We’re building a robotics system that recovers reusable electronic components from retired hardware. To run experiments we’re looking to buy electronics that are *retired or obsolete but still contain valuable components*.
We’re especially interested in hardware that *is no longer useful as a system but still has valuable chips or components on the boards*.
Typical pricing depends on the hardware, but we often pay *$20–$200+ per unit* for things like servers, networking gear, or laptops depending on what’s inside. Happy to buy bulk lots.
Based in the Bay Area; we can arrange pickup locally or pallet shipping within the US.
If you run ITAD, recycling, refurbishment, repair, or have retired hardware sitting around, email:
sava@dayworkx.com
Even rough descriptions like “a pallet of old switches” are helpful.
girvo•1h ago
This is very very cool :)
And is _way_ better than when I'm forced to do this by hand, I'll say that much haha
Joel_Mckay•59m ago
There are e-waste companies with inert hot-air centrifuges. Essentially, they extract the RoHS solder, clean it, and resell re-certified product back to manufacturers.
The chips simply drop off into a bin, and no ethical company will sell customers used silicon. There were a few folks that ended up getting a few years in prison for that con (small China groups would sand and laser mark old chips with modern lot codes), and hence why many US recycling plants shred the chips for recovery of precious metals.
It is a serious safety problem, and having personally been stung by locally sold counterfeit/used stuff with BS compliance documentation... it sometimes means months of lost project time figuring out what happened. Always direct sample from the manufacturers whenever possible. =3
femto•11m ago
I can't see a problem, as long as the chips are not fraudulently resold. Beyond not using a resource in the first place, reuse is the gold standard in sustainability.
As an engineer, I wouldn't use second hand components for prototyping. When prototyping you need to eliminate as much uncertainty as possible. I'd consider using second hand components in production, provided there is a cost advantage, supply is reliable and my production line includes a test that would pick up faulty components. Even then, I'd be monitoring failure rates and reverting to new components if elevated failure rates caused costs. There's an argument that (well handled) second hand components might even have a lower failure rate than new as they have been burned in.
I'm guessing this company is targeting specialsied repair rather than production. Sometimes complex parts are no longer manufactured and the only option is second hand (often at a premium price).
skholinn•3d ago
Examples:
* servers, networking gear, routers, switches * laptops / workstations * telecom / industrial / embedded boards * lab equipment electronics * obsolete or end-of-life hardware with populated PCBs
We’re especially interested in hardware that *is no longer useful as a system but still has valuable chips or components on the boards*.
Typical pricing depends on the hardware, but we often pay *$20–$200+ per unit* for things like servers, networking gear, or laptops depending on what’s inside. Happy to buy bulk lots.
Based in the Bay Area; we can arrange pickup locally or pallet shipping within the US.
If you run ITAD, recycling, refurbishment, repair, or have retired hardware sitting around, email:
sava@dayworkx.com
Even rough descriptions like “a pallet of old switches” are helpful.
girvo•1h ago
And is _way_ better than when I'm forced to do this by hand, I'll say that much haha
Joel_Mckay•59m ago
The chips simply drop off into a bin, and no ethical company will sell customers used silicon. There were a few folks that ended up getting a few years in prison for that con (small China groups would sand and laser mark old chips with modern lot codes), and hence why many US recycling plants shred the chips for recovery of precious metals.
It is a serious safety problem, and having personally been stung by locally sold counterfeit/used stuff with BS compliance documentation... it sometimes means months of lost project time figuring out what happened. Always direct sample from the manufacturers whenever possible. =3
femto•11m ago
As an engineer, I wouldn't use second hand components for prototyping. When prototyping you need to eliminate as much uncertainty as possible. I'd consider using second hand components in production, provided there is a cost advantage, supply is reliable and my production line includes a test that would pick up faulty components. Even then, I'd be monitoring failure rates and reverting to new components if elevated failure rates caused costs. There's an argument that (well handled) second hand components might even have a lower failure rate than new as they have been burned in.
I'm guessing this company is targeting specialsied repair rather than production. Sometimes complex parts are no longer manufactured and the only option is second hand (often at a premium price).