Dell is making a line of PCs using plastics obtained by expanding its recycling program.
The company has expanded the hardware take-back program to more places worldwide, aiming to collect and reuse more extracted plastic and metals in PCs, monitors, hardware panels and other products.
Dell's OptiPlex 3030 all-in-one, which will ship next month, will be the first product of that effort. Starting next year, more laptops, desktops and monitor back-panels will be made using recycled plastic, said Scott O'Connell, director of environmental affairs at Dell. The products will be certified as sustainable by UL (Underwriters Laboratories).
Dell will save money by reusing plastic, but O'Connell did not say whether the savings will be passed on to customers through lower prices. But it will be easier for more people to recycle electronics and Dell will also provide a PC mail-back option, O'Connell said.
Dell's plan to establish a recycling chain internally could reduce the need for "virgin" plastics, which can be environmentally damaging to make, said Gary Cook, senior IT analyst at Greenpeace International.
Incineration of plastic from disposed computers can be toxic and reusing plastics in new computers or other parts reduces "dirty energy," Cook said.
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Hi - Just to clarify, UL Environment is validating Dell's claim that they will be using a minimum of 10% closed loop recycled plastic in their new computers. We do not issue a general "sustainability" certification; all our validations and certifications have clear standards to document what precise claim or achievement is named. To learn more about DELL's ECV please visit: http://bit.ly/1nkXePR. Thanks!
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