Practical Guide
This article is written for NSW tyre shops, workshops, dealers, warehouses, and fleet depots that want cleaner operations, easier pickups, and stronger compliance routines.
Why this is different from a basic site-prep checklist
Site prep is what you do before a pickup window. A preparation SOP is the repeatable handling standard your team follows every day so the site stays pickup-ready by default.
This matters for busy workshops and dealer sites where multiple staff move tyres across shifts. Without a simple SOP, storage quality drifts, access gets blocked, and pickups become inconsistent.
Core SOP: 6 rules your team can follow every shift
- Move all removed tyres to one dedicated zone only (no overflow corners).
- Keep the pickup access path clear during the day, not just before collection.
- Do not mix tyres with general waste, liquids, scrap metal, or broken pallets.
- Use stable stacking/containment rules that reduce roll and handling risk.
- Record one quick volume estimate at the end of the shift or day (site standard).
- Escalate to the pickup owner when the zone reaches the booking threshold.
Team roles that prevent confusion
The biggest operational failure is unclear ownership. Your SOP should name one pickup owner (booking + records), but every shift still needs a simple handling rule for staging tyres correctly.
A good split is: technicians/service staff stage tyres correctly, supervisors spot-check zone condition, and one nominated owner books pickups and keeps records together.
What to include in a one-page SOP
- Tyre zone location and photo/example of correct staging.
- Stack/containment rule and access-lane rule.
- Contamination rule (what must never be mixed with tyres).
- Booking threshold and who to notify.
- Pickup owner contact and backup owner.
- Where records are stored (shared folder/system) and what is logged.
Quick audit test: is your SOP working?
- Can a new team member identify the tyre zone in under 30 seconds?
- Is the access lane usually clear without a cleanup sprint?
- Can one person show the last pickup record quickly?
- Are pickups happening before overflow, not after?
Next step
Use a simple SOP + threshold + scheduled pickups. That combination removes most avoidable pickup delays.
Explore ATR collection services or request a pickup plan. Related reads: pre-pickup site checklist, storage checklist, and scheduled pickups.