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What to Look for When Selecting an Electronics Recycling Vendor by MICHAEL GOLUB

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What to Look for When Selecting an Electronics Recycling Vendor by MICHAEL GOLUB What to Look For When Selecting An Electronics Recycling Vendor BY MICHAEL GOLUB enerators of end-of-life electronics are ing, prioritizing and managing environmental challenged to engage a recycling risks as part of normal business practices. Gvendor that serves their best All employees are involved and all are interests in conformity with applica- trained. ISO certification demon- ble law. Entrusting material to an strates operational strength and unqualified company means that commitment to the environment the material will not be processed by meeting the rigorous require- in an environmentally responsible ments for ISO 14001 certifica- manner. This puts the generator tion. of so-called e-waste at risk for ENVIRONMENTAL “generator liability” including sub- COMPLIANCE stantial financial penalties. Follow- What is the vendor’s record for ing the guidelines set forth below compliance with environmental will enable you to ask the right ques- laws, rules and regulations? Is the ven- tions and make the right vendor choice. dor’s property site polluted? Inspect it HISTORY/COMMITMENT carefully. Are electronics materials stored so Has the prospective vendor been in business that they are in contact with the dirt? Are materi- for a number of years? Has the vendor been exclusively als exposed to weather? Are materials scattered about in committed to electronics recycling during that time? Many outdoor areas? Because electronics contain hazardous ele- companies offer electronics recycling services not because ments, improper outdoor storage means that hazardous of a commitment to environmentally sound end-of-life elements will leach into the environment. A potential ven- electronics recycling, but as an ancillary service needed to dor must comply with all laws, rules and regulations gov- attract other business. These companies dispose of collect- erning the storage, processing and disposition of end-of- ed electronics using subcontractors and brokers, leaving life electronics. Proper due diligence includes determining the fate of your electronics in the hands of an unknown that the vendor has never been the subject of any enforce- third party while you remain potentially liable as the gen- ment action by any governmental authority with regard to erator of the e-waste. A qualified vendor is one that has a its environmental compliance. history of being exclusively involved in electronics recy- “BAN” ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP cling for a number of years, that is fully committed to PLEDGE environmentally sound processing of materials, that recy- BAN, the Basel Action Network, an outgrowth of an cles without subcontractors or brokers and that can docu- environmental meeting held in Basel, Switzerland, is an ment to you each and every aspect of the recycling process. international network of activists aiming to stop the trans- ISO CERTIFICATION fer of hazardous electronic waste from rich countries to Is the electronics recycling vendor ISO certified? In poorer countries. BAN understands that many “recyclers” most cases, the answer is “no.” Most public companies do not actually recycle hazardous materials, but instead want to work with ISO certified vendors. It is important to simply export them to foreign countries. This is an indus- understand why. ISO 14001 was created by the Interna- try-wide problem caused by a lack of regulation and a lack tional Organization for Standardization. It specifies a of material tracking. Every vendor in the industry is famil- process for controlling and continually improving a com- iar with BAN. But only a few distinguish themselves by pany’s environmental performance. Becoming certified is having become parties to BAN’s Stewardship Pledge. If the difficult and time consuming. It involves a top-to-bottom vendor you are considering is not a party to the BAN review of company operations and the development of Pledge, this may be an indication that it is exporting haz- procedures and practices at every level aimed at identify- ardous electronic scrap to less developed countries. The Volume 16, Issue 5 – 2004 NPMA 13 consequences to you of this improper conduct can be both wipe hard drives permanently clean. Investigate all of the expensive and embarrassing. A New York Times article vendor’s equipment for this purpose. Good and effective revealed the names of many companies and agencies that equipment is expensive and involves far more than a tech- used improper recyclers after their e-waste was discovered nician plugging in one hard drive at a time and wiping it dumped in China. with a computer program. State of the art equipment is POLLUTION INSURANCE needed to clean hard drives to military specifications so Does the vendor carry pollution liability insurance cov- that customer information is completely and permanently erage? As further security for its customers, a recycler with deleted. operational and financial depth will maintain a substantial EXPERIENCE WITH SENSITIVE MATERIAL pollution liability insurance