Many of the awarded companies are exploring new ways of recovering rare earth magnets from end-of-life electronics. | stuphipps/Shutterstock
The Department of Energy’s aptly named E-SCRAP prize program has awarded funds to companies engaged in hard drive disassembly, rare earth magnet recovery, hydrometallurgy and e-plastics recycling. More companies are invited to apply this year. Continue Reading
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang delivered a keynote address to a packed crowd on the opening night of CES 2025, held this week in Las Vegas. | Photo courtesy of the Consumer Technology Association
Artificial intelligence and electric vehicles were major themes during the annual CES trade show this week, and panel discussions touched on the infrastructure – including hardware in data centers and battery recycling technology – that will be key to those segments’ growth. Continue Reading
The investment from equity firm Recognize comes after a decade of growth for Sprout. | DimiSotirov/Shutterstock
IT asset disposition company Sprout has received a majority investment from a New York City-based private equity firm, which predicts rising demand for ITAD services in the years to come. Continue Reading
A crucial early step after deciding to incorporate a shredder is to determine what materials a company wants to shred. | Big Wave Productions/Resource Recycling
Evolving technology in electronics shredding can help make value recovery more efficient and profitable, but there are several considerations companies must factor in before investing in new equipment, panelists said at the recent E-Scrap Conference. Continue Reading
Updates to the Basel Convention, an international treaty regulating the trade of various types of end-of-life materials, will come into effect Jan. 1. | Don Bendickson/Shutterstock
With just weeks to go before new e-scrap trading regulations take effect worldwide, companies are feeling cautiously optimistic that trade disruption will be softer than it could have been. Continue Reading
The U.S. expanded export restrictions to China of chip-making equipment and sanctioned 140 companies, the latest moves in a back-and-forth series of export restrictions. | MOLPIX/Shutterstock
As technology trade tensions between China and the U.S. escalate, bans on trading minerals used in producing LED screens, semiconductors, chips and batteries are again putting the recycling sector in the spotlight. Continue Reading
Data center decommissioning, ESG adherence and regulatory compliance are among the trends driving one analyst’s positive outlook for 2025. | Gorodenkoff/Shutterstock
The U.S. IT asset disposition and electronics recycling industries struggled to sustain growth in 2023 because of a dormant market, dominated by lack of demand for used equipment and parts, and hesitation from companies that have refrained from relinquishing their aging assets. Asset procurement on the upstream side and trading in the downstream sector were weak, and as a result, prices fell substantially. Continue Reading
A new paper in Nature Computational Science examines potential scenarios for AI-related e-scrap generation, which is driven by its data center needs. | Funtap/Shutterstock
As artificial intelligence continues to ramp up, researchers said the computing-heavy tool could lead to skyrocketing volumes of end-of-life electronics and called for equal attention to asset management. Continue Reading
New rules covering e-retailers such as Amazon that import into the U.K. will introduce a category specifically for vapes, among other changes. | B..Robinson/Shutterstock
New U.K. rules will require online retailers importing electronics into the country to contribute to costs associated with recycling e-scrap there, and introduce a new category specifically for vapes. Continue Reading
Electronics were stockpiled inside a dilapidated Wisconsin warehouse for 10 years but are finally being removed. | All photos courtesy City of West Bend
Sandwiched between a quiet residential neighborhood and a tree-lined multi-use trail, a 10-year-old cathode ray tube and assorted e-scrap stockpile in West Bend, Wisconsin, is finally being removed and disposed of at an estimated cost of $3.2 million. Continue Reading