Most
people work hard and have busy days. Managers and business owners have a lot of
things to think about, a lot of rules and regulations to consider, and it all
takes time. That is why recycling and the idea of sustainable business is not
as high on the agenda as we would like it to be.
EReco
sits in a sector fraught with risks, regulations and rules, but the biggest
feeling I get from the majority of SME’s I talk to is a strange mixture of
apathy, fear and suspicion.
Let me
take those three emotional responses in reverse order.
People
are suspicious of someone taking away their old IT equipment purely because
they suspect that they are missing out on something. It’s not so bad with old
wires, keyboards and the like, because they did not cost a lot in the first
place and they have been well used and abused, and possibly don't fit the
replacement kit which in any case come with new wires etc, but when it comes to
desktops, laptops, servers and stuff, the cost kicks in. Remember, this is the
man who has just paid to replace this stuff. He knows what it cost him down to
the last penny. And even if that pile in the corner is all now redundant, he
has this nagging voice in his head that tells him he is giving away money. It
makes him reluctant to let go.
Fear is
there too. He is no fool. He knows about hard drives, or at least he thinks he
does. He does not think there is anything bad on the old machines, he may even
have checked, and he does not think any criminal mastermind would be that
interested in his old files anyway, but there is a nagging doubt there. He is
not really sure what he should do, so he does nothing much at all, except
deleting everything he can see.
Which
brings me to apathy. Because this is not one of life’s bigger decisions. Not in
the great scheme of things. This is redundant kit. If you have bought
replacements and you have put the old stuff in a dark corner somewhere whilst
your mild fears and suspicions fester, you cannot really be bothered to chase
the solution too far. There is no problem hanging on to IT rubbish. It is not
decomposing. So unless you need the storage space back, keeping it is
relatively risk-free. It is actually easier to do nothing at all.
I
absolutely guarantee that if you root around in any business premises you will
find a bit of redundant kit somewhere. Damn it, most family homes are the same.
I have a Virgin Media box they just left with me when I upgraded to TiVo. It
has been at the bottom of my wardrobe for two years for heaven’s sake. And I
could just drop that down the dump, for free.
There are
thousands of tons of WEEE we could be recycling right now sitting there doing
nothing other than take up space. And that is quite important, don’t you think?
The idea that our electrical goods can be broken down at worst and reused to
make something else is an incredibly good one, but far too often the good
message gets lost in the reality of the situation, and that causes fear,
suspicion and apathy.
So if you
are a slightly nervous, suspicious sort of person who hasn’t summoned the
energy to do the right thing with that pile of rubbish in the storeroom, it’s
time to buck up. Call me (there are other IT recycling businesses out there, if
you really must, but hey, we’ve come this far together, give a guy a break!) and
I will sort it for you. It doesn’t hurt, you might get a few quid ahead at the
end of the process and you will be doing something good for once.
Come on,
you know it makes sense.
http://www.ereco.co.uk
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