AWS extends data center equipment lifespans with reverse logistics plant in Dublin

Amazon has expanded its European recycling commitment with facilities in Dublin that work to repair data center hardware for reuse.

The Irish facility is part of Amazon’s ‘re:Cycle Reverse Logistics’ program which also runs a facility in Pennsylvania, according to reporting from Data Center Dynamics.

This reverse logistics site extends the life of data center hardware by dedicating its workforce to repairing equipment, helping support a circular economy, according to Amazon. Fewer components need to be manufactured so less energy and raw materials are used and, while not all equipment can be reused, nothing is sent to landfill. Unreusable equipment is sent for high-end recycling.

The facility reportedly uses bespoke machines and processes to reuse used equipment and salvage precious metals such as gold and silver from circuit boards and computer components.

Recovered components are either tested at Amazon’s labs and sent back to AWS data centers for reuse or sold to second-hand markets, Padraig Lynch, regional leader of operations at the facilities, said in a promotional video.

This reverse logistics site has created 850 jobs in Ireland so far, lauded by Ireland’s Green Party leader Roderic O’Gorman who toured and officially opened the plant.

“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,” O’Gorman 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,” he added.

“It’s great to see this approach being put into practice at the Amazon facility in Ballycoolin in North Dublin.”

Amazon and its cloud subsidiary AWS have been bullish on sustainability, having hit a goal to reach 100% renewable energy seven years ahead of schedule.

AWS also spent $650 million on a data center located near a 2.5-gigawatt nuclear power station in Pennsylvania in a bid to power its operations with less carbon-intensive power sources.