How to Connect Your Weighbridge to Digital Waste Tracking 2026

The Problem Every Weighbridge Site Faces in 2026

From October 2026, every permitted waste receiving site in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland must submit incoming waste movement data to the Environment Agency's Digital Waste Tracking (DWT) platform on the day of receipt.

For sites with a physical weighbridge, this creates a specific challenge: the weighbridge captures accurate weight data, but that data needs to get into the DWT platform as a structured digital submission — with EWC codes, carrier registration numbers, waste descriptions, and a Waste Tracking ID returned by the EA.

Most small and medium weighbridge operators face one of three situations:

Situation 1 — Paper dockets only. The weighbridge prints a ticket. Someone writes a WTN by hand. There is no digital workflow at all. October 2026 requires a complete process change.

Situation 2 — Weighbridge software with CSV export. The site uses Loadmaster, RecyClass, Whitman, or similar software that exports weight data as CSV. The data exists digitally but is not connected to the DWT platform.

Situation 3 — Serial output weighbridge, no software. The indicator displays and prints weights but has no software layer. The weight data is accessible via a serial port connection but nothing reads from it automatically.

This guide covers how to move from each of these situations to full DWT compliance before October 2026.

Option 1 — Direct Serial Connection via WasteBolt Buddy

If your weighbridge indicator has a serial (COM port) output — which most Weightron Bilanciai and similar indicators do — WasteBolt Buddy connects directly to it and reads live weight data.

How to set up the serial connection:

Step 1 — Identify your COM port On the yard computer, open Device Manager (right-click Start → Device Manager → Ports). Your scale indicator will appear as a COM port — typically COM3 or COM4. Note the port number.

Step 2 — Check the baud rate The baud rate must match between the indicator and Buddy. Most Bilanciai indicators run at 9600 baud. Check your indicator manual or the indicator settings menu to confirm.

Step 3 — Install WasteBolt Buddy Download the .exe installer and run it on the yard computer. Log in with your WasteBolt account credentials. The app connects to your WasteBolt data immediately.

Step 4 — Configure the scale connection In Buddy's settings, select your COM port and set the baud rate to match your indicator. Click Connect. Buddy will display the live weight reading from your scale — if it shows a number, the connection is working.

Step 5 — Test with a simulated movement Use Buddy's simulated scale mode to run a full test movement without a vehicle on the weighbridge. Enter a test gross weight, tare weight, select a waste type and carrier from your pick-list, and complete the movement. Check that the WTN appears in your WasteBolt Compliance Hub and that a PDF has been saved to ~/WasteBolt_WTNs/ on the yard computer.

Step 6 — Enable DWT submission In your WasteBolt account settings, ensure your site authorisation number (environmental permit or exemption) is entered. Buddy will include this in every DWT submission. From this point, every completed weighbridge movement generates a WTN and submits automatically to the EA DWT platform.

Option 2 — CSV Import from Existing Weighbridge Software

If your weighbridge already runs software that exports CSV files — Loadmaster, RecyClass, Whitman, or a custom system — WasteBolt's CSV import workflow connects that data to the DWT platform without replacing your existing software.

How the CSV import works:

Step 1 — Export from your weighbridge software Export your movement data from the weighbridge software in CSV format. The file needs to contain at minimum: vehicle registration, gross weight, tare weight, date and time, and an identifier for the waste type or customer.

Step 2 — Upload to WasteBolt Go to WasteBolt → Import Hub → Upload CSV. WasteBolt's AI-assisted column mapper (Bolt Map Columns) reads your file structure and suggests which columns correspond to which WTN fields. You confirm the mapping once and save it as a template — future imports from the same system use the saved template automatically.

Step 3 — Review and approve The import review screen shows each movement from the CSV, with the mapped data populated into the WTN fields. You can correct any mismatches — wrong EWC code, unrecognised carrier — before approving the batch.

Step 4 — Generate WTNs and submit to DWT Approving the batch generates WTNs for all movements and submits them to the EA DWT platform in one operation. Each movement receives a Waste Tracking ID confirming successful submission.

