Environmental Stewardship
We love this planet and do everything we can to protect it.
We view ourselves as stewards of the environment and that factors into everything we do. From stringent waste management processes and IT product recycling initiatives to the packaging we use and how we run our offices, our environmental initiatives extend far beyond minimal compliance.
Learn more about these initiatives in the Northern Micro Environmental Sustainability Report.
View our environmental policy.
Our partners share our commitment to sustainable development and green procurement.
Have electronics or packaging to recycle?
We are proud to offer a FREE take-back program for packaging materials and Northern Micro products. This service is available nationwide in Canada and offers both pick up or mail back options. For more information contact Northern Micro at 1.800.563.1007 or email [email protected]
We work with organizations and actively participate in programs that promote environmental stewardship.
ISO 14001:2015 Certification
Northern Micro provides computer products and services that meet or exceed the quality, operational performance and life cycle cost requirements of our customers.
As such, we have implemented our Environmental Management System (EMS), which also meets the requirements of the ISO-14001 Environmental Management System. It pertains to the way NM products are manufactured, delivered and recycled.
The EMS adheres to ISO 14001:2015 standards. It complies with legal requirements and the Northern Micro environmental policy. It also provides objective evidence of effective control.
Northern Micro attained its ISO 14001 certification in November 2006.
View our 2019 Environmental Manual.
IEEE168
The policy focuses on areas which address all stages of the product life cycle. IEEE 1680 is the first U.S. standard to supply environmental guidelines for institutional purchasing decisions involving desktop and laptop computers and monitors.
It offers criteria in eight categories – materials selection, environmentally sensitive materials, design for end of life, end-of-life management, energy conservation, product longevity and life-cycle extension, packaging, and corporate performance.
IEEE 1680 and its product registration and verification system are part of the Electronic Products Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT).
Energy Star
ENERGY STAR is a joint program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy to help save money and protect the environment through energy efficient products and practices.
Northern Micro is an active participant in the Energy Star and certifies its products as Energy Star compliant.
For more info visit Energystar.gov.
Microsoft WHQL
The Microsoft WHQL program is used to qualify products that conform to industry standards for computer and related equipment.
Among the criteria being measured are Power Management features (Wake On-LAN, ACPI, Sleep/Suspend/Hibernate) which greatly enhance the longevity of key system components, reduce power requirements and offer overall improved efficiency and performance to the user and the environment.
EPEAT
EPEAT is a program of the Green Electronics Council and provides a procurement tool to help institutional purchasers in the public and private sectors evaluate, compare and select desktop computers, notebooks and monitors based on their environmental attributes.
EPEAT also provides a clear and consistent set of performance criteria for the design of products and provides an opportunity for manufacturers to secure market recognition for efforts to reduce the environmental impact of its products.
Northern Micro EPEAT certified products are listed on EPEAT.net.
Northern Micro makes information about how to identify the presence and location of all materials and components that require selective treatment available to reuse and recycling facilities in our product disposal manual. To obtain this manual, please email Northern Micro at: [email protected].
Call 2 Recycle
Call 2 Recycle, through their North American wide program recycles used portable rechargeable batteries and old cell phones typically found in cordless power tools, cellular and cordless phones, laptop computers, camcorders, digital cameras, and remote-control toys.
Call 2 Recycle recycles the battery chemistries: Nickel Cadmium (Ni-Cd), Nickel Metal Hydride (Ni-MH), Lithium Ion (Li-ion) and Small Sealed Lead* (Pb). Call 2 Recycle is dedicated to keeping rechargeable batteries and cell phones out of our nation’s solid waste stream and preserving natural resources.
Northern Micro participates in the Call 2 Recycle program and offers this free service to its clients for all batteries meeting the above specifications regardless of when and through whom they were purchased as Northern Micro is also a collection center for this program.
80 PLUS
The 80 PLUS program is one of the latest power conservation initiatives that promote the maximum operating efficiency of power supplies within computer equipment.
The performance specification requires power supplies in computers and servers to be 80% or greater energy efficient at 20%, 50% and 100% of rated load with a true power factor of 0.9 or greater.
Other Practices
Power Management – Ensuring maximum efficiency without sacrificing performance in product design.
Thermal Consideration – Ensuring the proper case/motherboard/CPU configuration is developed to maintain the required Thermal levels.
Acoustic Levels – Ensuring systems conform to ISO 9296 declaration methodology and employing the ISO 7779 test methodology for acoustic levels.
RoHS
RoHS (Reduction of Hazardous Substances) – Calls for the reduction and/or elimination of environmentally sensitive materials and hazardous substances.
As of July 31, 2005, all Northern Micro systems refreshed on the NMSO (National Master Standing Offer) utilize RoHS compliant components. These include the Motherboard, Chassis, Drives, Video Card, Memory and CPU.
Flame retardants and plasticizers – The elimination of intentionally added flame retardants and plasticizers in certain applications.
Recycled plastics content – Ensuring that the product contains post consumer recycled plastic < 5.0% by weight, measured as a percentage of total plastic (by weight) in each product or does not. This applies to all covered products that contain plastics, excluding PCB and packaging.
Renewable/bio based plastic materials – A declaration as to whether the product contains renewable/biobased plastic materials greater than 5.0 %, measured as a percentage of total plastic (by weight) in each product.
Toxics in packaging – Ensuring a reduction/elimination of intentionally added toxics in packaging.
EPSC
The EPSC (Electronics Product Stewardship Canada) is a not-for-profit organization that works with an array of partners and stakeholders to design, promote and implement sustainable solutions for Canada’s electronic waste problem.
These industry leaders are aware of both the pressures on municipalities for landfill management and the environmental necessity to handle the potentially hazardous content of electronics products and reuse the valuable resources they contain.
EPSC Canada was created to work with both industry and government to develop a flexible, workable Canadian solution. Northern Micro is an active member of the EPSC.
The EPSC has recognized both Environment Canada’s ECO Logo and the corresponding US EPEAT programs as tools for developing environmentally friendly solutions.
Northern Micro Conflict Mineral Policy
Manufacturer Conflict Mineral Reports:
HP Impact™ Amplify Program
HP’s Amplify Impact™ program extends HP’s Sustainable Impact strategy and invites partners to drive meaningful change across the global IT industry.Partners that pledge to join HP Amplify Impact will tap into HP’s extensive knowledge, training, and resources to assess and improve their own sustainability performance while optimizing sustainability-driven sales opportunities.
Northern Micro and Converge Canada joined the Impact™ program in 2021 and since has developed several initiatives to drive meaningful change within our organization such as the Converge Canada Green Team.
Contact Us
Learn more about what we are doing to reduce our footprint and protect the environment.
Contact us