HP Hosts Automotive Database to Boost ELV Recycling

Computing industry giant, Hewlett-Packard (HP) is to help 34 car manufacturers across the world in their efforts to eliminate harmful substances from the automotive supply chain and improve recycling by hosting the International Material Data System (IMDS) for the next five years. HP explained that the IMDS is a shared service that enables the world's automotive manufacturers and more than 100,000 companies in the vehicle supply chain to meet regulations on hazardous substances. By supplying more than 40 million data sheets that list the details of every substance involved in the manufacture of all components, HP said that the IMDS helps prevent the use of heavy metals such as cadmium, lead, mercury and hexavalent chromium, and ensures that reportable substances are declared for recycling. Originally developed in response to the European Union's End-Of-Life Vehicles (ELV) Directive, which aims at waste reduction, HP said that the IMDS has been adopted as the global standard for reporting material content across the automotive industry. The system provides a venue for information exchange between car manufacturers, their suppliers and their suppliers' suppliers about the materials used in all the components of a vehicle. Material information on parts is delivered from the original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to dismantler companies in order to achieve the goals of the ELV Directive. As a result, the IMDS will help car manufacturers meet their commitment to recycle 95 percent of the mass of each vehicle sold by 2015. Automotive OEMs from across the world have now joined original sponsors BMW, Daimler, Ford, Opel, Porsche, Volvo and VW as additional regions implement more rigorous legislation "Previously, OEMs all had their own lists of prohibited and reportable substances, which made it difficult to identify them in the supply chain," explained Matthew Griffin, representative, Jaguar Land Rover, and speaker, IMDS Steering Committee. "The IMDS provides a standardised format for exchanging material information throughout the manufacturing process, making it easier for the automotive industry to comply with legal requirements in a cost-efficient manner." Under the contract renewal, HP Enterprise Services said that it will continue to develop, maintain and host the IMDS global data repository. "The automotive industry needs to meet constantly changing legislation and increase the amount of recycling from old cars," commented Oliver Bahns, worldwide director, Automotive and Aerospace, HP. "HP has worked closely with the industry for the past 12 years to ensure that the IMDS provides clear information concerning the materials used in all components of a vehicle through every stage of the supply chain," he added. Read More PVC Recycling up in UK Led by PVC-U Window Frames The UK is recycling over one million post consumer PVC-U window frames each year, or 25,480 tonnes, through the PVC industry's recycling scheme Recovinyl. Viridor's Gasification, Recycling and Biogas Plant Approved in Glasgow Viridor's plans for a £154 million recycling, biogas and gasification waste to energy facility in Glasgow have been given the green light. World's First Multi-Robot Recycling System for SITA Finland Helsinki, Finland based ZenRobotics is to install the world's first robotic waste sorting plant to use multiple robots at SITA Finland's Helsinki facility.