ISRI accepts nominations for its 2021 Design for Recycling award

The Washington-based Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI) says it is now accepting entries for its 2021 Design for Recycling (DFR) Award. The association says the DFR Award is “given annually to the most outstanding contribution to products designed with recycling in mind.”

ISRI says the honor, which it has issued most years for more than a decade, is intended to recognize “proactive steps made by manufacturers who have actively incorporated DFR principles into products and processes.”

Robin Wiener, president of ISRI, says, “Effective recycling really begins at the point a product is first conceived. The DFR award recognizes companies, designers, and manufacturers with clearly established mindsets that stand above others when producing products that can be recycled both safely and efficiently. When their product reaches the end of life stage, it can be recycled in a manner that benefits the environment and the economy.”

Previous DFR award winners have included Hewlett Packard, the Herman Miller Co., Coca-Cola Recycling Co., Cascades Fine Papers Group, Dell Inc., LG Electronics, Samsung Electronics, EcoStrate SFS, Nestlé Waters North America and 2020 award winner Lexmark.

Among the criteria cited by ISRI for those seeking the award are for their products to:

• contain the maximum amount of materials that are recyclable;
• be easily recycled through current or newly designed recycling processes and procedures;
• be cost-effective to recycle, whereby the cost to recycle does not exceed the value of its recycled materials;
• be free of hazardous materials that are not recyclable or impede the recycling process;
• minimizes the time and cost involved to recycle the product;
• reduces the use of raw materials by including recycled materials and/or components; and
• represents a net gain in the overall recyclability of the product while reducing the overall negative impact on the environment.

ISRI says interested parties can apply online on or before Feb. 19. Applicants will be notified about their nomination’s status by March 22, ISRI indicates.