Solvay sites in Germany donate used technical devices

Solvay sites in Germany create impact on sustainability AND people by donating used technical devices

Solvay sites in Germany donate used PCs, notebooks, monitors and mobile devices to Arbeit für Menschen mit Behinderung (AfB), an inclusive non-profit organization dedicated to creating jobs for people with disabilities by refurbishing used IT and mobile devices. In doing so, our colleagues are helping to reduce CO2 emissions, save raw materials and contribute to a better life for people with disabilities, supporting sustainability across all three Solvay One Planet pillars.

Solvay has been collaborating with AfB, or Work for People with Disabilities, for 12 years. It is Europe’s largest non-profit IT company, creating jobs for people with disabilities by refurbishing, recycling and reselling used IT equipment collected from companies like Solvay. In 2021 alone, our cooperation with AfB in Germany saved 16 metric tons of CO2, ten metric tons of metals and minerals and around 64,000 kilowatt hours of energy, while also creating a job for one person with a disability. 

Small actions, big impact

Of the 200 notebooks, PCs and monitors donated by Solvay in 2021, more than 60% were re-sold, with the rest being recycled. "Resources are conserved and people with disabilities are given a career perspective. We are happy to support this concept," says Wolfgang Hackelbörger, Country HR Manager in Germany. 

Contributing to social participation and resource conservation

In the 12 years they have been working with AfB, our German sites have donated around 1,600 devices, of which more than 70% have been resold. This amounts to savings of around 70 metric tons of greenhouse gases, more than 90 metric tons of metals and minerals and almost 240,000 kilowatt hours of energy. 

At the beginning of 2022, AfB thanked Solvay for our many years of loyalty and our contribution to social participation and resource conservation. And according to Wolfgang it’s a partnership that will continue well into the future: "Reprocessing IT hardware and thus conserving resources is an approach that is 100% in line with our Solvay One Planet sustainability program – and one that we will continue to promote."