Major projects and practical innovation will take centre stage at Waste Expo Australia 2026, with exhibitors using the event to demonstrate how collaboration is helping reshape Australia’s waste and resource recovery sector. Among them are software specialist AMCS and packaging and recycling company Visy, each highlighting different parts of the waste value chain while sharing a common focus on improving long-term outcomes.
For AMCS, the expo provides an opportunity to demonstrate how software, real-time data and artificial intelligence can help waste and resource recovery operators improve efficiency. For Visy, it is a chance to explain how recyclable packaging, processing capability and strong end markets all contribute to a functioning circular economy. Together, their participation reflects the broad mix of industry, government and councils expected to gather at Waste Expo Australia 2026.
For Andrew Heading, senior field marketing manager at AMCS, the event provides an opportunity to reconnect with existing customers while introducing prospective clients to the breadth of the company’s software offering.
For Suzanne Hall, communications and marketing manager from Visy Recycling, the expo is seen as a place to explain how materials move through the recycling system.
“We’ll be there to showcase how materials going into kerbside recycling bins can be transformed into new packaging products,” she said. “Recovering products is a key part of the process, as is transforming them into new products supported by flourishing end markets.”
Improving operations through data
Heading said AMCS has supported waste and recycling operators, as well as local government organisations, for many years by helping them manage data more effectively and operate more efficiently.
“We’ve been around the industry for some time,” he said. “Waste Expo is a great event for connecting with existing customers, meeting new potential ones and showcasing how AMCS can support the industry.”
At Waste Expo Australia, AMCS will use live demonstrations as the centrepiece of its exhibition, showcasing how its software solutions can provide greater visibility across waste operations and help organisations make better decisions. The company will highlight how its software portfolio has expanded through acquisitions, bringing together operational and facility management capabilities under the AMCS brand.
Among the technologies visitors can expect to see are demonstrations of the AMCS Mandalay solution and the company’s weighbridge and facility management platform. Heading said the demonstrations will be designed to show practical applications rather than simply display software.
One of the key technologies on display will be Vision AI, which has been introduced into a range of council facilities. The artificial intelligence capability can identify contamination in waste streams and detect overfilled containers using real-time data.
He said these demonstrations are intended to show customers and prospects how data can be used to improve day-to-day operations and provide greater visibility across facilities. AMCS is planning to showcase real-time analytics collected from facilities using its technology, allowing visitors to see how operational data can be presented and used to support better decision making. Rather than focusing on having a large stand, Heading said they wants to create an engaging space that demonstrates practical value.
“We’ll have enough content and screens that hopefully will give people an idea about how we can add value to the business,” he said.
Delivering better resource recovery outcomes
While AMCS’s work is focuses on planning and delivery, Visy’s emphasis at Waste Expo Australia will be on demonstrating how product design can improve recycling outcomes. One of the products on display will be Paper Bubble, the company’s paper-based alternative to conventional bubble wrap. Designed to provide the same protective function while being recyclable through existing paper recycling systems, the product reflects Visy’s broader strategy of replacing materials that are more difficult to recover with ones that fit established recycling streams.
Hall said while councils often carry responsibility for managing waste, manufacturers like Visy can help reduce contamination by designing new innovative products designed to be recovered through existing recycling infrastructure.
“We believe things should be designed to be recycled,” said Hall. “Australia’s glass circular economy shows what is possible. Through container deposit schemes and kerbside collections, to investment in processing and Australian manufacturing, Visy has lifted the recycled content in our glass products from 58 to 64 per cent. Working to get more circular packaging on supermarket shelves helps manufacturers, councils, residents, recyclers and the environment.
“This is Visy’s first time back at the Waste Expo for five or six years. There’s so much focus on recycling, end markets, product design and more – from policy makers to local residents checking the recyclability of their packaging as they walk down the supermarket aisle. We’re looking forward to sharing ideas and meeting people dedicated to building a circular economy.”
Building better long-term outcomes
Although they operate in different parts of the industry, both companies see collaboration as essential to improving Australia’s waste and resource recovery system.
Heading believes software can help waste operators become more efficient while improving the services they provide to communities through better collections, streamlined administration and more effective operations. Waste Expo Australia also remains an important part of the company’s broader marketing strategy. While digital marketing channels continue to expand, Heading believes face-to-face engagement remains essential in a B2B environment.
“People buy from people, and people have to engage with others,” he said. “I expect industry events to continue evolving, with organisers creating more opportunities for exhibitors to engage with visitors before, during and after the exhibition.”
Rather than treating an expo as a three-day event, Heading said successful exhibitors now invest in customer engagement for months leading into the show and continue those conversations well afterwards.
For AMCS, Waste Expo Australia provides the opportunity to demonstrate technology in action, meet customers face to face and show how data-driven software can help waste organisations operate more efficiently.