What is E-waste recycling business?
Our world is more dominated by electronic devices than anything else. Anything we use, starting from televisions to our kitchen appliances, we are surrounded by electronic devices. Have you ever wondered where they go after they get damaged? They obviously get dumped somewhere like normal scrap nadir garbage. But that poses a great threat to our environment as none of the materials used in electric devices are biodegradable. Managing such E-waste is not only good for the environment, but is also profitable business. In terms of value, currently e-waste is INR 30,000 crore industry which is expected to touch Rs 130,000 crores by 2021. Fortunately, electronic waste industry is currently untapped by the formal sector in India.
Also, it is very profitable if you reuse the good parts of such electronic waste. You can turn this into a business venture. The business of recycling E-waste can help you get a number of materials from them, instead of throwing then directly into incinerators, you can recycle them to acquire the useful materials and then further recycle the unusable parts. All types of E-waste can be recycled if you know how to operate the entire business plan. It could also be a very profitable venture.
Business Types
- E-waste Collector – A collector simply collects electronic recyclable waste
- E-waste Processor – A processor is responsible of breaking the waste its components and creating new products out of it with the help of machines. Also, extracting important precious metals from waste.
Business Opportunity
Recycling E-waste gives rise to a brand new product and also helps us save money and the fast depleting resources of the world. But before starting any kind of business, you will have to have enough knowledge and idea about how the market operates. Many people nowadays discard their old computers to buy new ones instead of just updating the software. Moreover, most electronic devices come with a life span of 2-3 years at most. To deal with this, more and more new devices are being introduced and the amount of discarded E-waste is increasing too.
Acquiring a trade license is necessary before you start your business. Registering your workplace with the necessary authorities is also very important. The stepping stone of any business is learning how to conduct the business. Apart from your research, you can also visit a few companies that deal in E-waste recycling and learn their trade secrets and operations in person. Getting a first hand experience will give you a fair idea of what you are undertaking. You will be requiring a steady flow of funds to reunion your business as the recycling equipments can be expensive.
One very important aspect when dealing with E-waste is to find a suitable location to set up your factory. It is advisable that you choose a location that is at a distance form the main city or from any locality. But you will also have to be careful about the noxious emissions from the factory during the recycling process. You will have to acquire a no-objection notice from the locality. Setting up a safe dismantling unit is also important.
Phases In E-Waste Recycling Business
- Collection of electronic waste and sorting without breaking the components
- Investing in good dump yard to receive and store e-waste
- screening, refining, reuse, granulating, conditioning are also important processes in recycling.
- The process of dismantling is an important phase in e-waste recycling. Dismantling is the phase in which breaking of electronic waste into its components is done.
- Recovery of various precious metals is done.
Is it expensive to open an e-waste recycling plant?
Starting an e-waste recycling plant can be a bit expensive project because you would be investing in dumping yard to receive and store the e-waste. Also, investment in trucking and hauling system, dismantling facility, sorting and segregation facility, etc will come closer to INR 40 – 50 lakhs in India including machinery.
The market
In today’s world, the electronic market is probably at the top of the world. In spite of that, conducting a thorough research of the market , the customers and the bulk buyers is important. You have to chalk-out good marketing strategies. While you can do business with individual customers, you can get is touch with companies that deal in E-waste recycling and sell your collected materials. You can also sell your finished products to the various companies. You could also sell the different recycled parts like plastic, useful metals and other parts to the individual dealers.
Conclusion
Starting an E-waste recycling business can prove beneficial and profitable for you as well as save the earth from getting more and more polluted. By recycling the waste and producing new devices, the pollution can be easily reduced to a controllable amount.