Apple experiencing the financial benefits of resource recycling
US tech firm recovered almost $40m worth of gold from old products last year
Apple’s annual Environmental Responsibility Report reveals that the US tech giant raked in millions of extra revenue last year as a result of product recycling at its California base.
During Apple’s latest media event, it announced a big push in the recycling direction, with the launch of its clever disassembling robot, Liam, which can take an iPhone 6 apart in 11 seconds. The US firm recognises the importance of manufacturer responsibility and the benefits of a circular economy business model.
Apple increased its revenue by recycling old products in 2015
In typical fashion, Apple has began its recycling efforts in style. The firm’s innovative recycling robots have been hard at work throughout the previous year and have recovered millions of dollars worth of valuable materials from Apple products that have been returned under the company’s Renew take-back programme.
The company’s annual Environmental Responsibility Report shows that Apple recovered 2,204 pounds of gold in 2015. According to BusinessInsider.com, in the current market this amount of gold is worth $39,502,000. Apple is recycling millions of iPhones and computers each year; FairPhone claims that each iPhone contains 30mg of gold.
In total, Apple recovered an impressive 61,357,800 pounds of valuable materials in 2015. The clever robots also extracted 2,953,360 pounds of copper; 4,518,200 pounds of aluminium; 39,672 pounds of nickel; and 6612 pounds of silver.
Please click here to find out more about our waste management services.
