The Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI), the Voice of the Recycling Industry, is seeking entries for its 2016 Design for Recycling (DFR) Award. The annual DFR Award recognizes “proactive steps made by manufacturers who have actively incorporated DFR principles into products and processes,” ISRI says.
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| LG won the 2015 Design for Recycling award for its 4K Ultra HD OLED and LED TVs. |
“The Design for Recycling Award recognizes those manufacturers that go above and beyond to ensure their products can be recycled in a safe and responsible manner,” says Robin Wiener, president of ISRI, which is based in Washington. “This effort begins at the very early stages of a product’s design. It includes making sure a product can be recycled from both economic and environmental standpoints and with no safety risk to recyclers.”
Wiener adds, “While recyclers would like to see more manufacturers take this approach, we are encouraged that since the inception of this award, the competition has increased each year.”
ISRI began the award more than 25 years ago. Previous winners include Cascades Fine Papers Group, Coca-Cola Recycling Co., the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Dell Inc., and last year’s winner LG Electronics.
To be eligible for ISRI’s Design for Recycling Award, a product must be designed/redesigned and manufactured to:
- contain the maximum amount of recyclable materials;
- be easily recycled through current or newly designed recycling processes and procedures;
- be cost effective to recycle whereby the cost to recycle does not exceed the value of its recycled materials;
- be free of hazardous materials that are not recyclable or that impede the recycling process;
- minimize the time and cost involved to recycle the product;
- reduce the use of raw materials by including recycled materials and/or components; and
- have a net gain in the overall recyclability of the product while reducing the overall negative impact on the environment.
Interested parties can enter online before Jan. 15, 2016. The winner will be announced at the ISRI 2016 Convention and Exposition to be held April 2-7 in Las Vegas.
The 2015 winner, LG Electronics, was recognized for its 4K Ultra HD OLED and LED TVs. These products were designed with the following recycling-friendly traits in mind: mercury-free display panels; use of recycled and recyclable plastics; inclusion of components that are free of PVC (polyvinyl chloride) and brominated flame retardants; small and lighter packaging; ease of disassembly and label/seal separation; and the use of standardized materials and connection types.