CIARA Principles On Environmental Management

CIARA specializes in the manufacturing and distribution of computer systems, certified ISO 9001-2000 and CIARA supports the following principles for the management of the environment:

• To reduce, recover and reuse materials and equipment
• To promote and encourage recycling in a responsible manner and extend these programs as services to our customers
• To avoid, whenever possible, repackaging products for delivery to our customers
• To maximize environmental responsibility at the lowest possible cost
• To maintain coordinated relationships to reduce environmental impact across all facets of our operations
• To prepare for and manage urgent situations with consideration of potential environmental impacts
• To perform environmental evaluations and monitoring of distribution and usage of electricity
• To consider environmental concerns of our customers relating to CIARA logistical activities
• To promote and share environmental best practices with the public, our employees, customers and partners
• To accept and deal with any environmental concerns of our customers
• To inform and train CIARA employees with respect to these company principles regarding the environment

End of life Management

CIARA offers several programs that address end of life management. Customer will pay any fees incurred by CIARA for the items recycled. There will be no recycling fee where CIARA refurbishes the item. Customer pays freight to CIARA’s Arizona facility.

• Computers (desktop, notebooks, tablets, servers, etc.)
• LAN/WAN hardware
• Computer components
• Batteries (only those properly installed the unit intended for or packaged separately)
• Printers and other peripherals
• Displays (additional fees may apply)
• Most other IT-related products, regardless of manufacturer

CIARA will provide a Certificate of Lawful Disposal for the equipment disposed/recycled and agrees to partner with recycling vendors that are e-Stewards Certified Recyclers and comply with “Zero Landfill” and “Zero Export of Hazardous Waste” policies.

Electronics products shipped to CIARA under our Take-Back program will be sorted, evaluated for re-use, then either recycled or refurbished for resale. Refurbished/remanufactured products will be offered to NASPO ValuePoint-eligible customers first, with a priority given to customers in the state the equipment was reclaimed from. These projects require additional planning, which must be in place before the equipment is shipped to CIARA to be recycled. The customer buying the refurbished systems must agree to the purchase in advance. Refurbished products placed into stock will be available on a first-come-first-served basis.

Hard drives and any data storage media will be destroyed in accordance with Department of Defense standards. CIARA does not currently offer a trade-in program on computers we manufacture. Typically, they have no value after 5 to 7 years, except as cores for refurbishing through takeback. This is due to the fact that we maintain strict adherence with industry standards, allowing the systems to be upgraded instead of replaced. This not only offers great savings to the customer, it also extends the useful life of the systems we manufacture. Any trade-in program offered by third-party manufactures of products we offer will be passed-thru to the customer.

Environmental Solutions

Materials

Hard drives and any data storage media will be destroyed in accordance with Department of Defense standards.CIARA does not currently offer a trade-in program on computers we manufacture. Typically, they have no value after 5 to 7 years, except as cores for refurbishing through takeback. This is due to the fact that we maintain strict adherence with industry standards, allowing the systems to be upgraded instead of replaced. This not only offers great savings to the customer, it also extends the useful life of the systems we manufacture.Any trade-in program offered by third-party manufactures of products we offer will be passed-thru to the customer.

Product

CIARA’s use of the highest quality components that maintain industry standards allow our customers maximum product longevity. Obsolescence is not part of the CIARA marketing plan; the customer should have more control over lifecycles. Because we do not implement proprietary architecture or design elements, the customer has more options, for a longer period of time, for upgrade and repair parts.

Responsible selection of packaging materials, eliminating whatever is unnecessary and using more green or environmentally-friendly materials wherever possible, reduces landfill waste, shipping weight and energy use. CIARA develops the same technology platforms for markets in North America, Asia and Europe. Standards for how we select and re-use packaging materials are determined by the highest common denominator of the market with the most stringent requirements or standards.

Our customers are invited to share their environmental targets, or consult with the CIARA Production team to develop a standard, for computer equipment put into service at their facilities. We also invite customer involvement through our takeback program; where the customer returning equipment wishes to direct the sale of the refurbished product to NASPO ValuePoint-eligible customers in their State; CIARA can manage the entire process, including on-site services to reduce shipping and packaging costs and environmental impact.

Corporate

Customers should be encouraged to use refurbished products whenever possible. Avoiding poor experiences caused by inferior products is an important key to building and maintaining interest in refurbished product of any type. CIARA will only offer refurbished products of acceptable quality. Where the customer expresses concerns about performance or quality CIARA will encourage select third-party suppliers to provide samples or evaluation units to the customer.

As part of the Hypertec Group, CIARA is able to work with their sister company, Hypertec Direct/Systems who refurbishes and remanufacturers CIARA products. This relationship extends the life cycle of all CIARA products, thus reducing waste, while offering additional options to our customer.

Environmental Certifications

Energy Star

Some of CIARA products meet the stringent low power requirements set by the EPA, giving it ENERGY STAR qualification.

CIARA computers are designed with leading-edge technology and high-efficiency components such as VRMs optimized to reduce energy consumption. The result is a smart and energy-efficient system that is not only extremely fast when you need it, but also throttles down power use when it’s not needed. Energy-efficient hardware components work together with Microsoft Windows operating system to create an ensemble that can dynamically adjust power consumption to reduce the overall energy used. For instance, the CPU architecture allows individual cores to go into a low-power state to reduce energy consumption when they are not needed.

CIARA optimized system architecture is designed to take advantage of power saving technology and includes high-efficiency (up to 90% +) power supplies which greatly reduces energy losses and the latest cooling technology subsystems such as:

• Advanced technology heat sinks
• Pulse-width modulated fan speed control
• Structured chassis airflow design
• Intelligent temperature and power management

EPEAT Registration

CIARA strives to produce systems that are EPEAT Gold certified. All products will achieve the minimum of EPEAT Bronze. Products failing to reach design specification will undergo additional development and testing to meet the design standard of EPEAT Bronze or better.