Lenovo commits to end-to-end product circular economy

What does sustainable design mean, and what does that journey look like for companies like Lenovo?

Sustainable design is all about reducing product carbon footprints, driving circular materials usage, and taking sustainability into account by using innovation to continually improve when developing products and services.

Lenovo is an industry leader in using post-consumer recycled content (PCC) plastics and closed loop PCC (PCC sourced from end-of-life IT and electronics equipment) in the manufacturing of devices and accessories. In fact, by FY 2025/26, we will use 300 million pounds of post-consumer recycled content plastics in our products, with 100% of our PC products containing post-consumer recycled content materials. As of FY 22/23, 298 Lenovo products are made with closed-loop PCC recycled materials. Of note, we collaborated with Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corporation to develop a PC adapter with an industry-leading 90% PCC.

Our product take-back programmes make it easy for many customers around the world to recycle their old devices, batteries, and packaging. We sustain demand for recycled electronics by using closed-loop PCC in our own products.

How does sustainability play a key part in packaging?

The key to creating greener packaging is increasing the use of recycled and recyclable materials, reducing the size, and expanding the use of bulk and reusable solutions.

At Lenovo, by 2025, we will use recycled materials to produce 90% of plastic packaging for our PC products and 60% of smartphone packaging, as well as introducing plastic-free packaging. We will produce 100% of smartphone products and accessories free of Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) and Brominated Flame Retardants (BFRs), while using 50% less single-use plastics and reducing the size/volume in our smartphone packaging by 10%.

It’s innovations like these that make packaging more sustainable and help support our customers sustainability goals.

How is Lenovo committed to end-to-end sustainability?

Recycling plays a key role in our sustainability journey, and we have so far used more than 130 million pounds of net recycled plastic and 18 million pounds of closed-loop recycled content in our products and packaging. However, end-to-end sustainability involves much more than this and includes the whole business across devices, data centre solutions as well as services.

For example, to support our vision to achieve net-zero by 2050, Lenovo ISG is designing solutions to promote energy efficiency for our products and our customers. Innovations such as Neptune Liquid Cooling Solution, a direct water-cooling solution, recycles loops of warm water to cool data centre systems. It enables customers to realise up to a 40% reduction in power consumption and a 3.5x improvement in thermal efficiencies compared to traditional air-cooled systems. Additionally, Lenovo Value Recovery is a sustainability service that helps to reduce e-waste and enables the purchase of refurbished and recertified enterprise hardware at an affordable price, ensuring we help customers end-to-end on their sustainability journey.

In FY 2022/23, we increased participation in the circular economy, integrating closed-loop post-consumer recycled content into 50 more product lines, resulting in a total of nearly 300 (298) products including this content, which is recycled from end-of-life IT equipment.

What tips do you have for businesses looking to embed sustainability into design practices, both in terms of product, packaging and partnerships?

When it comes to improving sustainability within the business, companies need to look at the whole organisation. For example, at Lenovo we don’t just look at PC products such as ThinkPads but also the design of our servers which by FY 2029/30, we will achieve 50% improvement in energy efficiency.

Additionally, it’s important to think about how businesses can maintain sustainability even after the products and services have been purchased. At Lenovo our Solutions and Services Group (SSG) binds our business together. As part of this the team provides sustainability services after devices have been bought. And by 2025, we will enable the recycling and reuse of 363 million kilogrammes of end-of-life products and ensure 76% of repairable PC parts returned to our service centres will be repaired for future use.

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SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

SDGs Addressed

• SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production
• SDG 13: Climate Action
• SDG 14: Life Below Water
• SDG 15: Life on Land

Targets Identified

1. Target 12.2: By 2030, achieve the sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources.
2. Target 12.5: By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling, and reuse.
3. Target 13.2: Integrate climate change measures into national policies, strategies, and planning.
4. Target 14.1: By 2025, prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution of all kinds.
5. Target 15.2: By 2020, promote the implementation of sustainable management of all types of forests.

Indicators

• Indicator 12.2.1: Material footprint, material footprint per capita, and material footprint per GDP.
• Indicator 12.5.1: National recycling rate, tons of material recycled.
• Indicator 13.2.1: Number of countries that have communicated the establishment or operationalization of an integrated policy/strategy/plan that addresses climate change.
• Indicator 14.1.1: Index of coastal eutrophication and floating plastic debris density.
• Indicator 15.2.1: Progress towards sustainable forest management.

Analysis

SDGs Addressed

The issues highlighted in the article are connected to the following Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs):

• SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production – The article discusses Lenovo’s efforts to reduce product carbon footprints, drive circular materials usage, and improve sustainability in product development.
• SDG 13: Climate Action – Lenovo is committed to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 and is developing energy-efficient solutions to reduce power consumption.
• SDG 14: Life Below Water – Lenovo aims to reduce marine pollution by using recycled materials in packaging and promoting the circular economy.
• SDG 15: Life on Land – Lenovo integrates closed-loop post-consumer recycled content into its products, contributing to sustainable forest management and reducing waste generation.

Targets Identified

1. Target 12.2: By 2030, achieve the sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources – Lenovo’s use of post-consumer recycled content plastics and closed-loop recycled materials in manufacturing aligns with this target.
2. Target 12.5: By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling, and reuse – Lenovo’s product take-back programs and use of closed-loop recycled materials contribute to waste reduction.
3. Target 13.2: Integrate climate change measures into national policies, strategies, and planning – Lenovo’s commitment to achieving net-zero emissions and developing energy-efficient solutions aligns with this target.
4. Target 14.1: By 2025, prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution of all kinds – Lenovo’s use of recycled materials in packaging and promotion of the circular economy contribute to reducing marine pollution.
5. Target 15.2: By 2020, promote the implementation of sustainable management of all types of forests – Lenovo’s integration of closed-loop recycled content into its products supports sustainable forest management.

Indicators

• Indicator 12.2.1: Material footprint, material footprint per capita, and material footprint per GDP – The article mentions Lenovo’s use of post-consumer recycled content plastics and closed-loop recycled materials, which can be measured as part of the material footprint indicator.
• Indicator 12.5.1: National recycling rate, tons of material recycled – Lenovo’s product take-back programs and use of closed-loop recycled materials contribute to recycling efforts, which can be measured through the national recycling rate and tons of material recycled.
• Indicator 13.2.1: Number of countries that have communicated the establishment or operationalization of an integrated policy/strategy/plan that addresses climate change – Lenovo’s commitment to achieving net-zero emissions aligns with this indicator.
• Indicator 14.1.1: Index of coastal eutrophication and floating plastic debris density – Lenovo’s efforts to reduce marine pollution by using recycled materials in packaging can contribute to reducing floating plastic debris density.
• Indicator 15.2.1: Progress towards sustainable forest management – Lenovo’s integration of closed-loop recycled content into its products supports sustainable forest management and can be measured through progress indicators.

Table: SDGs, Targets, and Indicators