Responsible Asset Management: Saving Money and the Environment

Increasing conversations on climate change and pending carbon legislation is raising the awareness levels that companies now have to prove their commitment to business sustainability issues through information transparency and fully auditable policies. At the core of this approach needs to be consistent and detailed information concerning the life cycle of fixed assets: from country of origin and maintenance schedules to final disposal details.

Asset disposition, or investment recovery is the practice of recouping the value of assets no longer needed by a company by identifying and reusing or disposing of surplus assets. Its effectiveness as a business sustainability program includes whether or not a corporate sustainability plan with environmental principles and policies are clearly stated, measured, and reported.

Investment recovery programs play a vital role in a sustainability business strategy:

Economic:
As far as the bottom line in concerned, a goal of the investment recovery team is to “maximize” the corporation’s return on surplus assets through redeployment and sales efforts. Value generation includes redeployment, inventory reduction and associated cost savings, such as storage costs, maintenance costs, and taxes.

Environmental:
Surplus assets which can be redeployed within the corporation or sold externally for future “functional” use avoids the disposition of these assets to scrap yards or landfills. The sale of assets via online disposition avenues, such as online auctions, further reduce environmental impact by eliminating the logistics of moving the equipment to a central "staging area" as well as offers online viewing capabilities.

Social:
Contributing to the community via partnerships with local schools, universities, nonprofit organization and community organizations to donate requested equipment and materials when available offers a second life to equipment and contributes to an organizations social outreach programs

Investment Recovery, as a sustainable business practice can help your organization to reduce inventory, contribute positively to the bottom line, and contribute to your company's sustainability plan.

For additional resources, please visit:
Investment Recovery Association
Investment Recovery: A Sustainable Business Practice- Resources