Up-cycling e-Waste into Innovative Products through

Social Enterprise

Jarrod Trevathan

and Tony Sharp

Institute of Integrated and Intelligent Systems, Griffith University, 170 Kessels Road Nathan, Brisbane, Australia

Substation33, 31 Mary Street Kingston, Logan, Australia

Keywords: e-Waste Recycling, Social Enterprise, Green IT, Renewable Energy, Environmental Monitoring, Road Safety.

Abstract: Advances in information technology have brought about numerous benefits for many aspects of life. However,

the increased pervasiveness of electronic devices has also resulted in significant amounts of e-waste. E-waste

now extensively occupies scarce landfill resources and contributes to pollution due to the toxic and highly

reactive materials used in construction. This paper describes a unique social enterprise business model that

deals with the duel problem of social disadvantage and e-waste. Through building capacity across all sectors

in the community, this case study shows how a social enterprise can improve societal outcomes through

training and education, whilst also dramatically reducing the amount of e-waste going to landfill. Furthermore,

in addition to recycling, this social enterprise model can work with relevant stakeholders to up-cycle e-waste

into practical and environmentally conscious commercial products. The social enterprise model (with partner

organisations) and spin-off projects have led to multiple individual and commercial successes. This paper

provides an overview of how this social enterprise operates and some of the major projects that are underway

using up-cycled e-waste.

1 INTRODUCTION

The information age has led to an almost infinite

amount of possibilities and applications. The price of

technology continues to decrease resulting in

computerisation becoming increasingly pervasive.

However, this dramatic surge in computing devices

and electronics has also led to a negative

environmental outcome – electronic waste (or e-waste)

(Kiddee et al., 2013). E-waste refers to any electrical or

electronic component that has been fabricated for use

by humans in electronics or a computing capacity, that

is now obsolete and has been discarded. While

technology companies are keen to promote the next

latest gadget on the market, little thought is often given

to what happens at the end of the item’s usable lifespan.

As such, e-waste now accounts for a significant

amount of landfill. E-waste is highly toxic, which

results in further environmental pollution (e.g.,

chemical leeching into waterways, explosions from

discarded batteries, noxious fumes from burning

plastics) (Wong et al., 2007).

Developing

countries and areas susceptible to

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7328-8741

social disadvantage are particularly impacted by e-

waste (Babu et al., 2007). In many cases, developing

countries are the recipients of vast volumes of e-waste

from established countries (in some cases up to 80%

of e-waste is exported) (Nnorom and Osibanjo, 2008).

Most of the e-waste disposal methods either involve

landfill and/or mass burning of the materials (Kang

and Schoenung, 2005). However, in recent years

initiatives have been enacted specifically targeting

productive e-waste recycling via social enterprise and

community engagement.

A social enterprise is typically a not-for-profit

organisation that pursues a positive social agenda

ahead of corporate profit (or individual gain) (Borzaga

and Defourny, 2004). Many social enterprises exist

that target pertinent issues in the community such as

affordable groceries for low income earners, free text

book donations for students, micro-lending, renewable

power generation for disadvantaged communities, and

low-cost exercise equipment to promote fitness and

well-being (Thompson and Doherty, 2006).

Environmentally sustainable products and initiatives

are a key focus of many social enterprises.

Trevathan, J. and Sharp, T.

Up-cycling e-Waste into Innovative Products through Social Enterprise.

DOI: 10.5220/0009350301850193

In Proceedings of the 9th International Conference on Smart Cities and Green ICT Systems (SMARTGREENS 2020), pages 185-193

ISBN: 978-989-758-418-3

185

This paper describes a unique social enterprise

business model that deals with the duel problem of

social disadvantage and e-waste. The social enterprise

targets disadvantaged members of society and

couples them with high-skilled labour to provide

valuable training and employment outcomes. At the

core of the operation is an e-waste recycling facility

that has positive reciprocal arrangements with

business to deposit, disassemble and sort e-waste that

would otherwise go to landfill. Working in

conjunction with the community (academics,

governments, entrepreneurs), major components of

the e-waste are up-cycled (transformed) into new

products aimed at road safety, environmental

monitoring, 3D printing, education and

environmental sustainability. Many of these projects

have led to multiple individual and commercial

successes, with the revenue being reinvested in the

social enterprise to further expand capacity.

