Amazon has extended its re:Cycle Reverse Logistics program, which helps reuse and recycle components from its data centers, into Europe with a new facility in Ireland.
The lab in Ballycoolin, a northern suburb of Irish capital Dublin, tests and repairs equipment from data centers run by AWS, Amazon’s public cloud platform.
By doing this, the company says it is moving to its target of becoming net zero across its operations by 2040.
How Amazon’s re:Cycle Reverse Logistics program works
Used servers are delivered to the Dublin facility after user information has been removed.
Robotic trolleys move up to two tons of equipment around the factory, where bespoke machines and processes are deployed to enable the reuse of equipment and components and the recovery of precious metals.
This enables the company to give a second life to chips, RAM, and network cards, Amazon said. It did not disclose where the refurbished components are being deployed, but said the factory in Dublin supports AWS data center operations in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
Reuse within AWS data centers is prioritized, but components are also sold to third parties. If neither of these options is practical, materials are recycled.
Amazon started its re:Cycle program in the US in 2023, opening a 550,000 sq ft (51,100 sqm) facility in Antrim Township, Pennsylvania.
In 2023, 14.6 million hardware components globally were diverted from landfills by being recycled or sold into the second-hand market for reuse, the company said.
Circular economy principles
Between re:Cycle Reverse Logistics center and its manufacturing facilities elsewhere in Ireland, Amazon said it has created 850 jobs in the European country.
The new facility was officially opened on Monday by Roderic O’Gorman, leader of the Irish Green Party and Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration, and Youth.
He said: “Circular economy projects are increasingly important to help us build a more sustainable economy. We need to work together to ensure that products, whatever their shape or form, are kept in use for as long as possible through smart design, repair, and reuse.
“It’s great to see this approach being put into practice at the Amazon facility in Ballycoolin in North Dublin. What impressed me most are the skills and dedication of the hundreds of people who work at this site in Dublin and how they are making the circular economy a reality."
