INDUSTRY INTELLIGENCE POWERED BY THE DCA
recycling rates will limit this activity which
is beneficial because recycling newer
‘clean’ waste is more economical. It will
also make identification and tracking of
components and materials simpler.
These factors will all enhance quality
monitoring and control of recyclates, as
a result of which the market will grow
and in many instances recyclates will
become cheaper than virgin materials.
In addition to recycling at end-of-life,
product life extension through reuse and
re-manufacture will be boosted as data
sanitisation technologies improve and
trust in the process is enhanced through
demonstration and training events and
publicity campaigns. Indirectly, this
technology will simultaneously reduce
component shredding, make recycling
simpler and more efficient and increase
CRM reclamation.
The expansion of Euro-centric reuse and
recycling facilities will reduce waste flow
to Africa, which will have an initial negative
impact on local employment and income
generation. However, the European
industry will expand to the point where it
can form legitimate partnerships and set
up sites there; this will be advantageous
because of the readily available workforce
and being geographically closer to
Europe than Asia.
The partnerships will benefit from a
combination of local (low-tech) and
imported (high-tech) know-how and will
create ethical, properly-paid jobs that
enable locals to work in safe, nonhazardous
environmentally-friendly
conditions. Increased income will
increase connectivity as smart devices
and networks become affordable, which
has the potential to reduce inequality
between differing socioeconomic
groups via access to education and
health services.
Furthermore, increased availability of
quality controlled recycled materials
and CRM will reduce demand for virgin
Conflict Minerals. The combination of
these factors will ensure long-term
supply chain security and economic
stability in the market for data centre
Looking forward to 2030, if these changes as well as others are
instigated, the potential for positive economic, environmental
and social impacts deriving from a sectoral Circular Economy
are considerable.
equipment and services which will
support uninterrupted service delivery.
The benefits of a sectoral Circular
Economy are evident and hyperscalers
such as Facebook and Google are
already developing in-house circular
practices, but there is currently nothing
to support smaller providers. Developing
a Circular Economy requires buy-in and
knowledge exchange from experts and
businesses from all life cycle stages
across and associated with the sector but
currently, members of the various subsectors
work in silos.
The CEDaCI project was launched in
January 2019 to tackle these many
challenges and initiate a Circular Economy
for the data centre industry as a whole,
and smaller businesses in particular.
Funded by ERDF / Interreg North West
Europe, the project is led by London
South Bank University and working with
partners from industry, academia and
non-profit organisations in the UK, France,
Germany and the Netherlands. It brings
together experts from the various subsectors
and life cycle stages including the
Data Centre Association, and is already
making waves. ◊
www.intelligentdatacentres.com Issue 19
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