WHERE DOES IT ALL GO?
“Where does it all go?” is one of the most frequently asked questions by our clients.
We believe in impacting the environment as little as possible. Our goal is to recycle the electronics that are brought into our warehouse in the best and most enviornmentally friendly way possible.
Electronics can vary quite a bit from one piece of equipment to the next and they are all handled differently.
Examples:
Computers/laptops:
Computers are evaluated for reuse as whole units when dropped off or picked up for recycling. If a unit can be reused as a whole unit the hard drive is removed and the data wiped to DOD standards or the hard drive is physically destroyed. A new or cleaned and reused hard drive is then inserted in the unit and the computer is refurbished.
Unusable units are dissembled into the component parts. Memory, cd/floppy/hard drives, steel cases, plastic, wire, & circuit boards are all separted. Those component parts are then sent to our network of electronic refurbishers, wholesale buyers, and raw material processors who reuse or further breakdown the components into raw materials. PC circuit boards are smelted down for copper, lead, gold, silver, platinum, palladium. These raw materials make it back to manufacturers and are used in your newest electronic devices such as smartphones, laptops, tv's, etc.
Items such as laptops, lcds, printers, copiers, cell phones, IT phones, data communications gear, business equipment is all dealt with in the same manner. We break it down to it's basic components.
TV's & CRT Monitors:
Tube screens require a different level of attention when recycling. Our CRT's and tube TV's are sent to processing facilites that dismantle the TV's and CRT's into their basic commodity:
- Plastic cases and components are baled and sent to a plastics recycling facility where the plastic is sorted by type and turned into raw material to be used in other plastic products.
- Metals (copper and steel ) are sorted and smelted down to form new metal raw material.
- Glass is broken down into two inch cullet / smelted to get the lead out and the raw material is reused in new glass products.
- Lead is the primary hazardous element in a CRT Monitos and Tube TV's and thus requires an extra amount of attention when processing.
LCD Monitors: LCD screens are evaluated for potential reuse, if possible they are refurbished and resold (this happens to a majority of them because the main problem is usually the power supply board). Otherwise they are handled the same way as CRT’s. The primary hazardous material in LCD screens is mercury which is in the small florescent tube which acts as a back light and lights up your LCD. These are removed and processed to recover the mercury.
The recycling process starts with you. |
WHY ARE THERE FEES TO RECYCLE?
Electronic recycling can be a very timely and labor intensive process. To successfully break down electronics and ensure that hazardous waste is disposed of properly, certain fees can apply. With these small fees you are guaranteed the peace of mind of knowing that your items are properly recycled to environmental standards and that your personal data has been destroyed. While often intending well, free recycling often means cost cutting at the expense of our environment and your personal sensitive information. Charging small fees allows us to ensure that we have handled items brought into our facility with the highest level of stewardship to our clients and environment.
TAKE IT BACK NETWORK
AER is part of the Washington “Take It Back Network”, a group of retailers, repair shops, non-profit organizations, waste haulers, and recyclers that offer recycling of certain products that shouldn't be in our landfills. We provide consumers with safe and convenient reuse & recycling options for electronics products that contain toxic and hazardous materials.
Part of our future goal is to insure that our down stream vendors (the people we sell bulk commodities to (wire, steel, plastic, etc) are R2 Certified or Certified and 14001 compliant.
Computers