Industry Announcements

May 2021

Processor C2 Management joined The Electronics Reuse & Recycling Alliance (TERRA).

The Global Electronics Council released the results of compliance audits for its Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT) registry, covering computers and displays, imaging equipment, servers and TVs. The organization also issued a call for experts to serve on ad hoc groups exploring recycling, reuse and other issues related to wearable devices.

e-Stewards will host a webinar discussing two efforts to limit e-scrap exports: the Secure e-Waste Export and Recycling Act, and a push for the U.S. government to ratify the Basel Convention.

Norway-headquartered equipment supplier Tomra announced the company has selected Tove Anderson as its next CEO, replacing Stefan Ranstrand.

Universal Recycling Technologies (URT) announced that Jeff Gloyd, the company’s vice president of sales and marketing, is leaving the company to pursue other opportunities. 

Equipment supplier Eriez shared details on the company’s recently expanded Erie, Pa. facility.

Precious metals refiner Gannon & Scott launched a new website.

Reverse logistics company Global Resale was recognized with the Queen’s Award for Enterprise in the International Trade category, for the company’s U.K. location.

Battery recycling firm Li-Cycle launched a podcast that will focus on news, trends and innovations in clean technology.

Repair.org is calling on the Federal Trade Commission to take enforcement action on companies that have warranty policies violating federal law, which typically allows repairs to be made with third-party parts without voiding a product’s warranty.

April 2021

Assurant, which owns device trade-in program firm Hyla Mobile, announced it has repurposed 100 million mobile devices.

The i-SIGMA Board of Directors issued final approval of the data destruction organization’s new Remote Secure Collection Receptacle (RSCR) Endorsement for NAID AAA Certification.

Manufacturer Logitech began labeling certain gaming controllers with details about their carbon impact.

Pelican Products, a manufacturer of portable lighting systems and other outdoor gear, donated 11,000 pounds of used electronics that will be refurbished and distributed to underserved communities.

Staples Canada announced that it recycled more than 4.4 million pounds of e-scrap with vendor eCycle Solutions, and it diverted nearly 300,000 pounds of used household batteries through its partnership with Call2Recycle.

Wisconsin Senate Bill 248, which would make several changes to the state’s e-scrap program including creating a grant program to improve collection, is advancing in the state Senate.

ITAD firm Echo Environmental was recognized with Verizon’s 2021 Supplier Sustainability Award.

E-scrap processor Environmental Integrity rebranded as ZEEP Technology.

ERI co-founder Aaron Blum joined the Coalition for American Electronics Recycling Executive Committee.

The Global Electronics Council (GEC) launched a network equipment product category for its Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT) program. 

Hewlett Packard Enterprise received the TCO sustainability certification for its data center products. 

LG Electronics earned the highest rating in the 2020 Marriott Supplier Sustainability Assessment Program. LG supplies the hospitality chain with TVs and digital signs.

Sustainable Electronics Recycling International (SERI) announced 14 new members of its R2 Technical Advisory Committee.

Used device marketplace Back Market reported polling that shows increasing consumer interest in buying refurbished devices. Back Market will also open a temporary shop that will donate 5% of proceeds from all purchases to Closing the Loop Foundation.

The Northeast Recycling Council (NERC) announced the 15 winners of its annual State Electronics Challenge, which recognizes public entities that reduce environmental impacts in their purchasing, use and end-of-life management of devices.

The Canadian province of Prince Edward Island will add a range of small appliances to the list of covered materials in its electronics extended producer responsibility program.

The WEEE Forum, which represents e-scrap producer responsibility organizations around the world, added new members from Colombia, Lithuania, South Africa and Spain.

Seattle-based processor 3R Technology began offering an emergency savings program as a benefit for its workforce.

The Global Electronics Council (GEC) invited electronics recycling stakeholders to participate in developing criteria for an EPEAT category covering fitness trackers, smartwatches, wearable medical devices and more.

Lawmakers in Virginia passed – and the governor signed – a data privacy bill that includes breach notification requirements. Data destruction industry group i-SIGMA projected that more states will enact similar legislation.

The U.S. EPA recognized Dell, LG, Samsung, Sony, Staples, TCL North America, T-Mobile, VIZIO and Xerox for their “exemplary electronics collection and recycling programs,” which together reused or recycled 176,494 tons of electronics in 2020.

March 2021

Nigerian solar energy company Lumos announced a partnership with e-scrap firm Hinckley Recycling to recycle lithium-ion batteries used in Lumos products.

