It’s impossible to run a business without technology. From production to marketing, a machine is almost always involved. In this age of fast technological advancements, organizations and businesses always need to change and upgrade their equipment frequently to keep up with trends.
Whether it’s to increase productivity or to upgrade a certain aspect of a brand, old electronic models are discarded for new ones, which leads to an accumulation of electronic waste that the company needs to dispose. But instead of simply throwing it away, why not recycle?
The Benefits of E-recycling
Brand image
It would be good for the brand image, particularly if your business deals with electronics themselves, to have your customers know you recycle. It shows them that you’re a responsible company and worthy of their trust. You might even gain some repeat customers, since some individuals actually prefer environment-conscious providers.
You can also donate old electronics to charities and non-profit organizations. Aside from helping the community, you’re also exposing your brand, which can greatly help generate leads when you’re marketing.
Cost efficiency
There are electronic providers that accept old models back, some even offering discounts if you buy their newer models. This is a great way to get rebates and it helps you dispose of your e-waste at the same time.
Reusable materials
If your business deals with manufacturing electronic hardware, you can greatly cut material expenses by e-recycling obsolete gadgets. Electronics contain components that can be reclaimed, such as plastic and precious metals like gold, copper, palladium and silver. These reclaimed resources can be used to make new components, which in turn reduces the need to mine for raw materials.
Positive Effects on Environment and Health
Electronic components contain lead, mercury and other metals and harmful substances, which is detrimental to the ecosystem. They can contaminate the soil when left alone to deteriorate in landfills and they release harmful toxins in the air when burned. Since health can be deeply affected by environmental factors, it goes without saying that e-waste negatively affects human health as well.
It is every company’s responsibility to ensure they have no negative effect on the ecosystem, and lessen it if they do. With e-waste being one of the largest sources of contamination and pollution, e-recycling can be a way for your company to help protect the environment.
Responsible E-recycling
While it’s easy to assume that e-recycling involves nothing more than just handing over your electronics to recyclers, it’s far more complicated than that. The purpose of e-recycling is to lessen the amount of e-waste thrown in landfills and prevent pollution, but some e-waste drop-offs don’t actually recycle well. They ship them off to developing countries, where they can be bought by facilities for their reclaimable components. Retrieving the reusable items from e-waste is a rather expensive process when done correctly, and these facilities try to curb expenses by imposing questionable work ethics that can put their worker’s health at risk.
Therefore, it’s important that you choose a secure and trusted e-recycling service provider, one that properly recycles your e-waste.
