After upgrading your company computers or perhaps buying an iPad, what do you do with the old electronic equipment? It doesn't seem right to dispose of them with the regular garbage, but what are your options? You may be one of the many business managers today who does not know what to do with your electronics after you have stopped using them.  Whether it is your old computer, monitor, telephone or fax machine, recycling is the way to go. In today's culture of rapid electronic growth, there is no doubt you will continue to hear advice on managing obsolete or nonfunctional electronics, also known as e-waste.

You may want to find ways to reuse or refurbish your e-waste, but for now, consider these three ways to recycle your corporate electronic waste:

1. Start an IT asset lifestyle program

-“The best way to lower your IT disposal costs is through a well managed IT asset lifecycle program,” says Neil Peters-Michaud, CEO, Cascade Asset Management LLC, a national leader in responsible IT asset retirement solutions for businesses and institutions. “Asset management firms can work with you to resell working and valuable equipment to offset any of the processing and recycling costs for damaged and obsolete items.” If you do not have an asset program already set up, don't panic! It is never too late to start one.

2. Establish your own e-waste disposal plan

-After you begin an IT asset lifestyle program, it is a good time to start your e-waste disposal plan. Peters-Michaud reveals many state laws offer “financial programs to households to reduce their direct cost for properly recycling e-waste. Unfortunately, most of these laws still require businesses to establish and pay for their own e-waste disposal programs.”

-Although this may not seem like good news for your business, continue your plan. If your business is on a three to four year refresh cycle for its IT equipment, it may not cost you anything for proper recycling. Yes, that's right, free.

-To find your recycling go-tos, Peters-Michaud reveals, “Gartner will soon be publishing a list of about a dozen recommended IT asset disposition firms in its initial Magic Quadrant industry review.” Gartner, Inc. is the world's leading information technology research and advisory company.

- To find out more ideas for your e-waste disposal plan, you can always ask your IT equipment supplier, who should have solutions or even offer a take-back program.

3. Make sure your data and corporate information are protected

- First, Peters-Michaud says to “implement a data security program that includes disposal procedures.”  There are several data overwrite programs that will wipe away data from hard drives. WhiteCanyon Inc. software offers WipeDrive, a software tool that can overwrite drives to all the current industry standards. 

- Next, Peters-Michaud says you can “outsource security destruction services.” Many businesses are unaware of the many e-waste companies, like Cascade, who provide services like:

            - Onsite data wiping

            - Hard drive and tape media crushing or shredding

            - Locked media collection bins

- Bonded employees

- Locking trucks

- Direct shipment to secure processing facilities where data and corporate identification marks are rendered irretrievable

- Be careful the provider you choose has been certified to the latest industry standard, as many e-waste providers do not use legal procedures to dispose of their waste. Massive amounts of e-waste each year end up in landfills or China, poisoning the environment, defeating the purpose of recycling e-waste. “Every day Americans throw out more than 350,000 cell phones and 130,000 computers, making electronic waste the fastest-growing part of the U.S. garbage stream. Improperly disposed of, the lead, mercury and other toxic materials inside e-waste can leak from landfills,” says Bryan Walsh from Time.

-Peters-Michaud says, “Many companies will be independently audited to ISO 14001 (Environmental Management) and ISO 9000 (Quality Management).  Recently the industry also approved accredited standards including e-Stewards Certification and R2 (Responsible Recycling).  Companies that have attained these certifications demonstrate a commitment to business management systems that have been reviewed by an independent auditor.” Take time to research your local providers to find out which one works best for your corporate philosophy.

About Cascade Management LLC

Neil Peters-Michaud is the CEO of Cascade Management LLC, a full-service IT asset retirement company. Cascade provides solutions that begin with the ability to remove your equipment from a “desktop or a dock” and provide on-site asset tracking and data security services to properly build a secure chain of custody of your sensitive equipment from your site to its final disposition at one of the company's  processing centers. For more information, please visit http://cascade-assets.com.