Phobio, a startup that developed device trade-in software, was featured in an article by Atlanta Inno.

Global ITAD provider TES opened a lithium-ion battery recycling plant in Singapore, where the company is headquartered.

New York Department of Sanitation (DSNY) Commissioner Edward Grayson was interviewed on the Impact Podcast that’s hosted by John Shegerian, executive chairman of electronics recycling company ERI.

Sims Lifecycle Services, which processes electronics from Microsoft data centers around the world, announced it will donate devices to Microsoft Datacenter Academy, a workforce development program.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR), which oversees the state’s extended producer responsibility program, opened the comment period for the economic impact analysis of draft e-scrap program administrative rules. 

International waste management company ALBA Group was selected to develop an e-scrap collection system in Singapore, which recently implemented an extended producer responsibility program. The system will use an app developed by software firm Octopus.

Information security association i-SIGMA elected Bowman Richards as president-elect of the organization. Richards previously served as chairman of i-SIGMA’s complaint resolution council.

Midwest Recycling Center (MRC) has joined The Electronics Reuse & Recycling Alliance (TERRA) and its Done with IT mail-in recycling program.

Second Life Mac, which buys and refurbishes Apple devices, and Coachella Valley Unified School District expect to collect nearly 25,000 devices during a trade-in event this week.

Portland, Ore. phone processor Big Sky Recycling announced it has achieved Certified B Corporation status, recognizing the company’s environmental impact commitments and more.

Startup company Framework Computer announced the Framework Laptop, an upgradable and repairable laptop slated for release this summer.

Info Liquidation Recycle, a Quebec-based electronics recycling company, will relocate to a 6,000-square-foot warehouse, twice the size of its previous facility.

Equipment supplier Redwave wrote about how the company adapted its X-ray fluorescence (XRF) sensor technology for the non-ferrous sorting industry.

Sustainable Electronics Recycling International (SERI) announced that Rick Goss is the new SERI Board of Directors chair and Venky Murthy is the vice chair for 2021. SERI also launched a revamped website with a variety of features, including an R2 directory with new search tools.

Team Portables, a lithium-ion battery recycling collaboration between Call2Recycle, Everledger, Fairphone and HP, received $357,000 through the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Prize.

February 2021

Advanced Technology Recycling (ATR) purchased two additional Mack semi-trucks.

Greenlyfocus, which provides the Green Tracking Service that uses GPS units to track e-scrap, wrote about what processing facilities should do if they encounter a tracking device.

Industrial Magnetics acquired a majority of the assets of Walker Magnetics Group, a longtime North American industrial magnet manufacturer.

Eriez completed an expansion of its equipment production plant in Erie, Pa.

Microsoft released its first environmental sustainability report, providing updates on goals the company set in early 2020.

PICS Telecom, a reseller of used telecom and data equipment, received Verizon’s global supplier sustainability award for 2020. 

Sims Limited, parent company of ITAD firm Sims Lifecycle Services, purchased an aluminum processing operation.

Harsco Corporation announced its Clean Earth division completed the ConstructSecure Independent Safety Assessment Program and received a Gold Safety Award for the Waste Collection trade.

National Battery Day will take place on Feb. 18, highlighting batteries and their proper end-of-life management.

The TCO Certified Edge, E-waste Compensated Program received the Supplier Leadership Award for 2020 from the Sustainable Purchasing Leadership Council. The program funds e-scrap recycling in developing countries.

Tomra released a case study featuring the Autosort Fines, an optical sorter used by e-scrap processor Premier Surplus to sort circuit boards.

Data erasure products company Blancco announced that Fredrik Forslund, its vice president of Cloud and Data Center Erasure, is the new director of the International Data Sanitization Consortium (IDSC).  

ERI appointed cybersecurity expert Kate Fazzini to its board of directors.

Data security industry association i-SIGMA released results of an industry survey related to COVID-19 impacts, nearly one year after pandemic-driven shutdowns began. 

TerraCycle Regulated Waste launched a BulkPak Recycling Program, which collects e-scrap, batteries, lamps and other materials on pallets. 

January 2021

Processor Environmental Office Solutions joined both The Repair Association and the mail-in Done with IT collection program managed by The Electronics Reuse & Recycling Alliance (TERRA).

ITAD firm MRK Group of Elgin, Ill. is celebrating its 30th anniversary.

Sunnking raised $11,761 for a local nonprofit organization helping children and families living with cancer.

Repair franchise uBreakiFix reported on its business activities over the past year, including its expansion with 22 new locations in the fourth quarter of 2020.

