It has only been about a year since Apple announced that it was zeroing in on a future where iPhones and MacBooks were created wholly of recycled materials.
For one of the largest tech companies in the world, this sends a message to competitors! Apple is going to set the trend for the entire industry to move towards more sustainable practices. It is a great PR move and beyond that, it is simply the right thing to do!
Many don't know this but in a technologically-charged world, many forget that nearly 100 percent of e-waste is recyclable. But is it? It definitely is not! Should it be? Of course it should...
“Daisy,” is Apple’s new robot. It is a second generation robot following in the footsteps of its ancestor, Liam, which Apple used to disassemble unneeded iPhones in an attempt to scrap or reuse the materials.
Daisy is very talented, it can salvage a bulk of the material needed to create brand new iPhones. To be more specific, the robot is capable of extracting parts from nine types of iPhone, and for every 100,000 devices it manages to recover 1,900 kg (4,188 pounds) of aluminum, 770 kg of cobalt, 710 kg of copper, and 11 kg of rare earth elements.
The rare earth elements extraction ability is particularly useful considering that these materials are some of the hardest and environmentally un-friendly materials required to build the devices.
In a recent environmental progress report, Apple made the following statement:
We hold ourselves to a strict definition of closed loop: To meet our goal, we must use 100 per cent responsibly sourced recycled or renewable materials and ensure the equivalent amount is returned to market. Recognizing that this goal could take many years to reach, we remain committed to responsible sourcing of primary materials as we make the transition.
Apple is making efforts in moving towards a completely green future but there is still a lot of work that needs to be done if the end goal is building entire MacBook and iPhone lines from recycled parts. Regardless it is hard to argue that they aren't making progress. Apple is getting there!
Daisy is a prototype and Apple is taking the next step by placing recovery robots in multiple locations throughout the United States and Europe. If you want t Daisy currently resides in Austin, Texas.
What do you guys think of this new sustainable effort coming out of the R&D labs of Apple? Is this a promising situation here or do you think its more about good press and PR?
Please leave your thoughts below in the comments section!
Source:
Apple’s recycling robot disassembles 200 iPhones an hour - TNM
Image Source:
TNM