TerraCycle has launched collection programs that will feed businesses’ used electronics to Clean Earth for data destruction and recycling. Clean Earth also recently announced its own mail-in option. TerraCycle is a Trenton, N.J.-based company that recycles difficult-to-recycle materials. Its Regulated Waste division, which sprouted from the company’s 2017 acquisition of Chicago-based Air Cycle Corporation, has predominently recycled fluorescent bulbs and batteries, as well as some scrap electronics. This year, the Regulated Waste Division began pushing further into the electronics recycling space with the launch of mail-in and bulk-collection services providing certificates of data destruction and recycling that include the make, model and serial numbers of devices processed. In February, it launched its pallet-based BulkPak service. And around June, TerraCycle began marketing EasyPak, the company’s years-old mail-in service for electronics recycling, as a serialized service. TerraCycle launched a new ITAD website this summer. Joe Day, TerraCycle Regulated Waste’s director of business development, acknowledged the ITAD-related services provided aren’t unique to TerraCycle, “but it is something we thought was timely and relevant, just seeing how many data breaches are making headlines.” Employing an asset-light business model, TerraCycle collects, aggregates and ships recyclable materials – often on behalf of consumer product brand owners – but it doesn’t own or run the processing facilities itself. Instead, the company contracts with processors to recycle material on its behalf. TerraCycle’s main electronics recycling partner is Allentown, Pa.-based AERC Recycling Solutions, which was acquired in 2017 by Clean Earth. In 2019, specialty waste company Harsco Corporation acquired Clean Earth, which has R2-certified electronics processing facilities in Allentown, Pa.; Melbourne, Fla.; Modesto, Calif.; and Richmond, Va. Through the EasyPak program, organizations or individuals buy UPS-shipping-paid boxes and send computer equipment straight to a Clean Earth facility for processing, Day said. Clean Earth provides certificates of data destruction and recycling that list the make, model and serial numbers of each device processed. In an interview, Day, who started working for Air Cycle 20 years ago, noted the years-long and ongoing shift away from mercury-containing fluorescent lamps and toward the use of LED bulbs, which are not a regulated waste. That has put pressure on Air Cycle/TerraCycle to come up with different services to diversify the portfolio, leading the company to expand its core electronics recycling services, he said. Day noted that TerraCycle’s electronics program is still based on material being recycled, rather than refurbished and resold. But TerraCycle does provide a separate collection service that will pick up a large number of devices and will process them with an eye toward refurbishing and resale. In addition, as part of its expanding suite of services, TerraCycle is now supplying data-destruction equipment for customers that produce a large number of used drives. The company is selling the Destroy-It Hard Drive Punch, which punches a steel die through drives, and a line of degaussing products. TerraCycle Regulated Waste brings in roughly one-quarter of TerraCycle’s sales revenue. In 2020, Regulated Waste reported $6.1 million in sales, according to the company’s annual financial filing.

Programs targeted at remote workforces

Separately, Clean Earth on Dec. 7 announced its own mail-in recycling service, called AssetSure. Marketed for businesses, the AssetSure program sends prepaid shipping labels and packaging to customers so they can send their electronics to a Clean Earth facility for data destruction and recycling. Both TerraCycle and Clean Earth tied the mail-in services to the COVID-19-era need to securely recycle electronics used by employees working from home. “With an increase in remote work, there is an elevated risk for e-waste mismanagement,” David Stanton, president of Clean Earth, stated in the press release. “Our customers can feel confident knowing their expired IT assets will be handled in a responsible and compliant manner to protect their data, brand and our environment.” In a release, Kevin Flynn, global vice president of TerraCycle Operations and director of TerraCycle Regulated Waste, noted that IT departments in all industries are in need of dependable data sanitization. “The need to outfit workers with the latest remote-ready tech while reliably managing data on old devices and recycling them appropriately has exploded,” Flynn stated.

Kevin Flynn, global vice president of TerraCycle Operations and director of TerraCycle Regulated Waste, stated:

Since the start of the pandemic and the trend of companies embracing work-from-home schedules, IT departments, no matter the size or the industry require some form of dependable data sanitization. The need to outfit workers with the latest remote-ready tech while reliably managing data on old devices and recycling them appropriately has exploded. In answer, TerraCycle Regulated Waste has created a robust suite of services that allow businesses and consumers alike to streamline their e-waste recycling requirements and ITAD needs with the type of turnkey recycling solutions that TerraCycle is known for.

The products and services are listed below.