This paper is organised as follows: Section 2

outlines related work on e-waste recycling and

introduces social enterprise business models. Section

3 presents a case study for a social enterprise that

specifically targets social disadvantage and e-waste

recycling. Section 4 presents several successful

projects that the social enterprise has engaged in with

academia and the community that utilise up-cycled e-

waste. Section 5 provides some concluding remarks

and avenues for future opportunities.

2 e-WASTE AND SOCIAL

ENTERPRISE

2.1 e-Waste

Almost 100% of e-waste components are recyclable.

There are numerous items that can be recovered from

e-waste including plastics, metals, batteries and glass.

However, e-waste is one of the fastest growing

components of the municipal solid waste stream.

Global e-waste recycling rates tend to be as low as

10-15% (EPA, 2018). This means that most e-waste

ends up in landfill. E-waste never fully breaks down

or gets burned on mass releasing noxious fumes into

the atmosphere. The excessive lead in e-waste, if

released into the environment, could cause severe

damage to human blood, kidneys and the nervous

system (Wong et al., 2007).

In 2018, approximately 49.8 million tons of e-

waste was generated worldwide, with an annual 4-8%

growth. Each year, globally, around 1 billion

mobile/cell phones and 300 million computers are put

into production. Every day, over 416,000 mobile

devices and 142,000 computers are discarded.

Approximately 26.9 million television sets, weighing

910,600 tons, were scrapped in the U.S during 2017

(EPA, 2018).

An EPA report reveals that by recycling one

million mobile/cell phones, we can recover more than

20,000 lbs. of copper, 20 lbs. of palladium, 550 lbs.

of silver, and 50 lbs. of gold. Mobile/cell phones

contain a very high amount of precious metals such

as silver and gold. Americans throw away

approximately $60 million worth of silver and gold

per year (EPA, 2018).

Producing a computer along with its monitor

takes at least 1.5 tons of water, 48 pounds of

chemicals and 530 pounds of fossil fuels. Compared

to disposal in landfills or by incinerators, reusing or

recycling computers can create 296 more jobs per

year for every 10,000 tons of computer waste

processed (Cui and Zhang, 2008). Recycling one

million laptop computers can save enough energy to

run 3,657 homes for a year.

2.2 Social Enterprise

2.2.1 The Role of a Social Enterprise

A social enterprise is an organisation that addresses a

basic unmet need or solves a social problem through

a market-driven approach (Borzaga and Defourny,

2004). In recent years, traditional non-profits have

become more entrepreneurial and interested in

generating earned revenue to supplement charitable

contributions. Furthermore, traditional businesses

have begun to integrate greater levels of social

responsibility and sustainability into their operations.

The growth of social enterprise reflects this

convergence and helps fill the void between

traditional approaches that have focused solely on

creating either social impact or financial returns.

A social enterprise’s charter is to create value for

the community by providing an innovative and

unique solution to some entrenched problem. The

problem is tackled in a way that brings benefits to

people and is achieved in an environmentally friendly

manner. Typically, the problem has been unable to be

solved by the usual market mechanisms, as such

social enterprise focuses on cost effectiveness.

A social enterprise is the inversion of a regular

business model. Rather than focusing on individual

gain, the goal is to benefit all members of the

organisation and the community. As such, many

social enterprises focus on improving the livelihoods

of the poor or disadvantaged through their operation.

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This is also usually achieved by directly including the

disadvantaged group in the charter and execution of

the social enterprise. Social enterprises may offer a

flexible working environment to help engage the

disadvantaged groups, such as transient employment

arrangements and flexible working hours. The work

environment can be targeted to a specific workgroup,

geographic community, or to people with disabilities.

2.2.2 Advantages and Benefits

Social enterprise can lead to numerous benefits for

the environment, society and individuals involved:

 Products and Services – As previously

mentioned, a social enterprise will provide a

product or service in a manner that traditional

market mechanisms have failed. This approach

can potentially offer stakeholders a better and

more customised solution to the problem. The

solution will also be designed in harmony with

all other systems (i.e., the environment, society

and the people involved).

 Cost Affordability – The solutions offered by

social enterprise in the form of either products or

services are often comparable to the same service

provided by a profit-making organisation. This

drives down the costs of basic amenities such as

healthcare or education. The focus on cost

affordability means that typically disadvantaged

people now have access to these basic amenities.

