Cisco Refurbishment Environmental Impact

Used Cisco > Cisco Refurbishment Environmental Impact

With an ever-increasing global population, our broader society is facing growing concerns about the environment and sustainability. Technology has become an integral part of global progress, yet it delivers a mountain range of landfill impact. Hyperscale users and SMBs alike can all make an impact in seeking eco-friendly solutions to do their part.

Fortunately, IT users have the opportunity to make sustainable choices when it comes to their equipment, either by extending system life through legacy parts upgrades, sourcing refurbished second-user hardware, or on the back-end: via re-use friendly asset disposition.

Refurbishing IT hardware has long been known as a great way to save money for the cash-strapped IT user. That, however, is just the beginning if you consider the later ripple effect through its lifecycle of utilization and reuse. By delaying the manufacture of a new system, we prolong the energy and water-intensive process of pushing a new product into the world.

Choosing pre-owned over new equipment is one of the top ways companies can reduce their environmental impact – like being able to keep tons of hazardous waste out of landfills year after year. While you certainly can get value for the metals in your systems, a far greater (and greener) return is in finding a reuse-focused partner to give those systems a 2nd chance, a substantial boost for an organization's green credentials.

Our experience shows us it is absolutely understandable for potential clients to want reliable assurance before committing to investing in renewed hardware, and you should take your time to find a trusted partner. Look for resellers who are ITAD certified and hold standards like R2v3, while also holding membership in groups.

Here are just a few specific examples where a reuse focus has helped companies gain green cred:

Example One: Layer 3 switches were decommissioned for reuse. These switches featured multilayer switching architectures where items continued to remain compatible with nearly all existing provider networks and required no modifications outside of some cabling. We could put these switches to work again for years to come. No landfill, no intensive recycling process - pure reuse and benefit to 2nd users.

Example Two: How about an entire core router shelf for building huge metro infrastructure offering GbE consistency across provinces? Availability of parts allowed for life to extend extra years (plural) creating carbon credits. This means everyone wins, savings-wise and sustainably speaking!

In conclusion, thinking about re-use first option when you decommission your IT equipment enables a secondary market to flourish, which extends hardware life and legacy system installs in other companies. Circular IT for networking is making gains. Whether you’re sourcing IT or getting rid of your excess piles of gear, think reuse first and help IT become more sustainable!

Cisco Refurbishment Environmental Impact

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