Mar 01, 2024
Eco labels help customers identify products that are environmentally
friendly. They indicate a product’s qualifications for stricter
environmental standards that exceed basic requirements regulated by
law. This helps customers make confident decisions when choosing a
product designed with eco-friendliness in mind.
ASUS has invested large amounts in R&D resources to create greener
products with improved durability, safer materials and chemicals,
lower energy consumption, better battery efficiency, lightness,
design for end of life, repairability, and recyclability. Such
efforts have helped
ASUS acquire multiple ecolabels
including EPEAT, TCO, Taiwan Green Mark, China Environmental
Labeling, Japan Eco Mark, and ENERGY STAR® certifications. ASUS has
realized significant milestones in our sustainability efforts during
recent years – in 2022 more than 87.2% of ASUS’s qualified revenue
came from eco-friendly products.
You might wonder what exact standards products need to meet to be
verified with eco labels and what makes these certifications so
significant. Below is a detailed introduction to eco labels found on
ASUS products. Read on to learn more!
EPEAT
Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT)
is currently the most prestigious ecolabel for electronics managed
by the Global Electronics Council® (GEC). Products are evaluated
based on 10 eco-friendly metrics - substance management, material
selection, product longevity, energy conservation, end of life
management, packaging, life cycle assessment and carbon footprint,
corporate environmental performance, and corporate social
responsibility. There are mandatory and optional criteria in these
10 categories. Based on the number of optional criteria met which
accumulates points as a metric, products are eligible for
registration in three tiers: Bronze, Silver, and Gold.
A wide array of ASUS products are EPEAT registered, including
laptops, desktops, all-in-one pcs, and monitors. Many ASUS products
are registered at the EPEAT Gold level – meaning that they meet the
most demanding EPEAT requirements. This is good news for the
environment. Comparing environmental impacts in 2022 versus 2021 for
EPEAT registered ASUS products, there has been a reduction of 23,233
tons of CO2 greenhouse gas emission, 3,207 tons of solid waste
reduction, 670,000 tons of saved water, and 114,629 MWh of saved
electricity.
EPEAT Climate+
In sight of increasing extreme weather conditions, GEC launched
EPEAT Climate+
criteria in 2023 to help customers identify which EPEAT registered
products are designed with mitigating climate change in mind. EPEAT
Climate+ requires products to be EPEAT registered, and they also
need to meet criteria focusing on third-party verified product
carbon disclosures, science based GHG reduction targets, energy
efficient manufacturing, and product use of renewable energy.
ASUS is named an EPEAT Climate+ champion by GEC, which speaks for
our early adoption and leadership on climate change mitigation. We
have taken rigorous action to tackle climate change and reduce
carbon emissions. In 2022, ASUS used renewable energy for 15% of our
global operations and we aim to reach 100% by 2035. Our near-term
carbon reduction targets have been approved by
Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi)
which shows that our set goals are reasonable and achievable. In
2022, key ASUS suppliers successfully reduced their carbon emissions
intensity (calculated by tons CO2e/ million USD) by approximately
24% compared to the baseline year of 2020. ASUS also tries to make
our carbon reduction efforts as transparent as possible through
carbon footprint reports
on products which include quantitative and qualitative information.
TCO Certification
TCO Certifications
are issued by TCO Development, which is a leading ecolabel for the
IT industry. Products applying for TCO certification are evaluated
under two main categories – Usability and Environment. Although
there is partial overlap regarding certification metrics between TCO
and EPEAT, TCO certification covers packaging, emission, electrical
safety, and overall focuses mainly on safety aspects. It also covers
a broader range of products, including projectors and headsets. ASUS
has products certified with TCO in
monitor displays
and
laptops.
ENERGY STAR®
ENERGY STAR®
is operated by the
US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
and was launched in 1992. It has grown to become an internationally
recognized ecolabel for energy efficiency and helps consumers or
businesses looking to save money on energy and electricity choose
energy-efficient products.
Efforts for energy efficiency are evident in ASUS hardware. We
continuously invest in R&D to create solutions that reduce energy
loss between components and to make designs more efficient. In these
efforts ASUS achieved several milestones in recent years. Our
laptops launched in 2022 displayed an impressive 34.6% better energy
efficiency on average than the minimum ENERGY STAR® requirements. In
the same year, products that met ENERGY STAR® standards accounted
for 65% of company revenue. In addition, ASUS has been recognized
with the ENERGY STAR Most Efficient award for three consecutive
years since 2022.
For tips on how to reduce energy consumption and save your battery,
we have several pointers in this article
here. If you are also curious about ASUS products that comply with the
latest EPEAT requirements, the list is searchable on
EPEAT Official website.
Zenbook DUO – Innovative and Sustainable
The new
Zenbook DUO (2024) UX8406
dual-screen laptop was introduced to the world during CES 2024. It
features two 14-inch 3K OLED touchscreens enabling four different
possible setups – dual screen mode, laptop mode, desktop mode, and
sharing mode. Zenbook DUO is a capable machine with up to Intel®
Core™ Ultra 9 processor. It boasts multiple ecolabels including
EPEAT Gold* and ENERGY STAR®, and its packaging is 100% recyclable
FSC™ mix certified.
The cover and bottom cases of Zenbook DUO are made with 90%
post-industrial recycled (PIR) magnesium-aluminum. The 100%
recyclable FSC™ mix certified packaging is eco-friendly because it
uses recycled paper made from responsible wood sources, plus the
packaging parts are designed to be easily upcycled and transformed
into laptop stands. Learn more about sustainable ASUS packaging
here.
Zenbook 14 OLED (UX3405) – Elegant, Durable, Energy Efficient
The elegant Zenbook 14 OLED comes with a powerful Intel® Core ™
Ultra processor (UX3405). This AI-ready, stylish laptop exceeds ENERGY STAR® standards by
50% and is registered for EPEAT Gold. It has passed shock,
vibration, high temperature, low temperature, and altitude tests for
military-grade durability which means it has an extreme temperature
endurance. This prolongs the laptop’s lifespan and eases
environmental impact resulting through disposal and repurchasing.
Carefully engineered without compromising quality, functionality, or
durability, 50% of the Zenbook 14 OLED’s slim 1.2 kg chassis is made
of post-consumer recycled (PCR) plastics. Plus, the packaging of
this model is made with 100% recyclable FSC™ mix certified and
FSC™ recycled paper.
Sustainability for the Future
ASUS continues to develop sustainable solutions. Click the button
below to learn more about how we manage our supply chain to run a
greener, more responsible business.
More on ASUS Supply Chain
*EPEAT Gold registered in the U.S. EPEAT registration varies by
country. See www.epeat.net for registration status by country.