Sustainability in IT: Circular Computing & Eco-Friendly Device Management

The IT industry is often seen as a driver of innovation, but it’s also a growing contributor to global resource use and emissions. For small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and other organisations looking for SME IT support or business IT support, sustainability can’t be an afterthought. Thoughtful procurement, longer device lifecycles, responsible disposal and smarter IT support all cut costs and carbon. This article explains the rise of remanufactured devices and circular economy principles in IT procurement, shows how good IT support reduces carbon footprint, and explains how AIS can be the sustainable IT partner your business needs.

Why Circular IT Procurement Matters Today

Electronic waste is growing fast. The UN’s Global E-Waste Monitor found a record 62 million tonnes of e-waste produced worldwide in 2022, and only about 22% of that was documented as properly collected and recycled. At current growth rates, e-waste is predicted to rise even further by 2030 - which means the environmental and resource risks from throwing away functioning electronics are escalating. 

That’s where the circular economy - designed to keep products and materials in use for as long as possible through repair, refurbishment and remanufacturing - comes in. Instead of “take-make-dispose”, circular procurement looks to extend device lifespans, recover value and reduce the need for virgin materials. For businesses, that translates into lower procurement costs, smaller embodied-carbon per device and reduced e-waste risk.

Remanufactured Devices: The Evidence Base

Not all second-hand or “refurbished” devices are equal. The remanufacturing model (a factory process that disassembles, tests, replaces failing components and returns devices to a like-new standard) delivers stronger environmental outcomes than piecemeal refurbishment.

A recent peer-reviewed study of remanufactured enterprise laptops found dramatic carbon savings versus new devices. Research associated with remanufacturing programmes has reported that remanufactured laptops can produce only a fraction of the CO₂ of brand-new equivalents - the kind of reduction that meaningfully impacts an organisation’s scope-3 reporting and circular procurement goals. Vendors practising full remanufacturing also report up to ~40% cost savings against new devices and very low RMA rates thanks to rigorous quality control.

For AIS’s clients - especially SMEs where budgets and sustainability targets matter - that means purchasing remanufactured laptops or desktops can be both a carbon-wise and cost-wise decision.

How Good IT Support Reduces Carbon Footprint

Many businesses think sustainability is only about what they buy. In truth, day-to-day IT operations and the way technology is managed have major climate impacts too. A sustainable business IT support approach combines people, process and platforms to reduce energy use, extend hardware life and eliminate waste. Here are the main levers:

1. Move workloads intelligently - cloud, consolidation and virtualisation

Virtualisation and server consolidation allow many workloads to run on fewer, better-utilised machines. Industry roadmaps and studies show that server virtualisation strategies can deliver large energy savings (in some frameworks cited as around a 29% reduction across data centre energy when implemented as part of an efficiency roadmap). Similarly, adopting efficient cloud providers or modern colocation can often cut emissions dramatically because hyperscale providers run highly optimised, renewable-backed data centres. Independent consultancy work has shown cloud migration can reduce energy usage and carbon for many applications by a substantial margin.

2. Smarter device management and lifecycle services

Good SME IT support ensures devices are configured for energy efficiency (power-saving policies, sleep scheduling, monitored battery health), and that end-of-life planning happens well before devices become waste. Proactive patching and remote troubleshooting also reduce the need for time-consuming and carbon-intensive truck rolls or device replacements.

3. Extend device life through repair, reuse and remanufacture

A support model that emphasises repair, component replacement and graded reuse delays the need to buy new devices. Extending device service lifetimes by even a couple of years compounds into significantly avoided embodied emissions at scale.

4. Reduce print and on-prem infrastructure waste

Consolidating services (e.g., moving file servers to cloud or network storage, implementing print-management policies) reduces hardware footprint and energy use. Desktop virtualisation and thin-client strategies can also lower per-user power demand.

5. Measurable reporting and continuous improvement

Sustainable IT support includes measurement - tracking device counts, energy use, e-waste volumes and recycled materials - so carbon reductions are visible and reportable for CSR/ESG reporting and supplier assessments.

What SMEs Should Look for in Sustainable IT Support

Small and medium organisations often lack the in-house resources to design and run green IT programmes. When choosing an IT support partner, SMEs should ask about:

• Lifecycle services: Do they provide asset tagging, repair, refurbishment, secure data-erasure and take-back services?

