The recycling phenomenon has extended to ATMs, as ATM deployers search for more ways to recycle parts or refurbish the ATMs they already have.
It's a green alternative, but it's also a cost-saver, says Jori Pascarella, business development consultant for Intercon Solutions of Chicago, an electronic-device recycling company that is in talks with banks around the country about ATM-recycling programs.
The company says it got into the ATM-recycling business out of need — no one was helping ATM deployers recycle their old hardware, Pascarella says. And since the ATM is essentially a 300-pound computer, it made sense for Intercon to focus on the market.
For ATM deployers interesting in getting rid of old equipment, the benefits are obvious, Pascarella says.
"(ATMs) take up a lot of space if stored somewhere, much more than a computer," she said.
When ATMs go out of commission, most companies just let them sit, Pascarella says, or they try to dump them. Many never consider recycling, at least not in Intercon's experience. Pascarella says the biggest challenge is educating companies about the benefits of recycling their machines. Today, a number of ATM manufacturers and ATM-refurbishing companies are working with their customers to improve their environmental habits. Diebold Inc. last year announced the launch of an environmental stewardship program — one that would not only helps Diebold's financial customers improve how they discard or reuse hardware such as ATMs, but also helps branch managers improve energy efficiency within the overall branch environment. NCR Corp., shortly after moving its ATM manufacturing to Duluth, Ga., announced several initiatives that the company said would improve environmental efficiencies within the manufacturing process as well as how NCR distributes and replaces ATMs for its financial institution customers.
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But the industry still has a long way to go, Pascarella says. When an ATM is discarded, it is often placed in a landfill. That practice is changing, but since no mandates for ATM equipment have hit the United States in the way they have hit Europe, progress in the "green" area has been slow. The European Union requires that all electrical equipment, when discarded, comply with the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment directive — a demand of which European ATM manufacturers like Wincor Nixdorf AG are well aware.
Pascarella says 20 U.S. states have already placed landfill bans on the disposal of computers and ATMs. As environment-friendly policies become popular, more states will likely follow suit. Lead, mercury and cadmium — all of which can be found inside ATMs — are toxic. By recycling old terminals, those toxic elements are prevented from entering the environment. And companies that recycle or help the clients they sell to recycle can use their environmental consciousness as selling points, Pascarella says.
"It looks good," she said simply.
Aside from the good publicity that comes with being environmentally friendly, companies do not have to devote storage space to old ATMs, and parts from recycling machines can be used when refurbishing or building new products.
Recycling and refurbishing
Recycling of ATM equipment is not so challenging, once a few practices and procedures are put into place, Pascarella says. For ATM deployers Intercon works with, the process is end-to-end. The ATM is removed and transported to a factory. At the factory, the terminal is dismantled by hand to remove raw materials. Raw materials can then be used in the building of new machines or in the refurbishing process. The plastics from ATMs have even been made into parking bumpers, and the metals have been used in construction as well as automotive parts.
Refurbishing is a popular option, especially given the current state of the economy. Atlanta-based ACG, an ATM refurbisher, says refurbished and rebuilt ATMs cost about 30 percent less than off-the-line machines.
Phil Winn, president of ACG, says more companies are seeking out refurbished ATMs, simply for the cost-savings.
"Not too long ago, it seemed like people didn't care about how much a new machine cost," Winn said. "(But) because of the economy, more companies are looking to refurbished ATMs."
And recycling ATM parts is something ACG has done for a long time. It makes sense, Winn says.
(Photograph provided by ACG.)