• E-Waste Mail Back Recycling: Available for purchase through Amazon, the EasyPak Electronics Recycling Container – Serialized and the EasyPak WFH & Workspace Electronics Recycling Container – Serialized were designed to offer a one-step solution to recycle any e-waste that can be powered-on or is home to a chip or board parts. This includes, but is not limited to, LEDS, computers, monitors, telecom gear, fax machines and televisions. These safe, convenient and data-secure methods for the recycling and disposition of electronics include a detailed report with make/model/serial numbers of the disposed of items that provides proof that they were securely recycled.
• Bulk E-Waste Freight Recycling: The BulkPak E-waste Serialized Recycling Kit offers IT managers a turnkey effective solution for the recycling bulk quantities of e-waste that can be powered-on or is home to a chip or board parts, including CPU’s, monitors and e-scrap.
• ITAD Machine Solutions: For individual purchase and utilized by TCRW to process the e-waste received in through the mail-back and freight solutions, TCRW offers two state-of-the-art systems that ensure that the data on the discarded electronic devices never fall into the wrong hands. They include:
  • Destroy-It Hard Drive Punch: At the touch of a button, the Destroy-It Hard Drive Punch makes discarded hard drives from PCs, laptops, notebooks, printers, copiers, and PDAs unreadable by punching a hardened steel die completely through the drive.
  • Degaussing Machine: To support the growing demand for user-friendly data erasure technology, TCRW now supplies high-speed and economical degaussing solutions.  This new line of degaussing products will provide your organization with the assurance that your media and data-bearing devices no longer contain any confidential information before being sent off site for recycling.

As an added incentive and level of security, TerraCycle Regulated Waste provides customers with a Certificate of Destruction to verify that the waste has been dismantled and all data storage components have been destroyed pursuant to all applicable laws including environmental and waste management regulations. Additionally, the destruction process will also ensure that all data equipment is destroyed and unusable in its original state. To learn about TerraCycle Regulated Waste and their ITAD solutions, visit the company’s new website.

Office supplies and equipment

As the United States turns a corner with the pandemic, workers are being asked to abandon their quarantine bubbles and return to the workplaces they left well over a year ago. However, many are returning to very different office environments as companies trash now unnecessary office equipment in response to either economic-related personnel cuts or employees’ widespread adoption of remote or hybrid schedules, as 44% of total U.S. workers are, according to Statista. Just as TerraCycle® provided innovative recycling solutions for the surplus of otherwise unrecyclable personal protective equipment (PPE) produced during the pandemic, the international recycling leader is back again with convenient solutions to address this new influx of unwanted office supplies. As office workers return to a downsized or modified workplace, TerraCycle’s Zero Waste Boxes provide a convenient recycling solution for nearly every conceivable piece of office waste generally not recyclable through most towns’ conventional recycling facilities. When placed in high-traffic areas like breakrooms or kitchens, Zero Waste Boxes provide “psychic income” to eco-minded employees and deliver an environmentally-friendly alternative to landfilling in the form of recycling — all while discouraging clutter throughout any newly renovated office, says the company. To recycle common forms of unwanted office supplies, TerraCycle offers the following Zero Waste Boxes:

• Office Supplies Zero Waste Box: To recycle tape dispensers, desk organizers, card and document filers, binders, calendars, labels, staplers, hole punchers, dividers, paper cutters, correction supplies, pens/pencils/markers, fasteners, paper clips, staples, binder clips and sticker and label sheet backing. Not a solution for e-waste like electronic staplers and label making machines.
• Office Separation Zero Waste Box: To recycle art supplies, books and magazines, eye wear, cleaning accessories, fabrics and clothing, interior home furnishings, media storage, office supplies, paper packaging, pet products (non-food), plastic packaging, plastic cards and shipping materials.
• Media Storage Zero Waste Box: To recycle any object or device capable of storing data (ie. audio, video) in analog or digital format including records, 8-track tapes, cassette tapes, CDs and DVDs, Blu Ray discs, floppy disks, memory sticks and external hard drives.
• E-Waste Zero Waste Box: To recycle any household or office e-waste including home phones, cell phones, computer cables and accessories, keyboards, VCR/DVD players, hand-held computers, digital music players, pagers, radios, cameras, video recorders, TVs, laptops, desktop computers and monitors, printers and scanners, digital cameras, copiers, typewriters, fax machines, stereos, tuners and turntables and receivers and speakers.

When full, the boxes can be returned to TerraCycle for processing, and the collected waste will be cleaned, melted and remolded to make new products. TerraCycle, a global provider of solutions to collect and repurpose complex waste streams, created the Zero Waste Box program to provide solutions for difficult-to-recycle waste that cannot be recycled through TerraCycle’s brand-sponsored, national recycling programs or via standard municipal recycling. Tom Szaky, CEO and founder of TerraCycle, remarked:

No matter if you’re implementing a hybrid schedule or if you’re planning to return to the office in full force this fall, our workplaces will likely begin to look a lot different compared to how we left them. TerraCycle’s goal is to make this transition as easy and as environmentally friendly as possible by giving your business the power to divert waste from landfills through our turn-key Zero Waste recycling solutions.

TerraCycle works with major manufacturers and retailers to recycle products and packaging that would normally be thrown away. To learn more about TerraCycle and its innovative recycling solutions for electronics, office waste, fluorescent bulbs, medwaste and sharps and more, visit the company’s website or click on the product links above.

Whether a small company handling purchase orders and finances, a giant legal office dealing with sensitive lawsuits for high-profile clients, or a consumer trying to figure out what to do with their old home computer, all of these examples are united by the need for efficient and reliable IT asset disposition (ITAD) and e-waste recycling solutions. In response, TerraCycle Regulated Waste (TCRW), a commercial recycling solution provider that specializes in the collection and repurposing of complex regulated waste streams, has launched a suite of products and services designed carry out the compliant and eco-friendly disposal of unwanted electronics while ensuring proper data destruction.

