Andrew Jones Tour of Techbuyer

In October we signed the IT Reuse and Repairs Declaration, orchestrated by the Restart Project and signed by over 240 organisations and individuals around the country.  

This month we hosted Andrew Jones, Conservative MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough, North Yorkshire at our UK headquarters in Hornbeam Park. During his time at our facilities, Andrew Jones signed the declaration, showing his support for a more circular IT economy.  

Andrew Jones is one of a number of  MPs who have signed the declaration across political parties. Furthermore, earlier this year Prime Minister Rishi Sunak attended a repair cafe at a Curry’s store, demonstrating his support for similar initiatives. IT repairs, reuse, refurbishment and eventual recycling is a popular topic that is rising in importance across the UK’s political parties.   

Andrew Jones’ Visit with Techbuyer 

Our team offered a tour of the facilities with a particular focus on our e-waste and repairs departments. With a zero-to-landfill policy, as well as initiatives to donate technology, we work to divert e-waste from landfill and to extend the lifespan of IT hardware.  

The UK is currently the second highest producer of e-waste per person, yet in terms of legislation, it is behind other countries in working to reduce this. The Repair and Reuse Declaration calls for more government support to help the UK step away from its take-make-waste economy.  

As stated by Andrew Jones:  

“E-waste is a problem that we have to learn to combat globally and extending the lifespan of technology is a great place to start. Repairing, reusing and recycling equipment allows us to keep what we have in use for longer periods of time, slowing the rate of e-waste production. The IT Repairs and Reuse Declaration promotes a circular IT economy that is essential for preserving resources and cutting back waste.” 

Improving legislation around IT repairs would help our country move away from the take-make-waste economy we currently practice – improving our carbon emissions, waste whilst also benefiting the economy.  

It was reported by the Restart Project that, if we used every mobile phone sold in 2019 for one year longer we would have prevented the release of carbon emissions equal to Singapore’s carbon footprint. 

Furthermore, by investing in repairs and green skills, the government could create upwards of 450,000 jobs across the UK by 2035.  

Techbuyer IT Repairs and Refurbishment 

Rather than sending electronics to landfill, we work to repair and refurbish IT equipment to give it a second life. In 2022 our Repairs Team fixed nearly £2 million worth of electronics and, as a company, we have diverted over 4,000,000kg of e-waste from landfill since 2019.  

Refurbished equipment is capable of both matching, and even outperforming, new in terms of performance and efficiency. This means that refurbished technology is a viable and often appealing option for many businesses and individuals. 

Refurbished is also a more environmentally friendly option: by extending the lifespan of technology, in both the first use stage, as well as preparing technology for subsequent use, we can improve the impact of the IT industry on the environment. Our Head of Sustainability and Public Sector, Astrid Wynne highlights this further:  

“There is a lot of waste associated with the delivery of digital services. The best way to avoid this is to think about electronic equipment as a long-term investment – something to take care of and repair when necessary. In order to this, we need to change the way the market works. Legislation is an essential part of this.” 

Explore our refurbished products, as well as our full range of services here to find out how we can improve the impact of your technology without compromising on performance or reliability.