Computer demanufacturing is the process of completely disassembling a computer and then recycling or disposing of the various parts and pieces. While anyone can disassemble a computer on their own, professional computer demanufacturing companies specialize in the breakdown process and have systems in place for recycling and disposing of any potentially hazardous material effectively. Many of these companies can also securely destroy any of the personal information remaining on a hard drive before recycling or reusing them. This can accomplished in one of three ways: overwriting the data, degaussing (reducing the magnetic field of a drive) or physical destruction of the device.
What Computer Parts are Recyclable?
Many computer demanufacturing services recycle more than just the metal pieces that are found within a computer. In addition to the commonly recycled parts, such as motherboards, circuit boards and cables, many parts of a computer are made out of recyclable plastic and glass. These recycled parts can then be used to manufacture new items in the future.
What Computer Parts are Hazardous Materials?
Batteries, mercury switches and fluorescent lamps are just a few of the hazardous parts found inside a computer. These hazardous materials must be disposed of properly to prevent harmful toxins from polluting the environment. Often times there are federal, state or local regulations in place that govern how hazardous materials are labeled, transported and disposed. Violating these regulations could result in legal action.
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Who Pays for Computer Demanufacturing?
A computer demanufacturing service will either collect a fee or pay the customer depending on the size and quantity of computers being demanufactured. Taking one computer to a demanufacturing center may cost the center more in labor and disposal fees than the company will earn by recycling the metal, plastic or glass parts. In this case, it would not be uncommon for the demanufacturing center to charge a fee to properly recycle and dispose of the computer's parts. If a larger quantity of computers are brought to a demanufacturing center, it could a person a little extra cash.
Broken Computer? Don't Throw it Out!
Consider visiting an electronics recycling and disposal service instead of throwing away your old computer. Computer demanufacturing is an effective way to reduce electronic waste, or e-Waste, in landfills. It also provides an extra benefit to the environment by creating another resource for manufacturers that make use of all of the recycled plastics, metals and glass found within a computer.
Article courtesy of ROUND2, an Avnet company. We are a national provider of vertically integrated, closed-loop, 100% green compliant electronics recycling services.