2.2.3 Social Entrepreneurship

Social entrepreneurs are afforded some unique

benefits through taking a social enterprise approach:

 Raising Capital – There are many governmental

incentives and schemes that specially target

social enterprise. Furthermore, the ethical nature

of social enterprise may make it easier to raise

capital at below market rates.

 Support – Garnering support from like-minded

individuals may be easier as those engaged

around a cause or common problem will

typically be passionate about addressing the

problem. The social nature may also mean that

people are not as motivated by personal gain and

provide resources and/or support typically below

the cost of normal market rates.

 Marketing/Promotion – Social enterprise tackle

difficult problems in a unique manner, therefore

it may be easier to attract media attention and

community support. The more unique the

solution is, typically the more interest there is

from the media and community.

2.2.4 Social Enterprise Business Models

Many organisations are now making corporate social

responsibility a focus of their business charter.

However, most companies are not driven by making

a real difference, but rather just a way to improve their

public image and profit.

A business model is a structure, design or

framework that a business follows to bring value to

its customers and clients. A business model’s success

is measured in one of three main ways:

1. Ability to generate profit for its owners;

2. Ability to generate positive change in the world;

and

3. Ability to achieve a balance of profit and positive

change.

The first metric applies to traditional for-profit

companies. The second metric is relevant for

traditional charities. The third metric (i.e., a balance

between profit and positive change) applies to social

enterprises. As such, a social business model is a

structure, design or framework that a social business

follows in order to bring about a positive change

while maintaining healthy financial returns.

3 e-WASTE RECYCLING VIA

SOCIAL ENTERPRISE

Substation33 is a social enterprise originally

established as an e-waste recycling social enterprise

business to reduce the amount of electronic

componentry being dumped as landfill. Substation33

has its primary operation in Logan City in Australia.

3.1 Youth Disadvantage in South East

Queensland

Logan City is located between Brisbane and the Gold

Coast in Queensland Australia. The unemployment

rate in Logan trends above the national average. This

earns Logan a reputation in South East Queensland as

a low socioeconomic area.

There are numerous reasons for this

unemployment outcome including: 1) A large

migrant population with a locally unrecognised

skillset; 2) Prevalence of substance abuse; 3) Either

first in family or no one in family has gone on to

tertiary education; 4) Low-skilled job opportunities;

Up-cycling e-Waste into Innovative Products through Social Enterprise

187

and 5) Skill flight (i.e., qualified people move away).

Note that it is not always easy to tell which of these

are causes or symptoms of the unemployment rate. As

a result of these reasons, Logan experiences many

social and economic challenges.

3.2 Substation33’s Charter

Substation33’s primary charter is to connect with

people marginalised from mainstream employment

for a variety of reasons (such as long-term

unemployment, physical or other disability, early

school leavers or students at risk of disengaging from

school). These people are then mentored by

community leaders and are engaged in innovative

projects that promote sustainable environmental

practices (Taylor et al., 2016).

In addition to working with marginalised

community members, Substation33 engages with

high-achieving school students, university students

and graduates. Most interesting, Substation33 has

attracted highly skilled personnel who are referred to

as “altruistic volunteers”. Altruistic volunteers are

people who may have exited the workplace early in

their careers due to selling or moving on from their

businesses. Such people may become socially

isolated and disengaged from the community,

whereas Substation33 provides the opportunity for

them to re-engage and use their skills for social

benefit. Substation33 also works closely with tenured

academic staff members from local universities, high

school teachers, small business owners and

government agencies.

Over time, Substation33 has been moving

towards becoming an innovation space – naturally

morphing from not only being a recycling centre, but

to a melting pot of ideas where e-waste is up-cycled

and transformed into commercial/manufactured

products. Essentially, Substation33 has become a

leading force in taking conceptual ideas arising in the

community, innovating around these projects, and

delivering commercial outcomes.

3.3 Primary e-Waste Operation

3.3.1 e-Waste Collection

Substation33’s core operation is in recycling e-waste.

Substation33 has arrangements with numerous

companies to collect the e-waste for free, thereby

saving the company the expense of having to dispose

of it. The community has also been encouraged to

establish e-waste deposit sites (e.g., at schools or

social clubs), which Substation33 collects from.

Substation33 has entered arrangements with peak

recycling organisations such as BidVest. Whenever a

consumer purchases an electronic item (such as a

laptop computer) a small fee is charged with the

item’s future obsolesce in mind. This fee is based on

the volume of future landfill the device will occupy.

