Circular IT and a sustainable future for the digital workplace
The public and private sector faces growing pressure to reduce its environmental impact while maintaining efficient, secure and cost-effective digital services. A huge element of the environmental impact of any organization centers around its use of technology, both in terms of the operational costs as well as the capital cost of the devices themselves.
Yet many organizations replace devices on a fixed refresh cycle, typically every four years, regardless of whether the hardware still meets performance needs. This approach is often driven by misunderstood risks, outdated procurement policies, lease cycles, warranty expirations or a perceived need to maintain uniformity across the workforce.
Some IT departments also default to regular replacements to simplify budgeting and avoid unexpected failures, while others assume newer devices automatically deliver better security and efficiency. Circular IT is a model that prioritizes reuse, refurbishment, remanufacturing and recycling over the traditional “take-make-dispose” approach, and this offers a transformative solution.
The carbon cost of new devices
Manufacturing a single laptop generates roughly 316kg CO2 before it’s even used, accounting for 79% of its total carbon footprint. Atos research reveals that 76% of enterprise laptops can be remanufactured, while the remaining 24% can be recycled.
Simply extending a device’s lifespan from four to five years cuts emissions by 25%, without compromising performance. Even more impactful, data-driven, condition-based refreshes can push lifespans to 8-10 years, delivering both cost savings and significant carbon reductions.
The waste hierarchy ranks sustainability strategies in order of priority, starting with prevention at the top. The most effective approach is to avoid unnecessary purchases altogether by extending device usable life as much as possible. Reusing devices, such as redeploying them to new employees or donating used devices to charity, comes next, followed by recycling materials at end-of-life. Energy recovery from waste should only be a last resort.
Circular IT focuses on the top tiers of the waste hierarchy, ensuring devices remain in use for as long as possible before recycling becomes necessary.
Taking a circular approach not only reduces emissions at manufacturing, transportation and usage, it also reduces reliance on certain rare minerals, and in turn hedges against supply issues that might come about as a result of geopolitical circumstances.
A typical laptop contains approximately 66 minerals, including critical raw materials like lithium, cobalt, gold, neodymium and tantalum, essential for batteries, circuits and hard drives. We saw recent negotiations between the US and Ukraine center heavily around future access to rare earth minerals.
With trade tensions and export restrictions on the rise, relying solely on new devices is unsustainable. Remanufacturing reduces demand for virgin materials, helping organizations mitigate geopolitical risks while conserving finite resources.
How organizations can drive change
Rather than replacing devices on a fixed schedule, Atos advocates for performance-based refreshes. Software is available that monitors device health, ensuring replacements only happen when necessary. This approach not only reduces waste but also aligns with employee preferences, 75% of workers say they would keep devices longer once they understand the environmental benefits.
Atos partners with Circular Computing, whose BSI-certified remanufactured laptops deliver performance on par with new devices while drastically reducing environmental impact. Each remanufactured laptop produces just 6% of the emissions of a new one and saves 1,200kg of resources and 190,000 liters of water.
An example of this in practice is DEFRA’s five-year contract with Atos, which includes the deployment of 34,000 refurbished laptops. This initiative is projected to save 10,744 tons of CO2, equivalent to the annual energy emissions of 3,825 UK households, while preserving 40,800 tons of resources (more than the weight of Canary Wharf Tower) and 6,460 megaliters of water (enough to fill 2,560 Olympic swimming pools).
Taking a top-down approach
For Circular IT to succeed, senior executives must set the tone. It is not uncommon for individuals to carry (or at least own) multiple tablets, a high-end laptop and the latest smartphone. But they need to ask themselves whether they truly need that level of tech when most of the time all they’re using it for is browsing, sending emails and messaging, and accessing relatively simple applications.
Changing behavior can also help reduce environmental impact. Atos data reveals 16% of workplace devices are left running continuously and carbon intensity fluctuates up to 2.3x daily, suggesting organizations could implement “green hours” where employees use battery power during peak grid emissions. Simple changes like turning off unused devices and adjusting screen brightness could compound significant savings when scaled across large workforces.
Beyond environmental benefits, Circular IT supports social value. Atos often works with specialist SME organizations like Closing the Loop who ensure for every new device purchased, an equivalent is recycled in Africa, preventing e-waste from being dumped or burned. Additionally, Atos works with Tier 1, who run a ground-breaking prison workshop program at HMP Hindley where participants dismantle old IT equipment, providing them with paid work and skills training that aid rehabilitation.
Organizations around the world have a unique opportunity to embed Circular IT at scale, cutting costs and carbon while reducing reliance on geopolitically sensitive minerals. As DEFRA’s partnership with Atos proves, refurbishing and data-driven refreshes can slash emissions while maintaining performance. But systemic change requires more than individual initiatives, it demands collaboration. The Government Digital Sustainability Alliance exemplifies this, bringing together public sector bodies and suppliers to align on standards, from sustainable AI to planetary impacts. Such cross-sector cooperation is critical to overcoming the tension between standardized reporting and the nuanced sustainability insights vendors provide.
The tools, partnerships and evidence are all in place. Leadership must drive this transition, not just in policy but in practice. Moreover, Circular IT isn’t an environmental obligation, it's a strategic business advantage that cuts costs, satisfies employees and builds resilience.
