by its National Accounts and Upstream organizations, portable self-storage, fluorescent lamp recycling and healthcare solutions services, including medical waste disposal. These services are included under 'Other.' The Company has competition from municipalities and regional government authorities with respect to residential and commercial solid waste collection and solid waste landfills. It competes for disposal business on the basis of tipping fees, geographic location and quality of operations. It competes for collection accounts on the basis of price and quality of services. The Company's business is subject to federal, state or provincial and local environmental, health, safety and transportation laws and regulations.