On Tuesday, Dell announced new sustainability initiatives that CEO Michael Dell called “the next milestone” in Dell’s 2020 Legacy of Good plan.
The electronics giant announced it is the first in the IT industry to introduce carbon-negative AirCarbonTM packaging, through a partnership with Newlight Technologies. Dell also is the first to use UL Environment-certified, closed-loop recycled plastics in the manufacturing of computers, in partnership with design manufacturer Wistron GreenTech. The independent, third-party verification of a closed-loop plastics process establishes the first industry standard for closed-loop materials and supports a circular economy for IT.
Dell’s 2020 Legacy of Good plan includes 21 ambitious sustainability and social goals the company is committed to reaching by 2020. The overarching goal is to ensure that the good that comes from Dell’s technology will be ten times what it takes to create and use it.
“We have a long-standing commitment to conduct our business responsibly,” the CEO said. “AirCarbon packaging and closed-loop recycled plastics are terrific innovations and big steps forward as we work with our customers and partners toward our 2020 goals.”
AirCarbon Packaging
Dell says its AirCarbon-based packaging will launch this fall beginning with the packaging sleeves around new Dell Latitude series notebooks. Dell is piloting AirCarbon packaging in the US and plans to extend it globally for use in both packaging and products. Dell's previous use of alternative packaging materials includes mushroom, bamboo and wheat straw that helped eliminate 20 million pounds of packaging and saved $18 million.
“Dell is using greenhouse gases that would otherwise become part of the air we breathe to replace materials traditionally made by oil,” said Newlight CEO Mark Herrema. “We commend Dell for being the first in the IT industry to introduce packaging that reverses the impact of climate change. Introducing greener packaging at a lower cost per unit than traditional oil-based plastics is good for the environment and Dell’s bottom line.”
Closed-Loop Recycling
Dell also is the first to secure third-party certification from UL Environment for manufacturing with closed-loop recycled plastics. This first UL Environment certification of its kind verifies that Dell has exceeded the standard of a minimum of 10 percent of closed-loop, post-consumer recycled plastics in the chassis enclosure of all Dell OptiPlex 3030 All-in-Ones globally. Dell plans to use this closed-loop approach as a blueprint for reusing metals and other materials and to accelerate Dell’s goal of using 50 million pounds of recycled-content plastic and other sustainable materials in its products by 2020.
"The challenges we face today require our industry to find new, more sustainable ways to do business,” said Michael Murphy, Dell’s Executive Director of Global Product Compliance & Environmental Affairs. “By putting plastics recovered through our take-back programs back to work inside new Dell products, we are able to help reduce electronic waste and provide the greener products that customers have come to expect from Dell. We hope the new standard outlined by UL Environment will encourage companies to rethink processes and help drive a circular economy for IT.”
UL Environment says its new Environmental Claim Validation Procedure, ECVP 2809, outlines the framework and process by which any recycled content and closed-loop recycled content claims are investigated and validated before a validation badge is issued. Achieving an ECV lends third-party credibility to manufacturers’ claims, while providing peace of mind to purchasers who are working to comply with green purchasing requirements.
In other AirCarbon news, last week Sprint announced a partnership with Newlight Technologies to use the material in its cell phone cases for the iPhone® 5 and iPhone® 5s, which will be sold online exclusively on Sprint.com beginning later this month. We have a feeling these are the first of many such partnerships for Newlight and you'll soon be seeing AirCarbon everywhere.
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Published May 21, 2014 1am EDT / 10pm PDT / 6am BST / 7am CEST