Green IT Review: EPEAT green certification expands

EPEAT, the green electronics rating system based on the IEEE 1680 family of Environmental Assessment Standards, has now added printers, copiers and other imaging equipment to its list of green PCs and Displays.

EPEAT stands for Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool, although now that the organisation is well established the full name is rarely used. For more than six years, EPEAT ratings have helped companies, governments and consumers compare and purchase greener PCs and monitors.

To be added to the EPEAT registry of products, an imaging device must meet at least 33 required environmental performance criteria. Products are rated Bronze, Silver or Gold depending on how many of the 26 additional optional criteria it meets.

Assessment is made on a lifecycle basis, addressing the elimination of toxic substances, the use of recycled and recyclable materials, their design for recycling, product longevity, energy efficiency, corporate performance and packaging, among other criteria. The rating criteria were developed through a consensus of representatives from the environmental, research, governmental and manufacturing sectors.

The EPEAT registry now includes imaging equipment from seven manufacturers: Canon, Dell, Epson, HP, Lexmark, Ricoh and Xerox, and two others – Konica Minolta and Samsung – have begun the process of registering products. These nine manufacturers represent at least 80% of the global market for copiers, printers, scanners and multifunction devices.

The potential impact of this extension to imaging products is clear from EPEAT’s success to date with PCs and displays….  Full article here.