Substation33 is then able to reclaim a portion of this

fee from the regulatory authority through evidencing

that that item has been recycled, thereby saving the

landfill resource.

3.3.2 The Recycling Process

Figure 1: The e-waste disassembly line.

Initially, e-waste is deposited at Substation33’s

premises. The e-waste undergoes a preliminary audit

to determine whether any items are still functional

and/or can be used in their present form. These items

are stowed, and the remaining items proceed to a

sorting phase. Once sorted, the items enter a

disassembly line (Figure 1). The items are broken up

into their constituent components and all salvageable

parts are sorted and stowed. Less than 3% of the

disassembled parts become landfill.

3.3.3 Recycling/Repurposing Batteries

Figure 2: Battery testing and classification.

Laptop batteries are a significant component of e-

waste. These components are highly energised and

represent a significant danger and pollutant. A laptop

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battery is made up of multiple smaller cells. When a

laptop battery dies, it is usually only one of these cells

that is problematic. The rest of the cells are typically

in a reasonable condition.

Substation33 operates a special purpose battery

unit whereby each laptop battery cell is tested.

Batteries are then graded A to D depending on the

maximum charge they can hold and their discharge

rate (Figure 2). This way, higher and lesser quality

cells can be grouped together. These cells can then be

repackaged as a battery of any desired capacity with

reliable charge in the zone of 3.6 to 4.2 volts. The

batteries are then repurposed for use.

3.4 Capacity Building and Successes

Substation33 have diverted over one million

kilograms in total of e-waste from landfill.

Approximately 100 people per annum who have

engaged with Substation33 have gone onto other

employment over the last two years. During 2018,

623 people gained work experience through

Substation33. Of these, 343 were work-for-the-dole

participants, 126 volunteers, 33 school students, 60

special school students, 6 university students and 55

from the youth justice system. Substation33 currently

employs 14 permanent staff. Substation33 is typically

frequented by up to 50 people per day including

volunteer staff and visitors. Substation33 generated

$4.25 million for the Australian economy throughout

2018. Substation33 has attracted multiple awards

from government, industry and academia recognising

their work in the community.

4 UP-CYCLING e-WASTE INTO

USEABLE PRODUCTS

Substation33 deals with taking e-waste and up-cycles

it (i.e., transforms e-waste into a higher level) to

create innovative commercial products that promote

environmental sustainability, community

development and safety. One of their core activities is

looking for ways to improve solar and battery

management technology to take products off-grid.

By using recycled battery cells, Substation33

have been able to refurbish or retrofit a vast variety of

electrical products. For example, recycled drill

battery packs, developing battery-powered electric

bikes, repurposed ammunition boxes converted into

amplifying speakers, etc.

innov8logan.com.au

Substation33’s experience is that people with

academic, industry and/or commercial experience can

engage on a research and commercial level with

university students and inventors who have ideas, that

support people less fortunate. This has given

Substation33 the capacity to tap into a very diverse

group of subject matter experts, and low-cost, leading

edge technologies, manufacturing equipment and

applied science.

Substation33 promotes an innovation “DNA” that

can be described as “give and take”. Substation33 is

happy to help inventors to further develop their ideas

in a low-cost manner utilising up-cycled e-waste.

However, in return Substation33 asks that they give

something back to the community. This could be in

the form of providing mentoring to Substation33’s

marginalised cohorts, applying their specialist skillset

to other projects Substation33 is working on, or

providing in-kind resources to help support the

expansion of Substation33’s business model.

In 2017, Substation33 formally activated a

hackerspace/makerspace to complement their

existing social enterprise e-waste recycling and

manufacturing facility. As part of this initiative they

formed Innov8 Logan

in collaboration with local

industry. The following subsections describe some of

the projects Substation33 has developed as part of the

hackerspace/makerspace through up-cycled e-waste.

4.1 3D Printing Capabilities

Figure 3: 3D printer assembled from e-waste.

Substation33 can construct 3D printers using up-

cycled e-waste for as little as $64 AUD (see Figure

3). Substation33 have built a fleet of over 40 3D

printers across Logan City. This provides the ability

to mass produce 3D designs for innovation ideas and

undertake rapid prototyping for manufacturing

purposes. Substation33 works with local schools,

educating students on how to construct 3D printers

using e-waste and operate them to print innovative

Up-cycling e-Waste into Innovative Products through Social Enterprise

189

designs. Substation33 is currently developing one of

Australia’s largest 3D printers, which is capable of

printing objects equivalent in size to a small car.