Step 5 — Save the column mapping as a template Save the column mapping as a named template in WasteBolt. Future CSV exports from the same weighbridge software use the same template — the import process becomes a daily or weekly routine of export → upload → approve.

See our weighbridge bridging software guide for a full walkthrough of the CSV import workflow and how it bridges existing weighbridge software to DWT.

Option 3 — Manual Entry with WasteBolt (Paper Docket Sites)

For sites currently running entirely on paper dockets with no weighbridge software, the most practical route to DWT compliance is to use WasteBolt on a tablet or the yard computer to log each movement as it happens.

This is not an automated connection to the weighbridge — weights are read from the docket or the indicator display and entered manually. But it gives you a structured digital workflow that generates WTNs and submits to DWT, which is what the mandate requires.

The workflow:

1. Vehicle arrives — yard operative opens WasteBolt on tablet or yard computer
2. Selects carrier from pick-list (pre-populated from previous movements)
3. Selects waste type and EWC code from pick-list
4. Reads gross weight from indicator, enters into WasteBolt
5. Vehicle exits — reads tare weight, WasteBolt calculates net automatically
6. Confirms and submits — WTN generated, DWT submission sent, PDF saved

For sites with moderate throughput (under 20 vehicles per day), this is a workable route to October 2026 compliance. For higher-throughput sites, the direct serial connection via WasteBolt Buddy is significantly more efficient.

Which Option Is Right for Your Site?

What the DWT Submission Contains

Regardless of which connection method you use, every DWT submission from WasteBolt contains the full data set required by the EA API:

• Date and exact time of receipt
• Your site authorisation number (permit or exemption)
• EWC code (six digits)
• Waste description
• Physical form and containment type
• Weight — amount and unit
• Whether the waste contains POPs — mandatory field
• Whether the waste is hazardous
• Carrier organisation name and registration number (CBDU/CBDL format)
• Vehicle registration number
• Means of transport
• R or D code — or explicitly none

WasteBolt validates all required fields before submission and returns the Waste Tracking ID on success. Failed submissions are flagged with the specific reason so they can be corrected and resubmitted.

Getting Ready Before October 2026

Now — June to August 2026

• Identify which option applies to your site (serial, CSV, or manual)
• Register your site with the EA DWT platform if you have not already — go to the Defra DWT registration portal
• Start a WasteBolt trial and test DWT submissions with real or simulated movements
• For serial connection sites: identify your COM port and baud rate, test Buddy connectivity

August to September 2026

• Have your chosen integration method confirmed and working
• Train all yard staff who will be logging movements
• Run a full week of movements through WasteBolt alongside your existing paper system to catch any issues before the mandate starts

October 2026

• Mandatory DWT submission begins
• Every waste receipt must be recorded on the DWT platform on the day of receipt
• Paper-only sites without a digital submission route face enforcement risk from this date

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the EA DWT platform replace the Waste Transfer Note? For receiving sites, the DWT submission becomes the primary legal record of receipt from October 2026. WTNs are still required for the transfer itself — the DWT submission is an additional obligation on the receiving site, not a replacement for the WTN.

How long does a DWT submission take? With WasteBolt Buddy or the CSV import route, submission is automatic and takes seconds per movement. The EA API typically returns a Waste Tracking ID within a few seconds of submission.

What if the EA DWT platform is unavailable? WasteBolt queues submissions when the EA API is unavailable and retries automatically. The requirement is to submit on the day of receipt — brief API outages are unlikely to result in enforcement action if you can demonstrate attempted submission.

Do I need to register my site separately with the DWT platform? Yes. Your site must be registered on the EA DWT platform before you can submit movements. Registration is separate from your environmental permit and is done through the Defra DWT portal. WasteBolt handles the API connection once your site is registered.

Can WasteBolt Buddy handle hazardous waste movements? Yes. Buddy captures all required fields for hazardous movements including HP codes, POPs components, and consignment note codes. These are included in the DWT submission automatically.

Last updated: June 2026. October 2026 DWT mandate applies to England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Scotland follows January 2027. Contact team@wastebolt.app for weighbridge compatibility queries.