Microsoft Deems Product Repairs Good for the Environment!
The study, in collaboration with the UK-based consulting firm Oakdene Hollins, suggests how repairing (both factory and ASP repairs) a device has a better impact on the environment with the reduction of waste and greenhouse gas (GHS) emissions.
The report takes the Surface Pro 6/ 8 and Surface Book 3/ Surface Laptop Studio into consideration to showcase the changing design of Microsoft products for easy repairs. And hence, it was concluded that “expanded repair services, enabled by product and process design changes and available FRUs, have the potential to significantly reduce waste and GHG emissions by enabling device repair in lieu of device replacement.“
It is highlighted that this can reduce an average waste by a whopping 92% and average GHS emissions by 89%. Transportation logistics also played a role in GHS and waste emissions. Driving a broken product to a repair facility increased the emission of greenhouse gases, while mail-in services had a much better impact on the environment.
The report recommends “making more FRUs available to ASP providers and by creating Surface regional centers for Factory Repair similar to those currently in place for Xbox consoles.”
While this study focuses more on how the repairability process can be improved for a sustainable environment, it indirectly hints at a self-repair program since repairing is now proven to be a better option. However, we still don’t if Microsoft aims to follow the likes of Apple, Samsung, and Google. In a statement, Microsoft suggested that it has “been taking steps for years to improve device reparability and to expand the available choices for device repair.“
That said, it remains to be seen when will this happen. We will keep you posted, so stay tuned, and do let us know your thoughts on this in the comments below.