• Green procurement advice: Can they quantify carbon benefits of remanufactured devices versus new purchases?

• Evidence and standards: Do they reference independent studies, third-party remanufacturing certifications, or WEEE-compliant disposal? (In the UK the WEEE regime sets the rules for responsible EEE disposal.)

• Energy optimisation services: Do they offer server consolidation, virtualisation, and cloud migration advice with carbon-aware outcomes?

• Transparent reporting: Are device counts, e-waste figures and emissions reductions measurable and auditable?

AIS as a Sustainable IT Partner

What AIS can do as a partner in IT and sustainability:

Asset lifecycle & responsible disposal

• Full-service ITAD (IT asset disposition): secure data erasure, traceable chain of custody, certified recycling and reuse pathways compliant with UK WEEE regulations. This minimises legal and reputational risk while maximising recovered value.

Remanufactured and refurbished procurement

• Procurement advisory that recommends remanufactured enterprise devices where appropriate, backed by lifecycle CO₂ estimates and total cost of ownership comparisons. For many businesses, remanufactured devices offer performance parity with large carbon and cost savings.

Managed services with sustainability KPIs

• Green SLAs: Device-reuse rate, average device lifespan, e-waste diverted and estimated CO₂ avoided per year. A sustainability dashboard so SMEs can include these figures in management reports.

Energy-aware infrastructure

• Cloud/virtualisation migration: Assessments that estimate energy and carbon savings from moving eligible workloads to efficient cloud providers or consolidating on a virtualised host. Using industry benchmarks to set realistic expectations.

Education and change management

• Employee guidance on energy-saving behaviours, print reduction and correct device handover procedures - simple changes that multiply across an SME workforce.

Quick wins for SMEs (actionable checklist)

1. Audit your estate: count devices, age profile, repair history and disposal routes.

2. Choose remanufactured where it fits: especially for standard office laptops and fleet refreshes.

3. Apply power management policies: enforce sleep, auto-shutdown and energy profiles.

4. Consolidate servers & consider cloud: target non-mission-critical workloads first and measure before/after.

5. Implement secure take-back: no more leaving devices in drawers - use certified ITAD partners.

The Business Case: Sustainability That Pays

Sustainability is no longer only about brand values - it’s a practical cost and risk management decision. Remanufactured devices and lifecycle services reduce capital expenditure while cutting the embedded carbon of IT purchases. Cloud and virtualisation reduce operational energy costs and can improve resilience and service levels for SMEs. When AIS combines procurement advice, lifecycle management and green-focused managed services, clients get a measurable route to lower costs, lower emissions and better compliance with UK EEE regulations and evolving ESG reporting expectations. 

The problem of electronic waste and IT-related emissions is urgent - but it’s also solvable with the right mix of procurement choices and managed services. For SMEs and all organisations seeking SME IT support or business IT support, embracing circular computing (remanufactured devices), responsible asset disposal and energy-smart IT operations yields both environmental and commercial wins.

If your organisation wants to reduce its IT carbon footprint, extend device life, and adopt a circular procurement approach, AIS can help design and implement a practical roadmap - from auditing your estate to supplying remanufactured devices, to managing secure disposal and reporting your carbon savings.

Want a quick audit or a TCO + carbon comparison for your next device refresh? AIS can run a tailored assessment showing the financial and emissions difference between buying new, refurbished and remanufactured - get in touch and let’s make your IT work for the planet and your bottom line.

Selected sources & further reading

• Global E-Waste Monitor 2024 - record 62 million tonnes e-waste in 2022. E-Waste MonitorITU

• Circular remanufacturing and Cranfield peer-reviewed study on remanufactured laptop CO₂ reductions; Circular Computing resources on remanufactured devices and BSI Kitemark. circularcomputing.comBSI

• Energy Logic / virtualisation energy savings and green data-centre best practice. WikipediaScienceDirect

• Cloud carbon and energy efficiencies (industry analyses on cloud vs on-premises energy use). Default

• UK WEEE and government guidance on e-waste collection and targets. GOV.UK+1

• UK Greening Government ICT report - reductions in government IT e-waste and CO₂e where sustainability measures were deployed. GOV.UK