policy. Many so-called recy- Promising to protect your sensitive data is easy. Doing clers do not have such coverage. While following best envi- so can be hard and requires expensive systems and well ronmental practices and all environmental laws is a thought out procedures. The vendor must be experienced requirement, carrying pollution insurance coverage is an in handling sensitive materials and must have an accept- added layer of protection for liability-conscious customers. able model in place to protect customer data. The vendor ON-SITE DISASSEMBLY AND must use total destruction protection in order to protect DE-MANUFACTURING sensitive material. Does the vendor have a full service on-site processing REFINING OF MATERIALS facility including a manual tear down line for the break- Does the vendor sell processed materials such as printed down of materials? Inadequate space and personnel could be circuit boards to other parties for refining; or does the ven- a sign that collected electronics are not being processed on- dor itself arrange for refining? If a potential vendor has site, but instead are being brokered to unknown parties. direct large quantity supply contracts with a major refin- ON-SITE EQUIPMENT – SHREDDER ery, it is able to offer a better pricing structure. Such a ven- dor does not need to subcontract materials refining. It can The ability to process materials on a large scale requires process customer material start to finish and can assure a significant investment in high-tech capital equipment. customers of proper environmental handling throughout Manual tear down plays a useful role, but it is not enough the process. to sustain a long-term commitment to efficient, environ- mentally sound and customer-affordable end-of-life elec- END-MARKETS tronics recycling services. Choosing a vendor that owns Will the vendor disclose to you all of its end-markets and operates a sophisticated electronics shredding system for processed materials? Obtaining this information is that complies with environmental best practices is always essential, but getting it in writing may not be enough. Ask preferable. It enables the vendor to process large quantities for contact information for off-site down-line processors, of material into segregated refinable commodities. It also and telephone them to obtain assurances that materials are enables the vendor to perform shredding services on-site as in fact shipped to them by the vendor. By way of example, demanded by many customers. This means that sensitive some recyclers offer so-called “glass-to-glass” recycling of materials can be shredded without dependence on third screen-burned cathode ray tubes. In reality, they may ship parties and without moving the sensitive material off the such materials to overseas destinations since doing so is less vendor’s premises. costly. While the “recycler” pays less to have the material PROPRIETARY HARD DRIVE DATA processed, the customer remains at risk since the shipped materials are not generally recycled as they should be. A Does the vendor permanently destroy proprietary data qualified recycler should be able to furnish you with docu- contained on hard drives in your equipment? Most ven- mentation of end-markets and references; and should have dors say they do this. But they don’t. They may disassem- a closed loop hazardous waste tracking system. ble computers, for example, and ship detached hard drives as a commodity for refining. The hard drives, while LICENSING intended for melt down in the refining process, contain Is the vendor properly licensed, including licenses to proprietary data. So the customer risks loss of this data handle batteries and mercury containing devices? No ven- when the “commodity” is shipped. The vendor you select dor should be considered unless it is fully licensed and should wipe all hard drives to ensure no loss of its cus- complies with all federal and state laws governing the dis- tomer’s proprietary data. In addition, many vendors claim position of end-of-life electronics. to “degrauss” or “clean” hard drives. Today, that is not LOCATIONS enough. Computer forensics allows for the recovery of data Where is the vendor located? Can it efficiently handle on wiped hard drives. Most vendors are not equipped to 14 NPMA Volume 16, Issue 5 – 2004 material originating from your facilities? Does the vendor vendor must stand behind its Certificates of Recycling by claim to own other facilities, but really only have an infor- utilizing environmentally friendly processes and best prac- mal “arrangement” with them? Check ownership carefully. tices in the industry, by enabling customers to track mate- Transportation logistics plays a major role in cost efficient rials to their grave, and by demonstrating the financial and collection and handling of material. Choose a vendor with operational depth needed to address unforeseen problems. a transportation manager who can work with you to effi- A detailed post-audit program should be available to all ciently direct material to the optimal destination. customers. INSPECTION OF FACILITIES/OPERATIONS CLAIMS REGARDING CERTIFICATION Does the vendor allow for an inspection of its facilities? Some recyclers claim to be EPA certified.
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