economy of waste is no longer viable. is it time for the circular economy?

Disruption in resource supply and rising prices have caused trouble for companies that rely on scarce natural resources --
Mark Twomey says unless the trend changes.
Although consumers may be familiar with the environment
Aware of the concept of \"reduction, reuse, recycling\" to reduce the use of limited resources on the planet, a similar concept has gained traction throughout Europe, this may be the basis for the 3bn annual industry that employs 174,000 people across the continent by 2020.
According to the Allen MacArthur Foundation, the circular economy \"aims to maintain the highest utility and value of products, components and materials at all times.
Whether it\'s white appliances such as computers, refrigerators, washing machines, or mobile phones.
The economy based on the principle of \"demand, manufacturing and waste\" is no longer viable.
Unless the current trend is reversed, the disruption of supply of resources plus rising prices and increasing volatility will translate into trillions over the next 20 years
For companies and countries whose growth is still tied to the use of scarce natural resources, the loss of the euro. googletag. {});
One area that most consumers use but have never seen before is large --
The data center is the hub of cloud computing and online e-commerce, and can expand the computer business.
Businesses operating in this area need to upgrade their devices every two to three years to maximize efficiency, thus requiring \"processing\" numbers when upgrading their data server banks
The core technology in the device may be out of date as it has been three years old and is in compliance with Moody\'s law --
Double the performance every two years and half the price.
But the rest of it, the cabinet, the distribution unit, the fan and all the other components are valuable.
An Irish company operating a circular economy is Wisetek.
Mike Higgins, chief sales and marketing officer at Wisetek, said: \"We were there before the concept of circular economy began . \".
The company provides hosting services for handling used IT equipment from data centers and major IT manufacturers. The Cork-
The company headquartered at the time of the change of WEEE began operations on 2007 (
Waste electrical and electronic equipment)
European regulationsgoogletag. {});
\"This legislation basically stipulates that the number of equipment weights that manufacturers put on the European market in any year must recover a certain proportion.
\"In 2007, that figure reached 35%, which most manufacturers thought was a cost burden,\" said Mike Higgins . \".
The founder of Wisetek, a former employee of the computer giant EMC, Sean Sheehan worked on managing the company\'s returns and saw the value of the material come back;
Understand the value of the equipment that will be \"used\" through a truly formal lean manufacturing process: take the system apart in an assembled manner.
\"Our operation is like a reverse manufacturing process: here is like looking back at the video without seeing all the components coming in and being tested and assembled into a finished system Cabinet, said Mike Higgins.
\"We started with the system Cabinet and went all the way back to the component, where we worked.
\"Wisetek has been very innovative since the beginning and estimates that its recovery rate may be the highest in the industry.
\"The facilities we have in Cork mean we are the largest in Europe.
We also have facilities in Asia. Thailand)
In the United States, \"Higgins said.
Wisetek operates in Thailand\'s largest Freeport, where they collect equipment from all over Australia and disassemble it.
No material is allowed to be shipped to non
For example, in OECD countries like Thailand, all the good materials needed are shipped to their cork factories, and the rest are shipped to other OECD countries for refining or reprocessingmarketing.
It also operates according to the standards known as \"responsible recycling standards\" and is rigorously and independently audited how strict its recycling controls are in terms of downstream and refinement, so, nothing can develop along a path that is not good or harmful to the environment. googletag. {});
\"We run at the component level;
For example, there will be items with serial numbers on them, \"Higgins said.
\"When we see a system coming out,of a facility]
We don\'t see a system, we see a whole cabinet full of components.
When it lands at our factory, we scan each component, which is the level we work on, and then it goes through a precise disassembly process.
\"Components can then go from there into one of the three streams: our customers may need them for inventory, mainly spare parts, or some of the components can be re-stocked
Make a new system.
Our customers may not need some, but Wisetek can see its value and we are ready to re-market in the electronics market.
This may be the third and third time, and then our last resort is recycling, but it\'s hard for us to find reuse because it\'s our absolute priority.
\"With this in mind, Wisetek processes only 5,000 tons of used equipment per year from Ireland, which means that more than 3,300 tons of equipment is reworked
Make or re-sell.
However, since the company processes the components of the data, very strict protocols must be followed.
\"When it\'s over --of-
The life cycle of data center equipment, the primary task is data security;
It has to be deleted, \"Higgins said.
\"Every bit of data we enter the cork factory will be re-entered.
After use, we delete it, even if the customer tells us that it has been deleted, we delete it, even though it involves the cost.
\"The company uses two methods to clear data: if it is a product
Used for spare parts or spare parts with market demand, it goes through an erase process and the data is covered seven times;
Data cannot be recovered after this process.
If there is no market value, it will be torn apart.
Wisetek recycled materials that were not repackaged
Places where the use requirements are or are not re-used
Sales requirements because it is old or there is no demand.
In the Cork facility, it divides the material into the same commodity type and ships it to R2-
Approved refiners melt them back into raw materials.
That brings the least economic return, but Mike Higgins says you can save on carbon emissions if you can avoid making another component. googletag. {});
\"It\'s better than getting the raw material back in my old model; make; assemble; use and dump.
\"At least now we are putting it back into the economy,\" Higgins said . \".
\"The circular economy that the Sir Ellen MacArthur Trust Fund is driving is something that we strongly advocate. Re-
Use is the top priority.
\"The EU has done a lot of work on this, and they estimate that the circular economy is a 3bn euro opportunity for European industry.
According to their calculations, by 2020, 174,000 people will be employed across Europe, so this is a new industry, but the real reason behind this idea is that most of the raw materials come from outside the EU, most of the raw materials are recycled outside the EU, so this is not good for the balance of payments.
