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Disassembly |
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GRX invests in the labor-intensive process of de-manufacturing to divert greater than 95% of materials from landfills and incinerators. De-manufacturing involves taking apart and separating all electronic devices into four distinct material streams: precious metals, other metals, plastics, and glass. |
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Data Security and Shredding
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The disposal and recycling of computer systems not only requires proper environmental considerations, but proper management of the data that still resides on obsolete systems. Some organizations aren’t aware that when they retire old systems that contain sensitive data, simply deleting the data or reformatting the hard drive does not permanently remove that data. Legislation such as HIPAA and the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act requires that certain organizations take effective measures to safeguard personal non-public information. GRX securely stores hard drives or data containing devices until they are fed into our shredder. This is the only method that guarantees complete data destruction. GRX can provide Certificates of Data Destruction and clients may monitor actual physical destruction process if needed. |
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Downstream Processing
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GRX guarantees it does not export hazardous waste material; it does not landfill or incinerate hazardous waste material. It researches, inspects, and partners with organizations that ensure materials are routed back into the manufacturing stream and are responsible environmental stewards. Glass CRT glass is the number one problem facing the electronics recycling industry. CRT glass has high concentrations of lead, which is impregnated in the glass, making separation of the lead from the glass a very difficult proposition. There are two methods generally considered acceptable for the recycling of CRT glass: glass-to-glass and glass-to-lead. Glass-to-lead recycling results in some lead being reclaimed, but also produces a slag made up of leftover leaded glass and other contaminants. The positive environmental effect of this is questionable. Glass-to-glass recycling involves the separation and cleaning of the glass in preparation for reintroduction to the CRT manufacturing process. While the number of new CRT's being produced worldwide continues to decrease, the percentage of recycled glass that can be used in the manufacturing process continues to increase, so at this point there is still more demand for the recycled glass than there is supply. Currently, GRX sees glass-to-glass recycling as the best alternative. Because of the potential worker-safety and environmental dangers inherent in processing leaded glass, it is very important that the glass processor meets the highest environmental, health and safety standards. GRX has selected CRT Processing of Janesville, Wisconsin to process all of our CRT glass. We have conducted thorough audits, including site visits, and have found their operation to be exceptionally well run, with processes designed to reduce and/or eliminate environmental, health and safety concerns. All glass is processed at their Janesville facility, and the resulting product is furnace-ready cullet. This product is then shipped to Asahi Glass, Samsung, or L.G. Phillips. These three companies represent the highest standards in the CRT manufacturing industry. Plastics Although plastic is not considered hazardous by the US EPA or by the Basel Convention, GRX still insists on verification of the downstream process, insuring that the material is handled in a method that is environmentally safe. We currently work with Baycrest International of San Jose, California. Baycrest is an international company dedicated to the proper recycling of plastics from electronic waste. Non-Precious Metals Most non-precious metals (aluminum, steel, copper, tin, brass etc.) are delivered to one of several facilities: Western Metals Recycling LLC, Utah Metals, Iron and Metals, Inc., and Atlas Metals. Western Metals Recycling LLC is the largest metal recycler in the western US and a subsidiary of the David Joseph Company of Cincinnati. After shredding the metal, WMR uses eddy current technology to separate ferrous from non-ferrous metal and the non-ferrous into different metal types. Ferrous metal is sent to Rocky Mt. Steel in Pueblo, CO, for use in their steel-making operation. Non-ferrous is sent to a variety of US-based metal producers. Precious Metals Precious metal recovery from circuit boards is performed by Umicore, one of the world's largest metals and materials corporations at its smelting operation in Hoboken, Belgium. GRX’s research shows that Umicore has a significantly better energy-efficiency and environmental track record than North American metal smelters and this is a key factor in GRX’s selection of this downstream partner. Recovered precious metals are sold to manufacturers in the EU and elsewhere. |
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