With an estimated 20 million PCs becoming obsolete each year, small companies need to quickly adopt recycling programs that will help prevent America from becoming a computer junkyard, urged the Information Technology Solution Providers Alliance (ITSPA).
"How small to medium businesses (SMBs) dispose of old PCs, servers and other technology equipment -- which makes up most of the nearly two million tons of high-tech trash collected each year -- is critical not only to the environment but to their bottom lines," said Andrew Levi, chairman of ITSPA, a national, non-profit alliance that helps SMBs understand how local technology providers can help them grow.
"ITSPA strongly recommends that SMB companies make a concerted effort to resell or recycle old computer equipment," Levi said. "It doesn't make sense to spend a lot of money maintaining PCs and other equipment to keep them up to date. Any high-tech equipment that is not working or below the Pentium or Mac Power PC level should be earmarked for recycling."
The environmental responsibility for properly disposing of old high-tech equipment rests squarely on the shoulders of each SMB in America, pointed out ITSPA Advisory Board member Glen Jodoin, vice president-Operations, GreenPages, an IT solution provider in Kittery, Maine.
"Small companies need to ask themselves whether they're spending a lot of money maintaining PCs to keep them up to date, as well as assess the total life-cycle cost of PCs and other high-tech equipment," said Jodoin. "Such assessments ultimately can save SMBs a lot money and headaches."
"It's also critical for SMBs to know what happens to old or obsolete IT equipment," Jodoin added. "For instance, does it end up under desks, in closets or in a warehouse? If it does, then it's taking up valuable real estate or possibly costing money in storage fees."
ITSPA's Technology Committee, which is made up of IT directors from the nation's most successful solution providers, offered tips on setting up small business PC recycling programs:
- Determine whether old PCs should be re-used or recycled. Generally, PCs more than five years old should be disposed of properly. Research indicates it's more costly to maintain and upgrade older PCs than to buy new ones. Though appealing to employees, PC purchase programs often are expensive because they involve removing and reinstalling software, as well as administrative headaches.
- Make sure PC disposal plans meet local and state regulations. Batteries in laptops and PCs usually contain heavy metals that require special disposal. Environmental regulations concerning PC recycling and disposal could expose SMBs to liabilities. For instance, EPA permits aren't required for IT equipment recycling vendors. For this reason, SMBs should research recycling vendors to determine their credentials and compliance with recycling laws and regulations.
- Check recyclers' Web sites (or call them) before dropping off or disposing PCs. Major PC vendors, such as HP, IBM and Gateway, offer fixed-price recycling programs and even provide discounts on new hardware purchases. Systems based on Pentium-class CPUs are evaluated for donation to non-profit charities. Older systems are disassembled and shredded.
- Destroy data (but not your programs) on all hard drives prior to disposal. This critical measure prevents valuable data from falling into the wrong hands, which could cause exposure to ID theft. Free software is available to overwrite all hard drive data and is offered by companies such as Wizard Industries, LSoft Technologies and DiskZapper.
- Donate PCs to charities. Non-profit charities and for-profit companies that offer PC recycling programs in your area can be located on your computer search engine by typing "computer recycling." While tax benefits usually justify the donation, other benefits include community goodwill and exposure, as well as less work because most charities pick up the equipment. Be sure to retain transfer-of-ownership paperwork that proves your company donated the equipment. If your PC is found in a compromising place -- such as a river or dump -- and your serial number is identified, your company could be fined.
"Small to medium businesses realize it's time to recycle when they discover that extending the life cycle of their desktop PCs isn't saving them as much money as anticipated," said ITSPA Advisory Board member Michael Haines, principal analyst, Business Strategies Group, Gartner, Inc. "The average annual total cost of ownership for a PC kept three years is roughly the same as a PC kept for four to six years.
"Gartner recommends no more than a four-year desktop life cycle for mainstream knowledge workers," he said, "and a desktop life cycle of three years or less for high-performance users. If SMBs find real business benefits from having a faster or newer PC, they should quantify those benefits and build a business case to reduce the life cycle toward three years."