Simpro Blog

Everyone knows what a Mobile Garbage Bin is. These humble roadside receptacles go by all manner of names – MGBs, Wheelie Bins, Toters, Roll-out Carts, Trash Cans – but they all look something like this:

Looks, however, can be deceiving. MGBs are designed to be lifted by machines, which means they must comply with a common standard. And since humans never settle on one standard when several will do – there are competing, incompatible standards for MGB design.

Getting the standards mixed up means your new truck, lifter or compactor might not work with your bins. To help avoid that situation, we’ve prepared the following table, with a quick comparison of the two most common MGB standards:

Specification	EN 840	ANSI Z245.60 (Type B Containers)
Standardisation Body	European Committee for Standardisation (CEN)	American National Standards Institute (ANSI)
Regional usage	Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, Oceania	North America, South America
Typical capacities	60-litre, 80-litre, 120-litre, 140-litre, 240-litre, 360-litre	32-Gal, 48-Gal, 64-Gal, 96-Gal
Terminology	Wheelie Bin, Two-wheeled Bin, Mobile Garbage Bin, MGB, Euro-style Bin	Toter, Trash Cart, Two-wheel Cart, Roll-out Cart, Trash Can, Garbage Can, MGB, US-style Bin
Bin-hitch mechanism	Hitch attaches to reinforced comb around rim of the bin:	Hitch attaches to moulded indentation in front face of the bin:
Typical wheel position	Wheels outset from body:	Wheels inline with body:
Advantages	Most widely-used design. Outset wheels very stable and do not accumulate dirt. Easy and fast to hitch.	Durable, robust design. Can be used with very heavy loads. Bins are stackable.
Disadvantages	Comb may tear off if bin weighs more than 100kg. Outset wheels prevent stacking.	Can be difficult to hitch. Only used in Americas. Inset wheels are less stable and may clog with dirt.
Typical usage	Municipal waste programs; kerbside garbage collection for households and businesses; recycling; green waste; medical waste; shopping malls, apartment blocks and commercial estates.

In North America, Simpro equipment is supplied with a standards-based hitch that will safely lift any ANSI Z245.60 (Type B) compliant bin – regardless of shape, size or capacity.

Elsewhere, things are more complicated. The EN 840 standard specifies that lifting equipment should hook into a reinforced comb around the rim of the bin. But this hitch has a hitch: if the bin is too heavy the comb will deform – or tear off completely.

To avoid this, Simpro recommends our unique ‘base-lift’ cradle for EN 840 bins. This proprietary design holds the entire body of the bin, and uses wheel catches to secure it while inverted. The bin is not subject to structural stresses, but must have projecting ‘outset’ wheels.

EN 840 bins with ‘inset’ wheels can only be lifted using the comb as specified in the standard. These means they have a limited weight capacity, and usually wear out faster.

Needless to say: Mobile Garbage Bins might look simple, but there’s more than meets the eye. When you’re investing in waste management equipment, make sure it’s standards-based, and make sure the standards all line up...

After all, no-one likes tipping money into the bin.