The focus of the 3D printing initiative is to

produce easy to construct, highly marketable and

small form factor 3D printers. These are then

provided to high schools. This enables students to

have access to a reliable, easy-to-use system that

makes for a great learning tool and an excellent

pedagogical aid for teachers.

The latest v4.0 printer is low-cost and uses

recycled and 3D printed parts. This is delivered to

schools as a kit. This kit provides an interactive

experience where students learn to build, operate,

maintain and repair a 3D printer. This affords the

students an opportunity to learn about mechanical and

electrical design elements and computer aided design.

Additionally, students are provided with an

introduction to the environmental challenges that

fast-changing technology creates.

E-waste contains a significant amount of plastic.

To further promote the theme of environmental

sustainability, Substation33 creates 3D printer

filament from recycled ABS plastic. This plastic can

be cleaned, granulated and then processed by an

extruder to create 3D printer filament. This can

dramatically reduce the price of filament to as little as

$4 / kg (versus $40 / kg for commercial filament).

4.2 Road Flooded Safety Signs

Figure 4: A road flooded safety sign deployed at a road

crossing subject to flooding.

A major product Substation33 produces is a solar-

powered flooded road traffic sign (Figure 4). In

conjunction with the Logan City Council and Griffith

University, Substation33 has developed technologies

to detect when a creek or river has flooded a road. The

road sign is remotely triggered to display a warning

to motorists about the flood hazard. Road crews and

decision makers can also remotely view roads that are

flooding and map this data as a flood event unfolds

via a dashboard.

Substation33 currently operates 80 deployed

flooded road signs across Logan City and the

Sunshine Coast. In a 2017 flooding event caused by

Tropical Cyclone Debbie, not one car entered

floodwater where the flooded road signs were active.

Substation33 won the national Innovation in Road

Safety Award 2017 as a result.

The flooded road safety signs utilise up-cycled e-

waste in their construction (i.e., batteries, solar panels

and other electrical components). This approach has

effectively saved the Logan City Council over

$120,000 per crossing compared to their previous

approach to sourcing flooded road signs. This project

has provided paid employment for numerous

Substation33 personnel.

As a follow-on project, Substation33 is

developing a pedestrian crossing road safety sign.

The signs are installed on non-controlled pedestrian

crossings to alert motorists that someone is trying to

cross the road. The pedestrian pushes a button on the

sign, which lights the sign up. It is then up to the

motorist to slow down or stop to allow the pedestrian

to safely cross the road.

4.3 Affordable Aquatic Environmental

Monitoring

Figure 5: The Smart Buoy remote aquatic environmental

monitoring system.

The Smart Buoys project is about developing

affordable aquatic environmental monitoring

equipment that remotely collects data in near real-

time (Trevathan et al. 2012; Trevathan and Johnstone

2018). The traditional approach to water quality

monitoring is to travel to the water body and take a

one-off manual sample. This sample is then taken

back to a laboratory for analysis. However, this

approach is expensive, time consuming, slow and is

often of limited usefulness.

In contrast, the Smart Buoys are placed in water

bodies and take a series of sensor readings every 15

minutes that are remotely transmitted back to a web-

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based dashboard (Figure 5). This allows the relevant

stakeholders to view how the water quality and

condition is changing over time. Such insight also

allows the stakeholders to undertake proactive actions

during the unfolding of an environment event (e.g., an

algal bloom, contamination, flooding).

The latest version of the Smart Buoys collects

data on the following environmental parameters:

 Temperature (-400 to +1250 C);

 Light (0.1 to 40,000 Lux in the 300 nm to 1,100

nm wavelengths);

 Turbidity (0 – 4000 NTU);

 pH (0 to 14 pH);

 Dissolved oxygen (0 to 100 mg/L); and

 Conductivity / Salinity (10 μS/cm to 1 S).

This project is being developed in collaboration

with Griffith University. The collaboration has led to

innovative solutions for power management and

electronics miniaturisation. Substation33’s extensive

3D printing capabilities have allowed for rapid

prototyping of the physical buoy components.

Recycled laptop batteries and solar power each buoy.

The system has been deployed across lakes,

rivers, dams and creek catchments in South East

Queensland and North Queensland. Smart Buoys is

the winner of the SeqWater Water for Life

Community Grant, Ipswich Environmental

Sustainability Award and Transurban Community

Grant. Smart Buoys has won the Logan City Council

EnviroGrant Scheme for three consecutive years.

