Sustainability labeled products
Environmental and sustainability
certification of products is becoming increasingly common in many industries,
and there is a plethora of local and global labels for various products and
services. Fortunately, there are not as many labels relevant to the IT
industry. In the Swedish market, it is significantly easier to keep track of
these and to choose products that are environmentally or sustainability
certified.
The key principles for credible product labeling are described in the standard "ISO14024 - Environmental labels and declarations." The requirements in the labeling must be scientifically based and take a life cycle perspective. The goal is to be able to distinguish products that are better for the environment.
TCO Certified
Includes both environmental requirements and requirements for social responsibility in the supply chain, thus being a comprehensive sustainability certification.
The TCO labeling covers the following areas:
- Environmentally and socially responsible manufacturing
- Health and safety for the user
- Product performance
- Increased product lifespan
- Reduction of harmful substances
- Material recycling
- Indicators of sustainability benefits
The labeling is available for the following product categories:
- Monitors
- Laptops and desktops
- All-in-ones
- Tablets
- Smartphones
- Projectors
- Headsets
- Servers
EPEAT
Is an American sustainability declaration for IT products that can also be found in the Swedish market. An EPEAT approval is always tied to a country and is not automatically valid in all countries.
EPEAT's requirements are divided into the following areas:
- Material content and material choice
- Designed for recycling
- Lifespan
- Energy efficiency
- End-of-life management
- Packaging
- Life cycle assessment
- The company's environmental efforts
- The company's social responsibility
The labeling is available for the following product categories:
- Computers and monitors
- Printers and multifunctional printers
- Smartphones
- TVs
- Servers
Energy Star
Is a labeling that focuses solely on energy efficiency and is often included in other sustainability certifications as a way to meet energy requirements.
The labeling is available for the following product categories:
- Computers
- Printers and multifunctional printers
- Monitors
- IP phones
- Data center equipment such as servers, storage, networking, and power supply
Other enviromental labels
That are not as commonly found in the Swedish IT market
Svanen (The
Nordic Swan Ecolabel)
Has criteria for various IT products and is particularly successful for printers, copiers, and multifunction devices.
EU Ecolable
Also
known as Europe's equivalent to the Nordic Swan, has criteria for a large
number of different IT products.
Conscious choices
