A New Amazon Facility
Antrim Township in Pennsylvania will welcome the launch of an Amazon-owned electronics recycling facility in April of 2024. The new development is estimated to create between 300 and 500 job opportunities over the next three years.
Lisa Anderson, a regional manager in charge of project planning, has stated that the new company will be located at 121-123 Commerce Ave., and is part of the greater Amazon family. Titled re:Cycle Reverse Logistics, it will be run in collaboration with an external demanufacturing vendor.
The new site will be situated behind Instant Brands, which was formerly known as Corning and World Kitchen. The facility is a 550,000-square-foot building strategically located in Greencastle’s Matrix I-81 Logistics Center.
re:Cycle Shares Vision
Earlier this month, three individuals representing the company arrived at an Antrim Township supervisors’ meeting to give a short introduction. This included Anderson and two other individuals from the organization.
“We are excited to announce re:Cycle Reverse Logistics’ plans to build a new facility in Greencastle,” Anderson stated. “We are repurposing a vacant industrial building into a state-of-the-art center for the safe and responsible reuse and refurbishment of electronic equipment used in data centers. We look forward to building a facility that creates good-paying jobs, new tax revenue and economic growth for the community for years to come.”
“re:Cycle Reverse Logistics is an electronics processing, reuse and recycling company that works to extend the life of used electronic equipment through reuse, repair and recycling,” according to an email from re:Cycle Reverse Logistics. “The company specializes in the handling of valuable electronic equipment like servers used in data centers. Its services are designed to maximize the useful life of electronic equipment, develop more sustainable and efficient recycling practices, and handle electronics in an environmentally sound manner.”
Carbon Neutral by 2040
Amazon has also announced a goal to be carbon neutral by 2040. This broad-reaching initiative considers both environmental and social impacts, with one key component focusing on recycling electronics.
“We are working to scale and collaborate with others to reduce emissions, waste, and water consumption while innovating to optimize packaging and product performance. Through it all, we seek to act in ways that respect the human rights of people throughout our supply chain,” the 2022 Amazon sustainability report “Building a Better Future Together” notes.
Under the heading “Keeping Technologies in Use Longer,” the report explains, “To help prevent our equipment from ending up in landfills and avoid associated emissions, we are investing in responsible end-of-life management systems. AWS uses reverse logistics hubs to evaluate and reuse electronic equipment in our global data center fleet. These hubs help us consolidate, assess, and recirculate functional equipment back into our inventory.”
A Strategic Location
The information in the report demonstrates that Amazon has already been recycling, repurposing and reusing electronics, but with the creation of a new corporation, re:Cycle Reverse Logistics will take control of the Greencastle site and dictate operations.
“We are proud to make Greencastle our home and launch a facility that creates new jobs, drives new investment and tax revenue for the city and provides other benefits for the community,” the company stated.
One of re:Cycle Reverse Logistics’ primary considerations when assessing a new location was how it would impact its customer base along East Coast. Located in south-central Pennsylvania, Matrix I-81 Logistics Center was found to fit these criteria perfectly. The area is also zoned for industrial use, and has access to a highly skilled workforce.
Re:Cycle Reverse Logistics addedly reports that it is eager to become a top option for job seekers, even though its wage analysis process is still in progress. Anderson commented that the company desires to be an “ideal” source of employment.
“These jobs will offer competitive salary and benefits,” a company statement remarked. Additional details about the new roles and the recruitment will be disclosed soon.
