Domestic ventilation specialist Greenwood Airvac has introduced what it says is the UK's first ever free fan recycling scheme, as part of its ongoing drive to help reduce customers' environmental impact.
It says the scheme is particularly important as WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) Regulations now cover the disposal of electric fans.

The new national initiative is already underway in Birmingham, where, in partnership with a local Housing Association, Greenwood is replacing more than 500 old fans with new, energy efficient equipment, as part of a major bathroom refurbishment.

Under the simple to manage scheme, Greenwood provides dedicated recycling containers on-site ready for contractors to deposit old fans, whether they are Greenwood fans or not. Once the containers are full, Greenwood organises the emptying or collection of the containers before discarded equipment goes off to be dismantled and reworked into a variety of items - such as plastics used in the automotive industry, paint for road markings and even plant pots.

The Free Fan Recycling scheme is open to all refurbishment projects with a sole specification of a Greenwood product, and above all, is designed to be convenient for developers, social landlords and installers. The company offers a number of different sized recycling bins to suit different types of refurbishments and once containers have been collected, it will provide a statement of the number of fans recycled to add to the client's recycling reporting and statistics.

The scheme is intended to support local authorities, developers and contractors in meeting their waste reduction targets.

Michelle Sharp, marketing manager at Greenwood, said: 'Here at Greenwood, we believe in taking full responsibility for ventilation products from cradle to grave and beyond. By providing this simple, free of charge service to our customers we are supporting sustainable manufacturing and taking important steps to minimising our impact on the environment.

'We aim to make the entire process simple for our customers to be involved in. Fans have to be recycled under the WEEE directive and we are committed - we can just make it easier for those customers who are replacing existing fans with Greenwood ones.'