The year just ended has seen sustainability emerge as a fundamental pillar of business strategy for many companies throughout Northern Ireland and across the globe.
That includes Vyta, which last May won a prestigious King’s Award, the highest business honour in the UK, for sustainable development, placing it in a small band of two in Northern Ireland and 29 across the UK to receive the accolade.
While this was a major milestone for Vyta, and a testament to the hard work and commitment of our dedicated team, it’s fitting that the prize was conferred during a year in which sustainability came to the forefront of the business agenda more than ever before.
Driven by a confluence of regulatory pressures, stakeholder expectations, and a growing awareness of environmental impacts, companies within a wide range of sectors recognised the imperative to integrate sustainable practices into their operations.
Sustainability has long been a driver of everything we do. Our mission goes beyond simply disposing of obsolete technology - we are committed to delivering an end-to-end service that covers the entire IT life-cycle, globally, helping businesses to maximize the lifespan of their IT equipment, facilitating re-use wherever possible, and ensuring that devices are securely recycled when they reach the end of their life-cycle.
As we enter 2025, the focus on sustainability and the circular economy will intensify further. Businesses must continue to innovate and adapt to meet the evolving expectations of regulators, stakeholders, and society in general. Last year showed us that sustainability is not a trend but a fundamental shift in how businesses operate. By embracing this change, companies can drive long-term growth, build resilient brands, and contribute to a sustainable future.
The link between sustainability and corporate reputation has never been stronger, with businesses that failed to adopt sustainable practices during 2024 facing not only regulatory fines but also damage to their brand image. Meanwhile companies that led the way in sustainability gained competitive advantage, customer loyalty, and positive media coverage.
Vyta partners with businesses in over 50 countries to guide them on their sustainability journey. Having become a global leader in IT asset disposition (ITAD) and life cycle management (ITALM), we empower customers with comprehensive carbon impact reporting to measure their carbon impact, make informed decisions, and align their sustainability efforts with broader ESG objectives.
Much of this work is detailed in our inaugural 2023/24 Sustainability Report, published last October, which explains the ITAD carbon avoidance reports we deliver for clients.
These reports measure the carbon dioxide (Co2) avoided by extending the life of IT equipment rather than manufacturing new devices, revealing that, during the reporting period,
Vyta collected, recycled and processed over 738,000 devices, preventing the release of almost 16,300 tonnes of Co2 emissions. Impressive figures, but ones we aim to build on further this year as we play our part in championing sustainability at a local and global level.
- Philip McMichael is chief executive at Vyta
