Electronics Recycling

One51 plc, a Dublin, Ireland-based company, has acquired a one-third ownership share in Barrie, Ontario-based Barrie Metals’ Global Electric Electronic Processing (GEEP) Group of Companies. One51 has operations in waste management, specialist treatment and recycling, alternative energy and infrastructure projects.

Lately One51 plc has made a number of investments in electronics recycling facilities in Europe and is seeking ways to grow its electronics recycling network worldwide.

GEEP operates plants in Barrie, Ontario; Edmonton, Alberta; Raleigh Durham, N.C.; and Dallas and has several other plants in progress.

"With One51/Immark as a partner, we have now developed a global reach with similar technologies and philosophies and are well placed to handle the requirements of the larger world electronics producers and OEMs," Alfred Hambsch, president of Barrie Metals/GEEP, says.

"Our deal with Barrie Metals/GEEP Group of Companies represents a wonderful opportunity for One51plc to develop its significant electrical and electronics recycling business in the North American market and as a global solutions provider," Philip Lynch, CEO of One51 plc, says.

Columbus, Ohio-based Redemtech, a provider of technology change management (TCM) and IT asset disposition (ITAD) services, has hired Jim Mejia as vice president of environmental affairs to lead its Environmental Advisory Practice. The practice provides assessment and consulting services to customers pertaining to environmental sustainability and electronics recycling.

"Many companies invest millions of dollars in technology but sometimes lack the experience or processes to ensure they are taking the right steps to properly dispose of or recycle their electronic equipment in a truly sustainable way," Bob Houghton, president of Redemtech, says. "Jim Mejia’s experience will play a critical role in Redemtech’s mission to deliver a much greener, more accountable solution for the environmentally responsible management of electronic waste."

Houghton says Mejia’s experience will be pivotal in furthering Redemtech’s Environmental Practice, which is responsible for the company’s Environmental Management System. This includes vetting of downstream material handling and recycling processes to ensure compliance with Redemtech’s stringent policies against landfill, export or incineration of electronic scrap material.

Mejia, who has more than 30 years of experience in the environmental field, joins Redemtech from Los Angeles-based Electric Partners Corp., where he was a co-founder, vice president and chief engineer since 2003. Earlier, as president for Metal Management, Mejia was able to bring the company’s Los Angeles nonferrous scrap processing subsidiary back to profitability. He has also served in a number of technology and leadership capacities in the air, water and soil treatment and copper, aluminum, lead and brass smelter industries.

"I’m excited to be part of an organization like Redemtech, which is a leader in environmentally responsible approaches to IT asset management, whether that’s extending equipment life cycles, increasing reutilization or safely disposing of obsolete equipment," Mejia says. "I look forward to helping Redemtech continue to lead the industry, especially as this market continues to grow and as more enterprise organizations demand environmentally sustainable business practices."

Mejia invented and engineered an automated electronic scrap mechanical conversion facility, which has been featured on programs aired by the Public Broadcasting System and the History Channel. The facility’s electronic scrap conversion process separates low-value e-scrap into to scrap metal commodities and polymers.

Houghton says the Environmental Practice is in the process of developing an electronic scrap management reporting system to complement Redemtech’s advanced asset management reporting system to provide additional environmental support for its customers. Once complete, customers will have a better perspective of how their electronics recycling systems support environmental stewardship initiatives, according to Redemtech.

More information about Redemtech and its Environmental Practice is available at the company’s Web site at www.redemtech.com

Mitel, the Ottawa-based provider of integrated communications solutions and services for businesses, has reached an agreement with Tampa, Fla.-based Global Investment Recovery, a full-service recycler and processor of electronic equipment, to fully recycle phones and hardware in selected areas where new Mitel equipment is installed.

Using a login page on its Web site, Mitel channel partners can notify Global about equipment that is ready for pickup after a new Mitel deployment. Global’s logistics team will provide packing and shipping instructions to transport the equipment to one of the company’s processing facilities, where the equipment will be shredded, sorted and reused, recycling up to 100 percent of the electronic scrap.

Mitel’s end-of-life equipment-recycling program ensures that all telephony equipment designated as scrap is decommissioned at local facilities in such a manner as to not be harmful to the environment and that scrap metal and precious metal components are recovered and recycled for re-use.

Cascade Asset Management, Madison, Wis., and Software Success Partners, with offices in Boston, Dallas and Colorado Springs, Colo., have formed a partnership to provide customers with an IT asset life cycle solution.

Software Success Partners helps companies manage and track their IT assets through business process consulting and tools implementation using a process that is focused on business requirements, information quality and process simplification.

Cascade provides customers with secure data destruction and ID protection services, including flexible asset reporting systems. The company offers clients asset disposition tracking for financial reporting purposes, to demonstrate compliance with data security regulations or to prove environmental compliance.

"This partnership offers our customers a full spectrum of IT asset management and retirement solutions—strengthening our leadership as a one-stop-shop for reusable and recyclable IT assets," Thanh Nguyen, Cascade director of sales and marketing says.