Innovative circular economy joint venture BNP Paribas 3 Step IT has been certified by the Solar Impulse Foundation for the impact its services have on the environment.
The foundation is named after the Solar Impulse, which flew around the world using only solar energy to power the plane’s propellers.
To take the success of the 2015 achievement further, the Solar Impulse Foundation is selecting 1,000 solutions that protect the environment in a profitable way and awarding them the Solar Impulse Efficient Solution Label.
Pilot and founder Bertrand Piccard said: “We need to embrace clean technologies and efficient solutions, because they are much more than ‘ecological’ , they are ‘logical’. They create jobs and generate profit, while also reducing CO2 emissions and preserving natural resources.
“Even if climate change didn’t exist, they would make sense. Clean growth is much better than the dirty status quo we have today."
The Efficient Solution certification process requires a company to submit a detailed description of their offering for inspection by a panel of independent industry experts. According to the Foundation, certification typically takes around three months to complete and approximately two thirds of applications fail.
Chris Stalley (pictured), chief executive officer of BNP Paribas 3 Step IT, said: “Our circular economy solution offers IT teams a rare combination of reduced cost, improved service and greater sustainability. This fits Efficient Solution criteria well, and it’s good to have our claims rigorously and independently validated.”
BNP Paribas 3 Step IT is a joint venture company that offers a device-as-a-service solution that sells the use of equipment rather than the equipment itself, and then at the end of its first use, refurbishes the used technology to find a new user or recycles parts to minimise waste going to landfill.
The joint venture was created by European asset finance provider BNP Paribas Leasing Solutions, and IT asset management specialist 3stepIT.
BNP Paribas 3 Step IT’s focus on sustainability helps to reduce resources used in the manufacture of new products and spreads the original manufacturing carbon footprint across several users.
Electronic items are the fastest growing waste stream worldwide and the source of 70% of landfill toxic waste.
Stalley added: “Sustainability is a growing factor in IT planning, with 15% of organisations saying it is a consideration today, and a further 67% say they intend to integrate sustainability into their IT plans within the next two years. As our branches open, we will bring this solution to organisations across Western Europe by late 2020.”
