Procurri | Grail Blog

What Does ITAD Actually Mean?

Written by Julian Bannister | April 6, 2022 at 7:55 PM

The internet is full of IT-related acronyms and lists of ITAD companies. Indeed, when you look up ITAD, you’ll often find two different definitions of the abbreviation: both IT Asset Disposition and IT Asset Disposal. There is an extremely common misconception of ITAD as simply the disposal of hardware when it’s no longer required but Procurri leads the way in breaking with this offering more than just a wipe-and-bin approach. So, what does ITAD mean for businesses and their IT equipment? Let’s review the options…

ITAD: Disposal

The status quo amongst both the smallest and largest ITAD companies alike is to dispose of the equipment presented and send it to landfills. Indeed, this is what most businesses seek when they research ITAD companies and services and is very much the default. ITAD that results in absolute destruction and disposal of hardware involves the data sanitization of disks and any data-bearing hardware before the physical materials of the equipment is separated out and each disposed of in the most appropriate (and legally acceptable) manner. The consequences of this traditional ITAD are waste to landfill with its associated environmental impacts.

Procurri does not deal in traditional ITAD of this type as we operate on a zero-landfill policy. Should a customer present hardware that is no longer functional and is unable to be recycled or refurbished, it will pass to a trusted partner for such processing.

ITAD: Recycling and Resale

An often-overlooked portion of ITAD processing is the potential for recycling of the physical equipment, either in part or in full. Procurri’s ITAD engineers can dismantle hardware and process the individual parts for recycling where possible. This can result in an additional income stream for Procurri customers who are able to receive any funds raised from the sale of recycled parts – and the opportunity is often vast, as such materials need not just be recycled into more IT equipment.

ITAD: Refurbishment and Resale

Many businesses choose, for a myriad of reasons, to replace their IT hardware before it is at its absolute end-of-life state, and this is where many ITAD requirements are raised. If possible, Procurri’s team of specialist engineers will securely data sanitize hardware where appropriate before refurbishing it to its best possible performance capabilities for onward resale. Utilizing both worldwide distribution hubs and market sales channels, Procurri can then pass this equipment on to other organizations who are looking to procure datacentre hardware at a lower cost than OEMs are able to offer. The funds raised are then passed back to the customer – expanding their sustainability credentials, their budget, and the lifespan of the equipment being replaced (even if not by the original organization).

Procurri seeks to add value at every possible opportunity for its customers, and ITAD need not be viewed as a final event from which nothing can be gained. Potential lies everywhere and with Procurri, it can be uncovered!