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How to Start a Profitable E-Waste Recycling Business

    Do you want to start an e-waste recycling business? If yes, you have landed at the right place. Electronic waste is more and more posing environmental challenges throughout the world, electronic products waste a dangerously increasing volume of obsolete computers, printers, fax machines, TVs, mobiles, and other electronic devices.

    Most technology owners are from the government, public, or private industry sectors and they prefer replacing an old computer with a new one, rather than upgrading it which leads to land up with huge e-waste. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that only 15-20% of e-waste is recycled, the rest of these electronics go directly into landfills and incinerators.

    By starting an e-waste recycling business one can make money out of helping the environment toxic free. The objective to start an e-waste recycling company is to create an opportunity to transfer e-waste into socially and industrially beneficial raw materials like valuable metals, plastics, glass, etc. by using simple cost-effective technology.

    E-Waste Recycling Business Plan Guide for Beginners

    Here are the 8 steps to start a profitable e-waste recycling company:

    1. Research And Gather More Information on E-Waste Recycling Industry

    The E-waste recycling business is a little complex and capital-intensive business. One needs to have good knowledge of electronics items and items as well as the recycling industry itself.

    Before starting have a market study on it. You need to identify items that are being disposed of and added to local toxic landfills.  It will help you in identifying the electronic items that need to be recycled.

    2. Identify the Electronic Wastes to be Recycled

    As an electronic e-waste recycling company, it is most essential to select a list of services that you are going to offer. The selection of items will largely depend on the products sold by the local consumer electronics manufacturers and wholesalers. Some of the popular services that existing e-waste recycling management companies are offering are the following:

    • Data Destruction
    • Asset Management
    • Collection of e-waste from electronic companies
    • Refurbishing old electronic items and resale
    • De-manufacturing of unused electronic components and selling those as scrap
    • Reverse Logistics
    • PRO Service for EPR

    3. Create a Business Plan

    Based on the market research report, it is time to create an e-waste recycling business plan. This business plan is extremely critical to long-term success as it works as a roadmap for the future working activities of the company. Some of the basic aspects your business plan must address are the following:

    • Startup and recurring costs
    • Companies from whom you are going to collect electronic wastes
    • Your Production Capacity
    • Pricing Strategy
    • Where you are going to sell the recycled materials

    4. Get the Necessary Licenses and Permits

    Check with concerned authorities what kind of licenses you need to operate an e-waste recycling business. Contact the public welfare department of your city and take inputs regarding disposal methods and zoning requirements for your e-waste cycling business.

    5. E-Waste Recycling Business Set up

    Select a location for your e-waste recycling business establishment. It is advisable to select a location outside the city area. To get the license from PCB you will need to have neighbors with no objections to start the works.  Create a floor layout plan detecting places for scrap storage, disassembly area, delivery dock, office, and separate space for separate hazardous items.

    It is important to have the entire necessary equipment ready before starting the operation. You will need to have a conveyer belt, cathode ray tube (CRT), weighing machine, and vehicles for transportation. You can purchase this or can start by having it on the lease.

    Hire experienced and skilled employees who know the job rightly. If required you can arrange some special training for special equipment or materials.

    Suggested ReadHow to Make Money Recycling Batteries

    6. E-Waste Recycling Safety Measures

    E-waste, such as computers, printers, and cell phones—contain toxic heavy metals such as lead, mercury, and cadmium. Use safety measures in your work thoroughly to protect your employee’s health.

    7. Procure E-Waste Recycling Equipment

    CRT TVs and screens account for the largest share of e-waste. Hence, the disassembly line plays a critical role in the recycling process. CRT crusher plays a vital role in isolating the plastic protective cover from the device and systematically crushing it exposing the circuits and other internal parts for processing. You must be careful in buying a good quality CRT crusher as it is the most useful tool in the recycling process.

    8. How Much Investment You Need to Start a Recycling Company

    The cost of e-Waste recycling plant costs will depend on a lot of factors. If you want to start with less investment, you can set up a small-scale e-waste handling facility unit. It will cost around $16,000 including machinery. On a larger scale, the cost can go to $3.5 million.

    The E-waste recycling business includes the responsibilities of the collection and procurement of waste from various organizations, getting the useable part apart, reselling and refurbishing the usable material, extracting valuable metals plastics, etc., and turning them into raw materials for further industrial use.

    The business of eWaste recycling definitely has a great future. However, to make it successful, a great deal of proper planning and execution will be required.

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