“Since the start of the pandemic and the trend of companies embracing work-from-home schedules, IT departments, no matter the size or the industry, require some form of dependable data sanitization,” said Kevin Flynn, Global Vice President of TerraCycle Operations, and Director of TerraCycle Regulated Waste. “The need to outfit workers with the latest remote-ready tech while reliably managing data on old devices and recycling them appropriately has exploded. In answer, TerraCycle Regulated Waste has created a robust suite of services that allow businesses and consumers alike to streamline their e-waste recycling requirements and ITAD needs with the type of turnkey recycling solutions that TerraCycle is known for.” E-Waste Mail Back Recycling The EasyPak Electronics Recycling Container – Serialized and the EasyPak WFH & Workspace Electronics Recycling Container – Serialized, were designed to offer a one-step solution to recycle any e-waste that can be powered-on or is home to a chip or board parts. This includes, but is not limited to, LEDS, computers, monitors, telecom gear, fax machines, and televisions. These safe, convenient and data-secure methods for the recycling and disposition of electronics, include a detailed report with make/model/serial numbers of the disposed of items that provides proof that they were securely recycled. Bulk E-Waste Freight Recycling The BulkPak E-waste Serialized Recycling Kit offers IT managers a turnkey effective solution for the recycling bulk quantities of e-waste that can be powered-on or is home to a chip or board parts, including CPU’s, monitors, and e-scrap. ITAD Machine Solutions For individual purchase, and utilized by TCRW to process the e-waste received in through the mail-back and freight solutions, TCRW offers two state-of-the-art systems that ensure that the data on the discarded electronic devices never fall into the wrong hands. They include:

• Destroy-It Hard Drive Punch: At the touch of a button, the Destroy-It Hard Drive Punch makes discarded hard drives from PCs, laptops, notebooks, printers, copiers, and PDAs unreadable by punching a hardened steel die completely through the drive.

• Degaussing Machine: To support the growing demand for user-friendly data erasure technology, TCRW is now a proud supplier of high speed and economical degaussing solutions. This new line of degaussing products will provide your organization with the assurance that your media and data-bearing devices no longer contain any confidential information before being sent off site for recycling.

As an added incentive and level of security, TerraCycle Regulated Waste provides customers with a Certificate of Destruction to verify that the waste has been dismantled and all data storage components have been destroyed pursuant to all applicable laws, including environmental and waste management regulations. Additionally, the destruction process will also ensure that all data equipment is destroyed and unusable in its original state.

The products and services to assure clients their data is destroyed safely.

TerraCycle Regulated Waste (TCRW), a commercial recycling solution provider owned by TerraCycle, Trenton, New Jersey, has launched a suite of products and information technology asset disposition (ITAD) services. The offerings are designed to carry out the compliant and eco-friendly disposal of unwanted electronics while ensuring proper data destruction. “Since the start of the pandemic and the trend of companies embracing work-from-home schedules, IT departments, no matter the size or the industry, require some form of dependable data sanitization,” says Kevin Flynn, global vice president of TerraCycle Operations. “TerraCycle Regulated Waste has created a robust suite of services that allow businesses and consumers alike to streamline their e-waste recycling requirements and ITAD needs with the type of turnkey recycling solutions that TerraCycle is known for.” TCRW offers:

• e-waste mail-back recycling – The EasyPak Electronics Recycling Container and EasyPak WFH & Workspace Electronics Recycling Container were designed to offer a one-stop solution to recycle any e-scrap that can be powered on or is home to a chip or board parts. This includes LEDs, computers, monitors, telecom gear, fax machines and televisions. These data-secure methods for the recycling and disposition of electronics include a detailed report with make, model and serial numbers of the disposed items that prove that they are securely recycled.
• bulk e-easte freight recycling – The BulkPak E-waste Serialized Recycling Kit offers managers a turnkey solution for the recycling bulk quantities of electronics that can be powered on or is home to a chip or board parts. This includes CPUs, monitors and e-scrap.
• ITAD machine solutions – For individual purchase and used by TCRW to process e-scrap received through its mail-back and freight solutions, TCRW offers two systems that ensure the data on the discarded electronic devices never fall into the wrong hands. This includes the Destroy-It Hard Drive Punch, which makes discarded hard drives unreadable by punching hardened steel die completely through the drive, the company says.

To support the growing demand for user-friendly data erasure technology, TCRW says it supplies high-speed and economical degaussing solutions. This line of products provides organizations with the assurance that media and data-bearing devices no longer contain confidential information before being sent offsite for recycling. TerraCycle Regulated Waste also provides customers with a Certificate of Destruction to verify that the devices have been dismantled and all data storage components have been destroyed according to all applicable laws.

By Recycling Product News Staff  November 22, 2021

TerraCycle's EasyPak Electronics Recycling Container was designed to offer a recycling solution for any e-waste that can be powered-on or is home to a chip or board parts.