The e-waste problem in B2B (and beyond) and how we’re helping businesses tackle it

It’s no secret that Waste from Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) is a big problem in the tech industry. Global generation of e-waste is projected to exceed 74 million metric tonnes by 2025, making it the fastest growing waste stream in the world. Globally only 17.4% of this is recycled, reported and collected through official channels, leaving almost £45 billion worth of materials to go to waste - that’s more than the UK’s total annual expenditure for social services.  

The situation is particularly severe here in the UK, where we produced the second most e-waste in the world last year, at a rate of 133,141 tonnes a month. That’s the equivalent of over four Spinnaker Towers worth of e-waste every month. Often, this rubbish is illegally exported, fly-tipped, or funnelled into elicit waste sites. It’s for this reason we missed our WEEE collection target for the sixth year in a row in 2022, and we’re on track to become the biggest global source of e-waste by 2024.  

This issue has dire consequences for the environment. Not only do the hazardous materials used in electronics lead to pollution when they are disposed without special treatment, but valuable resources are also lost. These include materials such as gold, steel, and copper, as well as other critical raw materials which can only be obtained from a limited number of suppliers globally.   

The impact of B2B 

For many growing businesses, staff turnover can have a large impact on the production of e-waste. With new starters comes the need for new equipment, and coupled with employee departures and traditional procurement strategies, this can lead to unnecessary waste.  

This occurs on a much larger scale within B2B than it does in B2C, where products are purchased more frequently and are likely to have a shorter lifecycle. E-waste collections are also likely to be more expensive, inconvenient and complex for businesses, leading many to lose sight of their obligation to return and refresh their tech. For example, the average hardware refresh takes place every five years, but it’s not uncommon to see many businesses upgrading to the latest tech every year, without considering whether this is a sustainable or worthwhile investment. This is particularly true in certain industries, such as in video games, media and entertainment, where it is necessary to have all the latest equipment so that production is as fast and efficient as possible. 

However, environmental targets are leading many businesses to seek eco-friendly solutions to this issue. If you’re looking to produce less e-waste, the biggest change you can make is to alter your purchasing practices. 

Traditionally, businesses contribute to the linear economy, in which products are created and disposed of unsustainably. The circular economy aims to combat this via recycling and re-using existing assets to prevent waste. Refurbishing the tech you already have rather than purchasing new during a hardware refresh is a means of contributing to this economy. 

What can businesses do to help? 

There are many actions businesses can take to combat this issue, many of which can be aided with help from an external IT partner who can procure, repair and refurbish your tech. Something we here at Novatech have been providing through our Managed IT Services for more than 35 years.

Aiming to procure sustainable assets in the first instance will equally save you time later down the line. This involves choosing to buy durable hardware with replaceable parts, to maximise lifespan. Both planned and unplanned maintenance will become easier if you already own sustainable hardware. 

Not only is reusing hardware beneficial to the planet, but also to your business - opting for refurbished tech is economically as well as environmentally friendly. Refreshing a piece of hardware you already have costs significantly less than purchasing new, expensive kit every time the need arises. 

If you have tech you aren’t using, consider whether you can redeploy it to another area of your business to avoid unnecessary purchases in the future, or donate it to a local charity. Reuse is a great step towards minimising e-waste, which is why we assess and refresh hardware to be redeployed as part of our Managed IT Services.  

You can sell your unneeded hardware back to some suppliers too; not only do you benefit from this, but so do other companies engaging with the circular economy. Procuring refurbished tech at a reduced price before selling this on to your customers helps all involved to save money and reduce our impact on the environment. 

Finally, if a product is truly at the end of its lifespan, ensuring you dispose of it responsibly will prevent contributing to the growing e-waste problem. Up to 75% of materials in a retired piece of tech can be recovered, so choose a sustainable organisation who will recycle as much of this as possible. Reliable partners will ensure your devices are wiped securely and recycled ethically, with full audit reporting for transparency.  

Digitally-enabled solutions to WEEE collection have been suggested to ease the burden on businesses seeking to return, refresh and reuse hardware. For growing businesses, access to a custom API portal has the potential to make procurement and returns processes more streamlined, as we found when working alongside the UK’s largest digital bank, Monzo.  

Promoting circular practices is just one way businesses can strive for sustainability. Many other changes can be made to help the planet, from adopting renewable energy to investing in employee training. If you’re looking for inspiration, you can learn more about our ongoing sustainability efforts here.