The only way for your LCD recycling plant to profit and remain profitable is by recycling large amounts of electronic waste. Electronic waste or e-waste refers to discarded electronic devices such as LCD screens in TVs and computers. Recycling e-waste is a profitable venture. Nearly 50 million tonnes of electronic waste is discarded yearly. However, not all of the discarded electronic waste is recycled. Only 20% of this discarded waste gets recycled.
Your recycling plant’s profitability partly depends on your workers’ productivity. The national labor rate indicates that all employees are entitled to equal rights on the same wage protection of the country. To create a company that thrives on sustainability and promotes a circular economy, you need to think of more sustainable e-waste recycling practices.
What is The Role of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises in Economic Development?
Small and Medium-Sized enterprises (SMEs) are generally known as the driving force of national and international economic growth. Without the aid of SMEs as supply chains, large corporations might be unable to make sales or meet the services and products demanded by consumers.
An SME in the e-waste recycling industry is very important owing to the large amount of electronic waste produced worldwide yearly. SMEs in the e-waste recycling industry not only help to reduce the number of toxic materials being released from e-waste at disposal sites but also help to expand the tax base, create employment opportunities, and drive innovation.
According to the World Bank, the world will need about 600 million jobs to absorb the increasing global force by 2030. This means that SME development is crucial to the growth and development of governments worldwide.
SMEs possess the flexibility that big corporations don’t have. They are less likely to be affected by economic crises as they quickly adapt to economic changes. Particularly in developing countries, SMEs have gained popularity over large businesses because they can work with intense labor at lower costs.
Greening SMEs
Governments worldwide are becoming increasingly aware of the need to take action against climate change, with many setting up policies to achieve a more sustainable economy. Individually, SMEs have a low carbon footprint. However, the amount of environmental waste they create is significant as a collective body.
Nowadays, large corporations recognize the need for sustainable practices such as waste management through recycling, reducing the cost of resources, and environmental compliance. However, not all SMEs know the benefits of going green or practicing sustainability.
The European Union adopted an action plan nearly a decade ago called The Green Action Plan (GAP). The action plan aimed to ensure that SMEs took advantage of the opportunities and benefits of going green. Other governments also created sustainability programs, such as the recycling program to encourage SMEs to reduce their overall carbon footprint.
How Can You Create a Clean, Green Circular Economy With SMEs
Small and Medium-sized enterprises need to understand the importance of adopting a circular economy business model. With almost 60% of the world’s environmental waste coming from SMEs, governments of the world need to create policies to help SMEs in each country practice a circular economy.
SMEs’ entrepreneurial nature and size play a huge role in helping them transition to a circular economy. Due to this, they can spot and act on sustainability opportunities on time. For example, SMEs who are Eco-innovators can pioneer new green companies in emerging markets that large corporations find unappealing.
You need to note what going green will mean for your LCD recycling plant. So if you become a green SME, you are committed to protecting the environment and climate through your business practices, services, and goods.
You can decide to reduce the amount of environmental waste produced through your production process. This means that when recycling raw materials from your LCD screens to make new products, you use resource-efficient processes.
Going green will help you tap into the growing demand for green services and products. You can also attract investors from large corporations who want sustainable raw materials.
What Are The Necessary Actions to Support SMEs Transition to a Circular Economy?
Governments worldwide understand the need for businesses to adopt the circular economy business model. SMEs contribute greatly to the growth and development of economies in each country, and most SMEs have difficulties transitioning to a circular economy due to various barriers.
Having noticed this, governments worldwide devised policies and action plan to support SMEs in transitioning to a circular economy. For example, the Waste and Resource Management Association under the Austrian Government was involved in creating a bachelor’s degree program in Sustainable resource management.
The course aimed to sensitize students about sustainability’s social, ecological, and economic dimensions. Taking this course as an LCD screen recycling service will go a long way in making your business sustainable.
Croatia also has action plans to support its SMEs. They formed a waste exchange program that regulates the supply and demand for waste streams in the country. As an LCD recycling SME, this waste stream can be used as secondary raw materials in your production process.
Through the waste stream program, you can be connected to secondary raw material providers if you’re seeking raw materials. You can also be connected to raw materials seekers as a provider.
Finally, the Eu created a project called LIFE-WEEE to encourage companies and citizens to be more careful in managing electronic waste collection. The project supported SMEs by developing IT tools that provided simple guidelines on effectively collecting electronic waste on their premises.
The EU-funded project created an awareness campaign to provide adequate information about e-waste collection to businesses and citizens.
Conclusion
As an SME, your LCD recycling has plenty to offer the economy. With e-waste increasing across the world every day, there is an increasing need for recycling facilities that will help to reduce the environmental and health disaster this toxic waste can impose.
Endeavor to adopt the circular economy business model in your business, as this can give you a competitive edge over others in the investor’s market.
