The Olds Bottle Depot is extending its hours, with the hopes that more customers can utilize the service, which directly benefits the community.
The Bottle Depot has been operating under the umbrella of Accredited Supports to the Community since 1986. ASC is a non-profit society that provides a number of services to folks across South Central Alberta, such as support for those with developmental disabilities, families, and those who are at risk of homelessness.
Starting on May 20th, the depot will be open from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., Monday through Saturday. ASC Executive Director Dana Wild says the extra two hours a day will hopefully bring in more customers, refunding their recyclables and supporting the ASC while doing it.
“We heard from our customers that it’s difficult to bring their refundable beverage containers in when the depot was only open during the hours that they were at work, and their weekends are really busy having fun with their families,” she says. “All of our programs are funded through provincial or federal government contracts and grants, but our Bottle Depot operates as a social enterprise where those proceeds can come back into the organization to support the non-funded portions of our operation.”
Wild points to a better, less rushed employee experience as another reason for the change, and along with the recent installation of an automated bottle sorting system, the depot is far more efficient than before, cutting wait times and allowing even more customers through the doors.
“When I took a look at the comparisons of our volumes year over year, in the past six months, we have processed approximately 75,000 more refundable beverage containers than the same time period last year with our manual sorting system,” she says. “The equipment that we have is able to count about 350 containers a minute, allowing the staff to process those refund orders very quickly.”
According to Wild, with the new changes, an order that would result in a $100 refund can now be processed in around five to ten minutes, while a manual count would normally take upwards of a half hour.
“So this speed is allowing for a faster, more efficient customer service experience, and the depot is able to manage those increased volumes in containers,” she says. “Additionally, the depot has processed approximately $71,300 in local bottle drive fundraisers, so this totals approximately $79,000 in refunds that are going directly back into our communities,”
The Olds Bottle Depot’s new hours will take effect on May 20th, following the long weekend. You can learn more about the ASC and the Olds Bottle Depot on their website.
