Muscat – Two Omani technology companies have collaborated with Oman Environmental Service Holding Company – be’ah – to monitor 185,000 waste bins across Oman through artificial intelligence.

Technology solutions provider Rihal has partnered with Onsor Technologies, a specialist in technologies based on Internet of Things (IoT) and AI, to help be’ah change the way waste bins are monitored and waste collected.

‘Integrating environmental solutions with artificial intelligence technologies improves operational efficiency and provides effective monitoring and protection for the environment. At Rihal, we are proud of this partnership with Onsor Technologies and be’ah,’ Rihal said in a statement.

Rihal added that 185,000 waste bins are planned to be monitored with AI. ‘This will help in enabling waste collection staff to cover a larger area in record time, as well harness accurate data for collection.’

In May this year, be’ah signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Rihal for the project, clearing the way for development of an AI-based platform that automates bin monitoring and inspection activities. The ‘Detection and Classification Platform’ presents a major step towards be’ah’s strategic objectives of excellence in waste management.

be’ah aims to use machine learning and AI to automate bin monitoring and inspection for effective coverage of municipal bins.

The platform will use computer vision to scan, identify, inspect, classify and report bin-related service defaults. The platform will also empower be’ah service providers with actionable intelligence to address areas requiring immediate attention via a secure system that enables real-time data collection and reporting. In the long run, the platform will allow be’ah to analyse data clusters, trends and service delivery issues.

At the signing of the MoU, Ahmed Mohammed al Aamri, General Manager for Digital Transformation and Cybersecurity at be’ah, said, “We are excited about this partnership with Rihal as it allows us to integrate innovative technologies into our waste management practices. By emulating the cognitive capabilities of be’ah, the platform will efficiently monitor and inspect bins, reducing manual inspection time and improving waste collection.”