Independent Steel case study
Independent Steel: turning waste data into a resource-recovery story.
A national study of how recovery varies by material and state, connecting a steel supplier’s work to Australia’s resource-recovery goals.
- Client
- Independent Steel Company
- Agency
- Otto Media Group
- Focus
- Material recovery and state comparisons
- Coverage
- Waste Management Review ↗, November 2025
The research question
How much more metal could Australia recover if other states and territories matched South Australia’s recovery rate? I developed this question to connect Independent Steel Company’s work to a wider public issue that could be examined using existing data.
My role and the agency’s role
I developed the concept and led the research and analysis. The work was commissioned by Independent Steel Company and delivered white-label through Otto Media Group. The agency and client led campaign and publication decisions.
How the comparison was built
The study used the federal waste database to compare recovery by material, waste stream and state. I documented the database filters and the calculations behind the comparisons, then used the state recovery rates to construct the metal-recovery scenario.
A defensible comparison depends on keeping the reporting period, material definitions and recovery measure aligned. The method note and working tables make those choices visible, so the figures can be interpreted in the context of the source.
A scenario, with its assumptions visible
The scenario asks what the reported quantity would look like under a specified benchmark. It is not a forecast that other jurisdictions will reach South Australia’s rate. Nor is it a claim that they could do so without changes to infrastructure, collection systems or the mix of waste.
Recovery and recycling should also be described using the database’s definitions. A headline cannot safely treat differently defined measures as interchangeable simply because their labels sound similar.
What the client received
The handover included original calculations, charts, downloadable tables and a methodology note. It supported national, material and state comparisons, giving the agency several ways to explain the research while retaining the source trail.
Published coverage
Waste Management Review reported the findings and credited Independent Steel Company in November 2025. The article provides a public example of how the research was used in trade coverage.
Read “Metals drive Australia’s recycling” ↗
What this means for your agency
A product story rarely earns coverage on its own. I turn the client's field into a public question a journalist would care about and answer it with official data. Your team gets findings it can pitch, a scenario clearly labelled as a scenario and the calculation behind every number.