General / Pure Planet Recycling News

August Update

No two days are the same at Pure Planet Recycling. We might be lugging empty fridges into the van one day, and passing through security at a data centre to decommission a bunch of servers the next. Our strapline says it all, really: ‘If it has a battery or a plug, we can recycle it’. And it’s the day-to-day variety that we love most about the job.

August has been no different, and we’ve had a whole range of jobs to keep us on our toes. While most of the UK has been off sunning themselves somewhere exotic, we’ve been up and down the country making WEEE collections in the good old British weather. Here’s a taste of what we’ve been up to, as well as what’s in store for Pure Planet Recycling in September.

Hard drives and more hard drives…

Destroying and disposing of hard drives securely is one of our most-requested services. In August alone, we’ve destroyed thousands of drives. Everything from bulk loads of data centre enterprise drives (pictured), to a batch of just five drives from a small accountancy firm.

What our customers like about the service is the peace of mind it gives. We can turn up on site and snap their drives in front of them. They know the drives can’t spin up again or be accessed… simple! We attended a large public school to destroy a large number of drives. The task was to destroy the drives quickly and cost effectively. Within 2 hours we had crushed nearly 500 drives and the customer was very satisfied.

For customers requiring a high level of destruction we can arrive with a mobile shredder and shred the drives to 6mm pieces.  This gives data centres and public sector organisations a compliant solution. Whatever the size of job we can help.

confidential product destruction

Confidential Product Destruction

Product destruction is another sought-after service. We’ve helped lots of companies and organisations to confidentially dispose of products and stock over the years. This month we destroyed batches of books as well as faulty electrical products and end of line software.

We’d love to go into the details, explaining each job and what was involved. However, it’s confidential and we take this very seriously.

Whatever the product, we always opt for the most environmentally friendly method and recover as much material for reuse as we can.

Recycling commercial fridges

Our fridge recycling service continues to be really popular. Regardless of the size of the unit, we collect and recycle all types of fridges across the UK. Basically, if it has a compressor, we can recycle it. This includes commercial and industrial refrigeration units.

This month has been busier than ever with the collection of large industrial units, from refrigeration installation companies and hospitals, right through to shops with just one end-of-line unit to pick up.

One particular job required a number of end of life commercial display fridges collected from a well-known food retailer.  With each unit weighing over 500kg, loading could have been an issue if not planned in advance. After an initial risk assessment, we came up with the required solution. We arrived on-site, with a fork lift attached to a vehicle to load the items quickly and safely.  This ensured we could remove the load without fuss, in one vehicle, reducing the environmental impact.

Once back at the plant the fridges were recycled and the materials recovered. Our hazardous waste consignment note shows the customer exactly where the waste goes. Then, the recycling certificate provides evidence of the type, number and weight of the waste.

commercial fridge recycling

What’s coming up in September?

As well as all the usual jobs to keep us this month, there are a couple of events coming up that we’ve had in the calendar for a while. We’re currently in Zero Waste Week, and there’s still time to sign up and get involved if you’re quick. Have a read of our Zero Waste Week post to see how you can make a cost saving at work and score some serious brownie points with the boss.

Later in the month it’s Recycle Week 2017 from September 25 to October 1, and we’re busy thinking up ways to get involved. Plus, since the news of our ten-year anniversary was featured in a few magazines and websites last month, we’ve been working on some opinion articles for a couple of industry journals, too. Our article on the Environment Journal has gone live, so please have a read. In the meantime, have a great month.

Need to book any of these services? Get in touch for a chat or a quote and we’ll tell you how we can help.