It is about keeping value, keeping value, and putting it back into use.
In its declaration on resources, the European Commission
Efficient Europe said, \"the EU has no choice but to resources-
Circular economy \".
Even large tire manufacturers are participating in the bill, Higgins said: \"The circular economy is changing the way businesses operate and people are paying for it.
\"Michelin has reached an agreement with a number of major transport companies because they pay per mile for the use of tires, when they wear to a certain extent, the company has agents across Europe to replace tires.
The agent will send the used tires back to Michelin.
Groove, not on a tractor, but on a trailer, so using the system is a payment.
\"Although the concept of circular economy is familiar to most people, in fact, it was not until the last two years that the circular economy began to attract, and the EU launched Horizon 2020, it will provide funds for the research and innovation of the whole circular economy.
Wisetek sees himself as an innovator in their field.
\"We\'re doing things that others haven\'t done yet, especially in the IT industry, and the circular economy makes absolutely sense. googletag. {});
\"Ireland is very good at recording where the waste is going. Our record is 50%;
So we know where 50% is, but that also means we don\'t know where the other 50% is.
\"The downside of this industry is that there is a big unscrupulous factor that a lot of unlicensed waste is --
According to the Interpol report
Handled by companies associated with the Mafia.
\"A lot of waste has been sent to the burning ground in West Africa,\" Higgins said . \". “In a PCB (
Printed circuit board)
There may be gold worth 10 euros on it, as well as lead and various other materials;
Depending on the price of the item, our processing cost may take 8 euros to recover.
\"Unfortunately, the other option is that it gives a child in West Africa who sits in an open pan because he pulls the same amount of gold and gets 30 C.
Similarly, the method of extracting copper wire from heavy-duty UPVC is terrible when burning, and the carcinogens released are fatal.
\"This is an unscrupulous motive, and these things on the open fire are terrible.
\"The biggest threat is the threat to human life, and the second biggest threat is still the threat to human life, because toxins can penetrate into the ground and rain,\" Higgins said . \".
\"The Burning Land has been built very well and the Basel Action Network group has found that it will not disappear.
In the United States, all the rubbish is transported to remote parts of China. . .
On a slow ship to China
\"The goal of Wisetek-factsWisetek is to return the best value to customers for the data center IT devices they use, while, at the same time, ensuring strict data security regulations to process data transmission devices, and ensure that all materials are processed in accordance with the highest possible environmental standards.
The highest environmental standard is the maximum possible cost and processing of old components for further reuse in the purpose of the original design.
The environmental priority of Wisetek is to redevelop components for reuse in the customer\'s internal supply chain, or for spare parts inventory, or increasingly to represent the customer for Wisetek fully functional components
This provides the highest value for their customer base, as it avoids both the main purchase costs (firsttime use)
Material and secureslong-
Term part availability.
For materials that customers do not need, the reputation of Wisetek as a high-quality processor for used it systems enables them to market components and configured systems to their global buyer network.
Wisetek\'s re-marketing advantage enables its customers to achieve strong financial returns for used it assets.
Only components that are considered to have no customer internal reuse requirements or no market requirements will be classified as e-
Waste, and enter the recycling process in which the ingredients are refined into basic raw materials.
Wisetek\'s \"recycling and reuse\" priority and related capabilities are where it differs from waste management in the data center equipment category, positioning Wisetek as following the fast-growing principles of circular economy
The Advanced Lean sigmabasedprocess of Wisetek enables it to achieve 30%-
40% the reuse ratio ranges from the use of ITsystems, that is, the entire circular economy concept of withinthe, the benchmark of the consensus \'best practice, and currently the different types of plastic sscommodity 60% reusefrom paper materials, only 5% mm of plastic materials.
Comprehensive investigation by Interpol
Interpol\'s annual survey of the European market for used electronic products in 2015 found that,
Waste in the area is about 10 times the number of unlicensed emails
Waste exported from Europe
The study found that 10 times more than 400,000 tons of emails
About 4 waste exports.
Within Europe, 7m tons are wrongly managed or illegally traded.
It also found that the widespread theft of valuable components, such as circuit boards and precious metals, from discarded electronic products resulted in a serious loss of materials and resources for discarded processors in Europe.
The estimated loss value for this year is between 800 euros and 1 euro. 7bn.
\"Electronic equipment and electrical equipment represent the fastest speed --
More and more waste logistics in the world.
The importance of poorly managed e-commerce in Europe
Waste alone is equivalent to a 10-meter-high brick wall extending from Oslo to the Italian toe.
\"Precious metals and components, including key raw materials, need to be safely captured and recycled as fully as possible,\" said Secretary Pascal Le Roy.
General waste home appliances forum.
According to an Interpol survey, the average is only 0 per year. 5% of EU e-
Waste exports were reportedly stopped in actions leading to some form of sentence, administrative penalty or civil penalty, and the report noted that penalties for violations were not high enough to generate deterrent value.
Penalties should also be coordinated to streamline cross-sectoral law enforcement, highlighting cases of fraud, tax evasion and money laundering
Prevent criminals from moving their activities to lower places
Countries at risk of legal and financial penalties for illegal e-mail within the EU
Waste Trade varies greatly from country to country.
\"As a profitable activity, the risk of illegal trade detection in e-commerce is low
Waste is vulnerable to exploitation, and governments can adopt a balanced mix of administrative and criminal penalties that reflect the value of illegal profits to prevent more exploitation, as well as the enormous environmental and social hazards involved, \"said David Higgins, Interpol\'s assistant director of environmental security. directorate.