This project has provided education and training

for Substation33 staff, university students and high

school students. Smart Buoys has also resulted in

several spin-off projects for remotely monitoring the

water height of creeks/rivers, and remote dust sensor

data acquisition in a new housing estate.

4.4 PowerWells

Figure 6: A PowerWell being deployed in a village in South

East Asia.

PowerWell’s charter is to repurpose recycled laptop

batteries and other e-waste componentry to provide a

renewable power supply for remote communities. A

bank of recycled laptop batteries is configured with a

solar panel and power management electronics.

The system can be used to charge mobile phones,

torches, computers, lights and other devices. The goal

is to provide electricity to remote or disadvantaged

communities who may not have a reliable power

source, or no connection to the electricity grid. The

system raises revenue by charging users a minor fee,

whilst promoting a sustainable lifestyle.

This project has won several grants, including the

JetStar Flying Start Grant. There are over 20

operational PowerWells currently in use throughout

isolated regions in Indonesia and East Timor (Figure

6). The project employs 2 technical staff and engages

with Substation33’s existing labour force in training,

development and manufacture of the equipment.

4.5 Electric Bikes

Figure 7: An electric bike.

The electric bike, or e-bike uses recycled laptop

batteries and 3D printed battery modules (see Figure

7). A standard bike (often taken from scrap) is

converted by adding recycled batteries and a

purchased mid-drive motor kit. The battery pack

provides over 1kW-hour resulting in a range of

around 100km with minimal peddling.

The battery packs are designed to have a very long

life. By using recycled laptop batteries, the cost of the

e-bike can be reduced to just the cost of the motor kit.

The e-bike is an educational tool to teach people how

to build battery systems and e-bikes.

4.6 AMPLFY Bluetooth Portable

Speakers

AMPLFY is a revolutionary online platform,

designed to disrupt the traditional business of buying

and selling portable speakers (Figure 8). The goal is

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191

to educate people to become creators, tinkerers and

innovators so that they now become the disrupters.

Substation33 provides the kit and instructions for

people to learn how to build their own speakers for

the purpose they desire. The kits and instructions are

designed to allow individuals to be as creative as

possible. This project desires to bring back the age of

handcrafted and bespoke goods and empower as

many people as possible to become the creators.

Figure 8: An AMPLIFY speaker kit.

4.7 Solar Trailer

Substation33 have developed a mobile solar power

battery storage trailer (Figure 9). Equipped with

multiple solar panels, the solar trailer is capable of

supplying power to over 20 televisions simultaneously.

This project has important ramifications in areas that

may lack traditional electrical infrastructure (e.g., a

rural/remote area or developing country). Furthermore,

this product will become more relevant as existing

residential solar systems move into obsolesce and

discarded solar panels transition to e-waste. In 2019,

the solar trailer was used to power several stalls at the

Logan Eco Action Festival.

Figure 9: The solar trailer.

5 CONCLUSIONS

E-waste is an increasing global problem. While

almost 100% of e-waste components are recyclable,

e-waste recycling rates continue to be low. Part of this

problem is due to the way people view the industry.

Social enterprise can play a significant role in

changing people’s attitudes towards recycling

through combining several causes together to provide

a community-led solution.

This paper introduced Substation33, which is an

e-waste recycling social enterprise. Substation33

engages people who are marginalised from

mainstream employment. In exchange for providing

services in e-waste recycling, these people are

afforded with valuable skills and training in

electronics, 3D printing, programming and general

computer technology.

A significant component of e-waste is discarded

laptop batteries. Substation33 recognises the stored

energy potential of these components and proactively

salvages, reconditions and then ultimately repurposes

the batteries for use in other products.

Through its operations, partnerships and skilled

labour force, Substation33 has established a

hackerspace/makerspace to complement the e-waste

operation. This has resulted in notable commercial

products including 3D printing farms, flooded road

safety signs, smart environmental water quality

monitoring buoys and PowerWell solar battery banks

for remote communities. This particular hybrid social

enterprise business model is a testament to

Substation33’s success in tackling multiple social and

environmental problems simultaneously.

Future work involves seeing whether this social

enterprise business model can be replicated in other

areas – especially developing countries where

mounting e-waste is a problem. Additionally, we will

continue to expand the use of the products being

developed through Substation33.

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