Data Center FAQs

What is IT asset disposition for data centers and how does it work?

Data center IT asset disposition (ITAD) describes the process of systematically decommissioning and retiring IT assets from your live environment and ensuring they are disposed in a data safe, environmentally responsible manner. Retired IT assets are resold, recycled or redeployed to another company owned facility.

On-Premise at the Data Center

Equipment is decommissioned, inventoried and packed and shipped to a facility that manages reuse and recycling of retired equipment.  A data safe method of handling data-bearing assets is ensured. Most commonly, data is destroyed prior to assets leaving the data center.

At the ITAD Facility

Assets with reuse potential are refurbished and prepared for resale.  Obsolete equipment is prepared for recycling.

Most data centers require a documented audit trail that confirms how and when assets were disposed and that recycled equipment was managed in an environmentally compliant manner. SLS provides complete chain of custody reports, sales reports on assets sold, certificates of data destruction and environmental reporting for recycling. A disciplined approach to data center asset management is important both on-premise and off-premise.

An Important Tip

Industry certification is important in the ITAD and e-waste recycling industry. While industry certification does not guarantee performance, it provides a baseline of vetting to ensure your equipment is not irresponsibly handled.  There are many reported cases in the data center IT asset disposition market of vendors taking shortcuts in processing used IT equipment. Shortcuts put you at risk of embarrassing headlines of data exposure, illegal export and environmentally irresponsible disposal.

Additional Resources About Data Center ITAD Services Offered by SLS