The Refinishing Touch Blog

Last week, we drafted a post about the switchover to the digital signal and the impact on America's estimated 219 million television sets, of which 2.8 million households are completely unready for the transition.

As a business, we know from the number of armoire conversions we've completed for hospitality clients in the past 3 years and the thousands of units we've transformed and saved from the landfill, that this is much broader than a consumer problem – with every guest room in America's hotels, casinos and motels housing a television set, this is a real challenge for the hospitality industry.

Although the challenge to prepare for the switchover may have been different for these groups, there is one common problem now for those that have decided to invest in new digital sets – just how to disperse of old television sets easily, cost-effectively and of course in an environmentally-friendly way. It's no surprise to learn that television sets are not built with the environment in mind: even just the cathode ray tubes contain several pounds of highly toxic lead. Recycling is essential to prevent this from entering the environment.

TV manufacturers are making moves in the right direction. From Sony and LG which have recycling programs managed by recycling firm Waste Management, to group efforts supported by the likes of Panasonic, Sharp and Toshiba, there is a consensus in the industry that there need to be recycling programs in place. It's estimated that at present around 20 percent of televisions are recycled – the rest heading to landfills. So with the switchover, there could be a wave of abandoned TVs.

We're going to be conducting a survey among consumers and the hospitality industry to see if they are disposing of analog television sets, and just where they think the responsibility should lie: with them as the owners - or with manufacturers, local government, federal government or retailers. Or even the commercial TV networks.

We'll be linking this survey to our website over the next few weeks, so if you'd like to participate please keep reading. We'll be sharing our results in the next month or so.

Meanwhile, if you are getting rid of your old set, make sure you are recycling it and that you do so through a socially-responsive organization.

Labels: Analogue Switch, digital TV, Hospitality, Recycle

As a company we've always been involved in organizations and associations that drive change and communicate new processes. In line with this our Founder and President, Mario Insenga, has served as a Board member for the General Services Administration (GSA) Quality Partnership Council, a role which he has held for two years.

This week Mario travelled up to Capitol Hill in his capacity as acting chair so he could attend and MC the council's March meeting. The meeting sees GSA departments come together to discuss and collaborate on a range of activities from green initiatives to the Trade Agreements Act. He's come back to Georgia encouraged and motivated by the meetings, ideas and enthusiasm of everyone involved.

Mario also returned with a new award to add to The Refinishing Touch's collection: as on Wednesday, the GSA awarded him with an 'Outstanding Service Award' in recognition of his contribution.

We are thrilled with Mario's recognition by the GSA, (which is the second GSA award we've won!) and proud that The Refinishing Touch is reminding Washington of our core message: reduce, reuse and recycle.

Labels: government, GSA, Recycle, Reduce, Reuse

Here at the Refinishing Touch we live by the three Rs: Reduce, Recycle and Reuse. We applaud any company that supports and encourages consumers to think how to be more sustainable in their everyday lives.

So our sustainability hats off to Best Buy Inc. which has just stretched its electronics-recycling program to cover its 1,006 U.S. stores nationwide. The Richfield-based consumer-electronics retailer began testing this initiative across eight states last June. In February it expanded to cover 50 states, and Kelly Groehlerto, spokeswoman for the program, has stated the company plans to extend the plan into Puerto Rico.

How does it work? Customers simply bring their old electronics, including televisions and monitors up to 32 inches, desktop and notebook computers, small electronics, VCRs, DVD players and phones, as well as accessories such as keyboards, mice and remotes back to any Best Buy store in the US for recycling.

The company will be charging a $10 recycling fee for items with screens, including televisions, laptops and monitors. Though customers who bring those items will receive a $10 Best Buy gift card in exchange for the recycling fee. This charge is exempt in California and for all Best Buy store-branded products, such as Insignia, Dynex and VPR Matrix.

Here at The Refinishing Touch, we sincerely hope to see this trend continue to cover other consumer products. Simple ideas like this allow ordinary Americans to effortlessly incorporate recycling into their everyday lives.

Labels: Best Buy, electronics, Recycle, Reduce, Reuse, Sustainability