What is Product Stewardship?
Here at Procurri, we’re passionate about sustainability and always aim to include the most sustainable practices possible in every aspect of our business. One way we do this is through product stewardship, but what does this mean and what are the benefits of it? Let us explain…
What does the term Product Stewardship mean?
Product stewardship is an approach to managing the environmental impacts of physical products and materials through every stage in their production, useful operation, and eventual disposal. It shares the responsibility for such impacts across all involved in the production, sale, use, and disposition of items so that all involved parties work to tangibly reduce the negative effects and increase the positive effects on the environment, health, and safety, and the audience using or benefiting from them.
What does Product Stewardship mean for involved parties?
For manufacturers, product stewardship begins at the concept design phase where through careful design and engineering as limited as possible harmful or non-recyclable materials are included. The products should be designed to be as durable and long-lasting as possible with their eventual disposal made as easy as possible. In many cases – although not often in the world of IT- the best-of-breed manufacturer will take an active role in the disposition of their own products.
Those who operate the products will also in many cases attempt to do so in as sustainable a method as possible. This may include the use of environmentally friendly energy sources, “sweating” the assets for as long as possible and investing in comprehensive ITAD services to maximize reuse and value when the product lifecycle does eventually come to an end.
How does Procurri work with Product Stewardship?
Realistically, many businesses still do not operate any product stewardship in their design at all; rather, they adopt sustainability strategies and messages when they see a good PR opportunity or it’s the cheaper option. This is where Procurri intervenes.
While Procurri isn’t an OEM, we do step in where IT product support ends or falls short. Through Procurri ITAD and Lifecycle Services, the negative sustainability impact of datacentre hardware can be minimized through reuse– and present a cost-saving option to the business simultaneously.
Procurri’s Third Party Maintenance of datacentre equipment allows organizations to ‘sweat’ their assets for as long as possible by offering maintenance and break-fix support even as it passes its OEM designated “end-of-service” date. This allows businesses to continue offering seamless IT services to clients without disruption and negates the need for further financial investment in the procurement of new hardware ahead of time.
Furthermore, Procurri’s ITAD services focus on sustainability at all points – aiming to recycle, resell, or refurbish wherever possible without ever sending products to landfills.
Procurri truly embodies product stewardship through our implementation of sustainability initiatives and best practices across every stage of the product lifecycle. In highlighting environmental concerns and customer requirements we’re confident in being able to offer an appropriate sustainable option for all – no matter how legacy, specialist, or varied your IT portfolio may be.
