14Operate & Optimise
ITAD and WEEE,
a certificate for every serial.
When IT equipment reaches end of life, the data has to be destroyed, the materials recycled responsibly and everything documented. We handle the whole process, from the rack to the certificate.
- Data erasure
- Shredding
- WEEE
- Asset recovery
- Certificates
01Overview
Secure, compliant asset disposal.
Our ITAD and WEEE services cover data erasure, physical destruction, asset recovery, recycling and full compliance documentation. You get certificates of destruction, waste transfer notes and audit-ready records that prove the job was done right.
Drives are destroyed on site and witnessed in your facility, or through ADISA or ISO 27001-certified partners, to the right standard and particle size for each type of media.
What you get
- Certified data destruction
- WEEE compliance and recycling
- Asset recovery and value return
- Environmentally responsible disposal
- Full audit trail and documentation
- Certificates of destruction provided
- particle size for magnetic hard drives at the highest assurance level (NSA/CSS)
- ≤6mm
- particle size for SSDs and flash, because one NAND chip can survive a hard-drive shred
- ≤2mm
- how long certificates and the chain-of-custody trail are typically kept
- 6yrs
02Chain of custody
Unbroken from the rack to the certificate.
Follow one drive through the process. Every step is logged against its serial number, and the particle size is chosen for the media.
| Step | Event | Record | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Serial 7K2X-0193 logged at R14-ST01, bay 3 | Asset register | Logged |
| 02 | Sealed for collection, seal number recorded | Collection note | Logged |
| 03 | GPS-tracked transport, custody transfer signed | Transfer record | Logged |
| 04 | Shredded, particles 6 mm or less | Destruction record | Logged |
| 05 | Certificate issued for 7K2X-0193 | Certificate of destruction | Logged |
| 06 | Remains recycled, waste transfer note filed | WEEE record | Logged |
Fig. 14.2 / Particle size, at scale
The detail that matters: particle size.
A hard drive stores data magnetically across large platters, so a coarse shred destroys it. An SSD stores data in small NAND chips, and a fragment a few millimetres across can hold a whole one. The same 24 mm sample of each, shredded both ways:
Meets NSA/CSS for hard drives: particles of 6 mm or less.
Four NAND dies survive whole at 6 mm, so data could still be recovered.
03What's included
Every asset accounted for at end of life.
Data destruction and disposal run as a controlled project, on site or off.
- 01
Secure data destruction
Certified data erasure and physical destruction, with full chain-of-custody tracking and a certificate of destruction for every asset.
- 02
Asset recovery
Residual value assessed and recovered through resale, refurbishment or component harvesting, where the data allows it.
- 03
WEEE compliance
Proper recycling under the WEEE Regulations, with waste transfer notes and environmental reporting for audit and governance.
- 04
Documentation and reporting
Certificates of destruction, asset disposal registers, waste transfer notes and compliance reports, audit-ready from the start.
- 05
On site or off site
Witnessed destruction in your facility, or destruction by ADISA or ISO 27001-certified partners under a tracked chain of custody.
- 06
Audit and inventory
The estate to be retired is surveyed and serial-logged first, so nothing is unaccounted for.
04How we deliver
Retirement, run as a project.
The method is chosen for each media type and data sensitivity before anything leaves the rack.
- 01
Audit
The estate to be retired is surveyed and serial-logged.
- 02
Agree the method
Clear, purge or destroy for each media type, following NIST SP 800-88.
- 03
Decommission and collect
Sealed, tracked transport, or destruction on site with witnesses.
- 04
Destroy and recover
To the agreed standard and particle size, with value recovered where the data allows.
- 05
Certify and report
A certificate per serial, waste transfer notes and the disposal register.
05At a glance
Specification
- Stage
- Operate & Optimise
- Methods
- Clear, purge or destroy (NIST SP 800-88)
- Particle size
- ≤6 mm hard drives, ≤2 mm SSD and flash (NSA/CSS)
- Destruction
- On site and witnessed, or by ADISA or ISO 27001-certified partners
- Regulation
- UK GDPR Article 32, Data Protection Act 2018, WEEE Regulations
- Records
- Certificates per serial, waste transfer notes, disposal registers, compliance reports
06Questions
Common questions
Can destruction happen at our site?
Yes. Drives can be destroyed on site and witnessed in your facility, which removes transport risk entirely, or destroyed off site by ADISA or ISO 27001-certified partners under a tracked chain of custody.
Why do SSDs need a smaller shred size?
A hard drive stores data magnetically across large platters, so a coarse shred destroys it. An SSD stores data in small NAND flash chips, and a fragment a few millimetres across can hold an intact chip. NSA/CSS sets particles of 6 mm or less for hard drives and 2 mm or less for SSDs and flash.
What documentation do we get?
A certificate of destruction tied to each serial number, asset disposal registers, waste transfer notes and compliance reports. Records like these are typically kept for six years.
Can retired equipment still return some value?
Often, yes. Once the data has been dealt with, we assess residual value through resale, refurbishment or component harvesting.
ITAD & WEEE
Send us the asset list and the site.
Talk to our ITAD team about decommissioning and disposing of end-of-life equipment.