Cleanaway taps Macquarie Telecom for SD-WAN overhaul

Cleanaway has appointed Macquarie Telecom to overhaul its nationwide network with an SD-WAN rollout across more than 350 sites. The project is already live at 25 locations.

The deployment will replace legacy infrastructure that could no longer reliably support the waste management company's operations across Australia. Full rollout is targeted for April 2027.

Cleanaway runs more than 6,200 vehicles and employs more than 9,700 people, many of whom rely on stable communications for operational and safety-related work. Uninterrupted connectivity to sites and equipment has become increasingly important across its geographically dispersed footprint.

Macquarie Telecom is delivering the network redesign and rollout using SD-WAN technology from Netskope. The work builds on an existing partnership centred on a secure access service edge framework.

The agreement followed a competitive tender process. Cleanaway said Macquarie Telecom adapted its standard offering to meet the company's operational requirements rather than applying a one-size-fits-all model across the network.

The new system is intended to support more than routine communications. Cleanaway wants the network to improve video capture and monitoring across sites and vehicles, particularly during incidents involving hazards such as vehicle fires and problematic waste loads.

Data from onboard sensors and cameras will feed into a central control room, where staff can use live information to make operational decisions. This is intended to improve protection for drivers and nearby communities during incidents.

The upgrade also forms part of the broader technology base for Cleanaway's Blueprint 2030 2.0 strategy. A more reliable network is needed before the company can expand work in areas such as fleet analytics and AI-supported operations.

Matt Gurrie, Head of IT Infrastructure at Cleanaway, said the choice of supplier came down to both technical fit and a willingness to adapt.

"We needed the right technical solution to strengthen our connectivity, and what set Macquarie Telecom apart was its willingness to genuinely understand our business and the day-to-day reality of our sites," Gurrie said. "Macquarie adapted its own offering to fit what we actually needed and treated our problems as its own. That's the difference between buying a product and building a partnership. This transformation puts reliable connectivity back at the centre of our work, helping us make faster, better-informed decisions that protect our drivers and the communities we serve every day."

The pilot phase moved quickly after the agreement was signed, with 25 sites now active. The remaining locations will be brought onto the new network in stages.

Safety focus

For Cleanaway, the network project is closely tied to frontline operations rather than back-office IT. Waste collection, transfer and treatment often depend on teams working remotely, on the road or at industrial sites, where communications issues can disrupt service and incident response.

That operational focus also explains the emphasis on visual monitoring and sensor data. Video feeds and telemetry from vehicles and facilities can help identify risks sooner, while centralised access to that information may help managers respond more quickly as incidents develop.

Marija Harris, Group Executive at Macquarie Telecom, said the scale of Cleanaway's operations shaped the rollout design.

"This partnership gives Cleanaway's frontline teams the connectivity to do critical work day in and day out," Harris said. "When we saw the scale of what was at stake - hundreds of sites, thousands of trucks, and thousands of people relying on that infrastructure to protect themselves and their communities - we knew this network had to be built around their operations. Supporting work of this significance is a responsibility we don't take lightly, which is why our job doesn't end at deployment. We're focused on ensuring this network holds up when it matters most and serves as the foundation for what Cleanaway builds next."