EPEAT is a procurement tool designed to help institutional purchasers in the public and private sectors evaluate, compare and select desktop computers, notebooks and monitors based on their environmental attributes. EPEAT also provides a clear and consistent set of performance criteria for the design of products and provides an opportunity for manufacturers to secure market recognition for efforts to reduce the environmental impact of its products.
“The Green Electronics Council is thrilled to welcome NEC to the EPEAT family,” said Jeff Omelchuck, Executive Director of the Green Electronics Council, which oversees the EPEAT program. “EPEAT is a very tough environmental standard that only the best electronic products are capable of meeting. We are happy to see NEC products among this elite group.”
EPEAT-certified products contain reduced levels of cadmium, lead, and mercury. They also are more energy efficient, which reduces emissions of climate-changing greenhouse gases. In addition to their environmental friendliness, all NEC EPEAT monitors decrease acquisition costs over the lifetime of the monitors by reducing energy consumption and minimizing recycling fees.
“EPEAT has the strictest product compliance regulations for any environmental initiative,” said Richard Atanus, Vice President of Engineering, Technical and Environmental Services for NEC Display Solutions. “By selling Energy Star®-compliant monitors, taking part in the resale of refurbished component parts, and using only recycled paper and cardboard in all of our product packaging, NEC clearly recognizes the long-term benefits of environmentally friendly manufacturing.”
NEC Display Solutions currently sells 39 LCD monitors that meet or exceed all EPEAT standards, including the first EPEAT-certified LCD touchscreen display and the only displays using bio-based plastic.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that over the next five years, purchases of EPEAT-registered computers will result in reductions of more than 13-million pounds of hazardous waste, more than three-million pounds of non-hazardous waste, and more than 600,000 megawatt hours of energy – enough to power six-million homes.
