Business News
Xerox Extends Reach of Sustainability Practices Encouraging Others to Recycle Electronics Responsibly
Friday 13. June 2014 - Xerox joins coalition and helps launch electronic reuse and recycling standard
Xerox (NYSE: XRX) announced today that it has joined the Sustainable Electronics Recycling International (SERI) coalition to help launch a program to encourage companies to responsibly reuse and recycle electronics. By supporting this industry initiative, Xerox continues to be an environmental leader and create a better, greener world.
Xerox is among 10 companies partnering with SERI to support the R2 Leader program.
“We have a long history of supporting responsible recycling, so this effort is a natural fit for us,” said Diane P. O’Connor, vice president, Global Environment, Health, Safety and Sustainability, Xerox. “For many years, we’ve vetted recycling vendors before we agree to ship them our electronics, and we encourage other companies to do the same. The R2 certification ensures you are dealing with responsible recyclers. This is great for Xerox and our customers because it extends the reach of our sustainability practices to others in the industry, magnifying our impact on our world.”
Xerox’s environmental sustainability goes back to the introduction of the first office machine that made two-sided copies possible. The company also was the first to introduce recycled-grade cut sheet paper and to offer customers office equipment with an energy-saving mode, long before ENERGY STAR was established. Today, Xerox continues to innovate for a better world, creating services and technologies that reduce the impact on the environment including smart parking, public transit, electronic toll collection and other transportation solutions and ConnectKey enabled multifunction printers compatible with energy?management solutions such as Cisco EnergyWise.
By joining the R2 Leader program, companies are making a commitment to support R2-certified electronics refurbishment and recycling, and to consider R2 certification when choosing a recycling partner. R2 Leaders, including Xerox, now have a leadership role in projects for responsible reuse and recycling around the world.
The R2 standard was created in 2008 through a process that included the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, electronics manufacturers, recycling companies, nonprofit organizations, and other groups. R2 certified electronics recycling and refurbishing facilities adhere to best practices in areas including worker health and safety, environmental protection, chain-of-custody reporting and data security. Worldwide, over 540 facilities in 17 countries are R2 certified. Xerox’s U.S. facilities that disassemble returned equipment, in Monroe, Ohio, and Cerritos, California, recently achieved the R2 certification.?