Mannheim and Salzbergen, Germany, 2025, October 13th
The SRS EcoTherm Thermal Waste Treatment Plant in Salzbergen is breaking new ground in driver communication: It is the first plant of its kind to offer digital instructions in currently 13 languages. The aim is to overcome language barriers that are increasing increasingly due to the Europe-wide shortage of drivers and international driver deployment — and thus significantly increase safety and efficiency at the location.
With QR codes right at the factory gate, drivers receive easy-to-understand step-by-step instructions on a smartphone. The content combines text, images and pictograms and guides you through all relevant applications: from the delivery of garbage, white lime or ammonia water to the collection of residual materials or slag. As well as practical processes, the digital sliders also contain clear safety instructions and emergency protocols.

“For years, we have increasingly seen that many drivers speak little or no German and often no English,” explains Markus Bünker, who is responsible for operating the TAS at SRS EcoTherm. “We had to send drivers away from time to time because instruction was simply not possible. With the new solution, we can now reach all drivers — regardless of their origin or language skills. In this way, we improve communication, reduce accident risks and ensure smoother processes.”

As an industrial plant in the CRITIS infrastructure, SRS EcoTherm takes its responsibilities and legal obligations very seriously. By making things easier to understand, they want to ensure that the driver is handling things correctly when delivering and collecting equipment and that his personal safety and that of the system's technology is not endangered. It is also about meeting the obligation to provide evidence of instructions. A direct connection to the system at the scale or at the reception is therefore planned: In future, drivers should be recorded and only be given mandatory training if they are new to the site, have not worked there for a long time or relevant processes have changed.
“For us, digital instruction is more than a practical solution in everyday life — it is an important component of our digital strategy,” emphasizes Erwin Junker, operations manager at SRS EcoTherm. “We want to use innovation where it really makes a difference: for safety, efficiency and the people who work with us every day. The project is a good example of how we combine responsibility with modern technologies.”

Local employees are also increasingly hoping for relief: “We've known many of our drivers for years, communication is no problem and they know their way around here very well. But with the new ones, we are often hands-on and often have to accompany them in order to personally instruct them at the loading or unloading point. It always takes 20-30 minutes and is impossible without a common language — today, a quick scan is enough,” says Ralf Dehmel, employee at the weighing bridge. “Initial experience shows that Spanish drivers in particular are particularly open — they immediately pull out their smartphones, scan the code and follow the instructions.”

For the introduction of QR code-based, multilingual instructions, SRS EcoTherm has chosen a solution from Loady and shows how digitization can be used in a practical way: to increase safety, to relieve employees and as a clear answer to the challenges of the international driver market — while at the same time meeting the CRITIS requirements.
About SRS EcoTherm
SRS EcoTherm GmbH, based in Salzbergen, operates a modern thermal waste treatment plant with an annual incineration capacity of 120,000 t. At nominal plant load, it generates around 50 tons of steam per hour, which are converted into electricity at the customer's industrial power plant. The extracted heat is used to supply the customer's production plants located at the site with climate-friendly process steam. As a reliable partner for the customer, it stands for sustainable energy and disposal solutions and relies on modern digitization concepts and resource conservation.
Press contact:
Markus Bünker, TAS company
+49 (0) 5976 945-673
markus.buenker@srs-ecotherm.de
About Loady
Loady is a start-up founded in Mannheim in 2023 from the chemical industry. With its central hub for standardized loading requirements, Loady is removing a decades-old breaking point in logistics. By creating a uniform understanding and facilitating multi-language communication, the platform enables seamless, digital collaboration between all parties involved. For shippers, recipients of goods and logistics service providers, this means more efficient and cost-effective processes and a clear contribution to achieving their sustainability goals. Loady offers interfaces for common logistics applications and also online views for dispatchers and drivers — available in 13 languages — and is optimally tailored for international logistics.
Press contact:
Stefanie Kraus, CEO & Co-Founder
+49 (0) 151 2371 2351
stefanie.kraus@loady.com