IT Partners - Tempe, Arizona

Graham Wollaston

We recently received a negative review from IT Partners. I had previously taken a call from their Office Manager requesting that we recycle some recent model servers, phones and printers. The equipment as described met our requirements for free pickup and recycling but as always, I asked for pictures. I did state that we would charge $5.00 each to properly recycle the printers. Pictures were duly sent but these showed a very different profile than the initial description. The photos are attached to this post. Because of the large (and empty) server rack we would need to send 2 people and a large box truck with a tailgate across town to collect the material. Then there would be the time to properly process the material. There were 3 LCD's which contain high concentrations of mercury, a potent neurotoxin. The mercury containing bulbs have to be painstakingly removed and sent to an accredited mercury processor. As is evident from the photos, there was other 'stuff' with low or negative value. I pointed this out to the Office Manager and told her that we would have to charge $400 to collect and recycle this equipment properly. I did not hear back and considered the matter closed.

I then receive a negative review suggesting that I was guilty of deceptive business practices because I had originally indicated the pickup and recycling would be free and now I would be charging $400. Well, that is why I ask for photos.

IT Partners, I am sure there is a 'recycler' out there who will collect this scrap for free. However, the LCD's will go to China where the mercury bulbs will end up in the trash. The toner cartridges (which contain carcinogens) will also get tossed. The single server and printers I saw will be stripped for the circuit boards which will also be sent to China as will the wire (of which there was a lot). The preferred method to remove the plastic covering to the wire in China is to build a huge pile, douse it with diesel and set it on fire. Imagine the column of toxic smoke that produces. The responsible thing to do would have been to suck it up, pay the $400 (less than a reasonable business lunch) and have the equipment properly recycled by an R2 & RIOS certified company.

Finally, I would suggest that leaving a negative review is not an appropriate response just because you received a quote you did not like. If the equipment had been accurately described in the initial call the quote would have been different; that is why I ask for pictures. I also note that IT Partners has received only a single positive review on this platform - and that was 6 years ago. We on the other hand have had 15 five star reviews in the last year alone. Yours is the first negative post in all our time in business.

JC W

Mitch Stott