Compactor

WCVs themselves incorporate a compacting mechanism which is used to increase the payload of the vehicle and reduce the number of times it has to empty.

This usually takes the form of hydraulically powered sliding plates which sweep out the collection hopper and compress the material into what has already been loaded.

Such devices can be of either the "pancake" type, where a scrap automobile is flattened by a huge descending hydraulically powered plate, or the baling press, where the automobile is compressed from several directions until it resembles a large cube Many retail and service businesses, such as fast food, restaurants, and hotels, use compactors to reduce the volume of non-recyclable waste as well as curb nuisance such as rodents and smell.

[2] The large compactors in garbage trucks can be dangerous for workers, and played a role in the US Civil Rights Movement.

[3] Baler-wrapper compactors are used for efficient storage and transport of materials like RDF (refuse-derived fuel) and bin waste, as well as compost and saw dust, enabling higher rates of recycling.

The roller type compactors are used for compacting crushed rock as the base layer underneath concrete or stone foundations or slabs.

A rammer is colloquially referred to as "Paddy's Motorbike", due to the traditional resource of Irish construction labourers, and the way that the operator appears to "ride" the hammer holding the handles like a motorcycle.