Climate change. The Green New Deal. Global warming. Earth Day has taken on extraordinary importance over the past few decades. The very first Earth Day celebration focused on engaging thousands of students on a sunny spring day in 1970. The worldwide movement helped inspire groundbreaking laws including the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and Endangered Species Act. Join us as Earth Day 2021 will be upon us and we take a closer look at how ITAD services can help organizations manage their e-waste correctly.
With an estimated 50 million metric tons of global e-waste disposed of annually, it has become the fastest-growing type of waste disposal. Studies have shown that 70% of the heavy metals found in landfills, including mercury, cadmium, and lead, are the direct result of e-waste. Think about the impact e-waste has on the environment and ensure your organization takes the proper steps to become part of the solution.
Make Earth Day Every Day. Learn more about how we can help with your e-waste.
What are some things my organization can do to help reduce e-waste?
Don’t Upgrade Equipment Unless Necessary. A recent survey conducted by a team of environmentalist groups noted that nearly 40% of users dropping off old electronic equipment at a recycling event, were doing so because they had upgraded their old equipment. It turns out only 20% were dropping off items that no longer worked and the other 40% were dropping off old equipment because they either didn’t want it or didn’t use it anymore. There are so many other options to dispose of old equipment when it is beyond its working life or no longer needed. Rather than upgrading equipment with every new product release, make more planned purchases by waiting until your current equipment outlives its usefulness.
Repurpose Old Equipment. Perhaps your organization has no choice but to upgrade due to security or legal concerns. In that case, outdated equipment can sometimes be repurposed for less demanding uses. For example, a surplus monitor can be used as a secondary display for a laptop or desktop. Even older LCD TVs can be used as a new monitor. Even if you can’t find a practical use for your obsolete equipment, someone else might. The old saying goes, “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.” Another alternative is also donating older, unwanted equipment to a local school or charitable organization.
Learn how you can donate your old equipment here.
Sell Old Equipment While It Still Has Value. So, your organization has a storage unit full of obsolete equipment that’s been collecting dust for years. Why not sell it and use the money to upgrade your existing equipment? All devices are going to lose value over time, and the sooner they can be sold, the more value you can recoup. Your organization could be wasting precious office space or worse, rent on a storage unit full of potential money. Talk to an ITAD professional that can help get you the most return on your old equipment. It’s never too late to sell.
Read the Top 5 Reasons You Should Sell Your Equipment
Environmental considerations such as global warming, climate change, and pollution remain a hot topic as e-waste disposal has become one of the biggest concerns in the technology industry. With an estimated 60 million tons in annual e-waste by 2021, electronics have become the fastest growing solid waste stream in the world.
Reducing the amount of e-waste in your organization is a surefire way to reaching sustainability goals. However, without a plan in place, it can be much more difficult than simply replacing outdated IT equipment. There are several items to consider such as how to properly handle any critical data on devices. IT asset management should be an all-inclusive strategy that ends with IT Asset Disposition (ITAD). ITAD takes care of more than just your organization’s environmental concerns, it covers data security, logistics, and return on your original investment. In the end, it just makes sense.
What is ITAD?
ITAD is the process of properly disposing of obsolete or surplus IT equipment in a safe and eco-friendly way. It can have multiple benefits to organizations by helping them minimize costs, maximize returns, and by keeping sensitive data secure. We break down the basic steps of the ITAD process below.
Discover how our ITAD process can help your organization with sustainability.
IT Equipment Removal
The first step in the ITAD process would be to take old, unused equipment offline and completely remove it from the corporate network. Each piece of equipment that stores any amount of data must be uninstalled, taken off the network, and accurately accounted for.
Learn more about data center take-outs and IT equipment removal here.
Data Destruction and Erasure
The most critical step in the ITAD process centers around data security. Every single device that has data stored such as PCs, smartphones, laptops, and tablets must have its data removed. This is more important than ever, especially with remote work growing in popularity due to the pandemic.
Data wiping is particularly important for organizations in strictly regulated industries, such as financial services and healthcare facilities. Whether it happens with data erasing software or physically destroying the device, the data contained must be completely removed from every device.
Learn more about data destruction and how it benefits you.
Secure Shipping
Securely transporting your IT assets from start to finish is a crucial part of the ITAD process. Make sure to ask for a chain of custody report of transport and n auditable receipt of the assets you’re disposing of.
Our secure shipping and logistics – we handle everything from beginning to end.
Remarketing
Once an organization’s surplus equipment has been shipped and data eradicated, it’s time for remarketing. Remarketing is a chance to considerably reduce the equipment’s total cost of ownership. Experienced ITAD partners utilize large networks of remarketers, increasing the equipment’s value.
Find out how much your surplus equipment could be worth.
Recycling Unused Assets
Once the equipment has been remarketed, the remaining surplus IT assets must be disposed of in an eco-conscious manner. A good ITAD partner will know how to safely dispose and recycle those assets.
Are you looking to recycle unwanted assets? We can help with that.
Certified Data Destruction
To ensure that the job has been completed correctly, the ITAD partner can provide auditable certificates and reports throughout each phase of the process.
See what a sample Certificate of Data Destruction looks like.
How Do You Choose the Right Partner?
An organization’s choice in an ITAD partner can make or break their return on investment. With thorough research, you can save your company from a data breach nightmare while being environmentally responsible.
We Buy Used IT Equipment is a leading provider of Secure IT Asset Disposition (ITAD), Onsite Data Destruction, and e-Waste Recycling Services. Perfected over 50 years, our expert services reduce the risk, cost, and difficulties related to securely managing IT assets. Learn more at https://webuyuseditequipment.net/services/it-asset-disposition/.
