How Can I Make My Office More Eco-Friendly?

Are you looking for ways to go green in the office? Have you considered the impact of your technology? As residential and commercial building contractors alike integrate recycled or sustainable materials into new homes and offices, individuals and businesses should adopt a similar ethical and social responsibility for the environment. Most likely you already have some basic green practices in place for your company, such as recycling water bottles. This year take your green efforts to a new level with a refurbished copy machine.

Can a refurbished copier cut down on my carbon footprint?

A refurbished copier is a high quality used copier that a third party (as opposed to the manufacturer) has audited, cleaned, tested, and upgraded. Typically these machines have less than three months of use as rated by a recommended monthly usage table from the manufacturer. They come with “same as brand new” warranties.

Think about the environmental impact of a copier throughout the entire life cycle in terms of manufacturing, packaging, general use, shipping, and disposal. Consider an office building in this country that has 25 stories. If there are five companies on each floor and each one has four copiers, the building has a total of 500 copy machines. This is just one building. If even one or two companies in every office building in the country purchased refurbished copiers, the impact would be tremendous.

When you purchase a refurbished copier as opposed to a new copier, you are getting rid of the need for a manufacturer to buy the raw materials required for a new copier. The practices decreases the end users’ carbon footprint, as manufacturing and shipping a new machine produces a considerable amount of carbon.

As you get ready to purchase a refurbished copier, think about your plans for the old one. If the machine is still usable, it makes sense to donate it instead of sending it to the dump. In turn, the refurbished copier that you buy is another machine that doesn’t end up in a landfill. Don’t forget about disposing printer ink cartridges as well. These cartridges are non-biodegradable, and consequently, toxic to the environment.

You can also look for a refurbished copier that boasts an ENERGY STAR label. These copy machines can decrease the yearly electricity bills for the copier as much as 60 percent because they shut off after a period of inactivity. It is also advisable to look for a high speed copier with a duplex feature. Making double-sided copies decreases paper usage by 25 percent or more.

How can I recycle an old copier?

Do you have a copy machine that doesn’t fit the needs of your office anymore but isn’t ready to head to the landfill? Pursue options for refurbishing it. Do you have a copier that is ready for retirement? Find an organization that can scrap it for parts, reusing as much as possible. Then take the green approach to replacing your copier by buying a refurbished machine.

At UCI, we place a high priority on going green in the workplace. As such, we are always more than happy to help our clients find refurbished copiers that are a good fit for their business needs as well as copiers that were designed to reduce your carbon footprint, such as the Kyocera ECOSYS line. If you’re interested in a refurbished copier or other copier products or services, contact our Amarillo copier company today. We are here to provide you with the best solution for your office.

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