The European Commision published an article about commission-funded research into metals recovery techniques targeting e-scrap and other streams.

The Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI) is accepting nominations for its 2021 Design for Recycling Award.

ITAD firm Wisetek appointed David Box as the company’s vice president of product sales.

Asset Science, a diagnostics software platform provider for the secondary phone and tablet markets, appointed Atallah Mourad to the newly created role of general manager. 

Salomé Stähli, certification director for e-Stewards, left the organization at the end of 2020. Prema George, a lawyer with experience representing large IT firms, joined the organization as certification director this month.  

Lithium-ion battery processor Li-Cycle completed a battery recycling pilot project with bus manufacturer New Flyer.

Dawsonville, Ga.-based Premier Surplus published an article about the processor’s growth and the benefits that came from the installation of a shredding and separation system. 

Battery recycling startup Redwood Materials has started accepting scrap electronics and batteries. 

U.K. company Restore Technology acquired Computer Disposals Limited (CDL), an IT recycling and data sanitization company also based in the U.K. 

In conjunction with the Consumer Electronics Show, Samsung launched an update of its SmartThings program for recycling used Galaxy devices. 

Phone and technology buyback site SellCell released a report covering trade-in data over a recent two-year span. 

Universal Recycling Technologies (URT) founder Jim Cornwell retired from his position as president, and the e-scrap processor named Ken Thomas, who was vice president of finance, as the new president. 

The U.S. Public Interest Research Group (U.S. PIRG) released a study about much money households can save by repairing instead of replacing old electronics. 

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources published a podcast exploring the first 10 years of the state’s electronics recycling program.

December 2020

ERI named Brendan Egan to its board of directors. Egan has worked with ERI since 2013, overseeing marketing and other digital efforts.

IBM announced a collaborative effort to launch the Sustainability Teacher Resources Channel on the Open P-TECH digital learning platform. One course will discuss e-waste management.

Large retailers in the U.K. will be required to provide in-store collection of e-scrap and electrical appliances beginning in January.

Schupan & Sons announced that Johnson Go has joined the company as vice president of supply chain in Schupan’s Materials Trading division.

Sustainable Electronics Recycling International (SERI) hired Ken Boyden as director of development and SERI programs, a new position in the organization. SERI also announced Roger Grieve joined the organization as “R2 Guru,” focusing on awareness, education and implementation of practical aspects of the R2 program. 

Cleanlites Recycling experienced a large warehouse fire at its Mason, Mich. recycling facility. A facility on the site was also damaged in a September 2020 fire.

ERI named company co-founder Kevin Dillon to its board of directors.

The Green Electronics Council (GEC) announced it will change its name to the Global Electronics Council in February 2021. The organization also published a report discussing the sustainability of wearable devices, as GEC prepares to create certification criteria for these electronics.

Repair advocacy groups are asking the Librarian of Congress for an allowance to unlock gaming consoles for repair and not have it be a copyright violation. The federal government puts out a call for such exemption requests every three years.

Apple began offering free replacement of faulty iPhone 11 displays within a two-year window, after noting that “a small percentage” of the devices suffer from malfunctioning screens.

The European Parliament approved right-to-repair rules proposed earlier this year by the European Commission, which has taken a strong interest in repair legislation.

Harsco Corporation, which recently bought e-scrap firm Clean Earth, was named to Newsweek’s 2021 list of America’s Most Responsible Companies.

Information security association i-SIGMA published a 2020 “year in review” article.

TCO Development announced a significant increase in the number of notebooks in its certification program, which assesses sustainability metrics in IT equipment.

The Bureau of International Recycling (BIR) appointed Helmut Kolba of e-scrap processor Remondis Electrorecycling as chairman of BIR’s E-Scrap Committee.

Call2Recycle announced Leo Raudys will be the organization’s next CEO and president, effective Jan. 1.

Gannon & Scott was recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Labor as one of 675 recipients of the 2020 HIRE Vets Medallion Award.

Ingram Micro opened an ITAD facility in Mexico City, the 21st processing center in the company’s global network.

Secondary device logistics firm PCS Wireless launched TessaB, a technology company building a blockchain-based marketplace for used phones.

Sage Sustainable Electronics announced it has redirected more than $1 million in certified refurbished electronics to nonprofits and other groups through its GoodTogether program.

Freight forwarder Sealink International added new features for metals recycling companies to its online platform.

The U.S. Public Interest Research Group (U.S. PIRG) released “Fixed for the Holidays,” a guide to buying refurbished electronics as gifts.