Sims Recycling Solutions Supports Business Program Encouraging Reuse and Recycling Education

The #LandfilltoLife program, delivered in conjunction with Learning to Work brings businesses and students together to learn about the Circular Economy

Dec 14, 2017

West Chicago, Ill – Sims Recycling Solutions, a leading provider of global IT asset disposition (ITAD) services, along with Oracle, Microsoft, Sopra Steria and CA Technologies recently shared their knowledge and passion for the Circular Economy and sustainability, with their future colleagues – over 100 Year Nine students in the Heathrow area. The event was organised by Learning to Work (LTW), a not-for-profit organisation that facilitates links between education and the world of work, giving students an insight into career options as part of STEM – science, technology, engineering and maths.

The #LandfilltoLife challenge introduced students to many skills and qualities used within the Technology and Engineering sectors, explored the importance of reuse and recycling, and investigated how business partnerships can collaborate to create circular business models. Working in teams with students from other schools they set up business ventures or social enterprises to design and market a new product or service from redundant electronics taking into account cost, environmental benefits, safety and reliability, and customer service. Each team presented their ideas and project booklet to a panel of business volunteer judges and were evaluated on their concept, presentation content, sustainability, cost and overall team work. One of the winning concepts included a plan to reuse components from mobile phones to create new simple-feature phones for consumers wanting a basic functional phone to use for only calls and texts.

“It was most rewarding to see the diverse mix of students integrate with one another whilst having fun and creating new ways of extending the life of electronic assets”, said Anand Narasimhan, Managing Director of SRS Asset Recovery Services, EU and India.

“It was a good experience. I now know a lot more about recycling”, one student commented. “In my opinion this was a wonderful time to explore the business and I would love to come again”.

To maximise the impact of the business partnership CA Technologies donated the use of their Manor House in Datchet for the event, and Oracle donated prizes for the winning teams. The donations and volunteer time showcased a collaborative, supply chain approach to raising awareness of the Circular Economy, STEM career development and a strong commitment to corporate social responsibility.