From the field, real data.
Each pilot is a manual collection event run before the deployment of the permanent bin.
Via Vanvitelli, 50
Via Plinio, 18
Via Spontini, 11
In planning
We're selecting the next Milan building
The pilots are run manually before the deployment of the SB-WEEE bin. They are meant to gather real data on participation rate, category mix and qualitative feedback in order to validate the model and build the business case for municipalities.
High kg/participant in early pilots: first-time effect (accumulated stock). Values converge to 1.5–3 kg/participant from the second event onwards.
11 feedbacks, two buildings.
Feedback from pilot #3 (Via Spontini) will be published shortly.
Collected verbally during the drop-offs, with no structured forms. What people say when they dispose of their devices.
3 of 11 feedbacks explicitly ask for continuity of the service.
3 of 11 feedbacks spontaneously cite the usefulness of a permanent bin in the building.
3 of 11 feedbacks report keeping devices for more than five years.
No negative feedback: everyone would return for the next collection.
A resident had been hoarding for twenty years out of anti-consumerism, lack of time and hope of reuse. Today it was finally easy.
Three barriers dissolved by service proximity. Immediate willingness to repeat.
Karl, with no car, cannot reach the civic amenity site. He would use a Smart Bin in his building without hesitation.
The barrier is mobility, not awareness. Proximity becomes the only real way.
Three households in Vanvitelli independently asked when the next collection would be.
The most frequent signal: the interest is not episodic, continuity is needed.
A Plinio resident has devices ready but wants to wipe his data first: he thought removing the card was enough.
Clear data-wipe instructions and information that WEEE is still WEEE without memory are needed.
A couple called the initiative excellent and asked whether the Smart Bin would be installed in the building.
Spontaneous validation of the physical product, without any promotional material.
Several residents suggested putting working devices back into use before recycling them.
A bottom-up circular-economy proposal that emerged independently.
Cumulative impact
The sum of the pilots completed in Milan. Every number is verified in the field during the collection events.
444 kg, told by category
Cumulative composition across the three pilots and a direct comparison on three key metrics.
R3, R4 and R1 account for over 99% of the total weight collected. Spontini brought R1 into a RecoServ pilot for the first time.
small devices collected across three pilots, average weight around 0.5 kg
of precious metals estimated as recoverable (Au, Ag, Pd) from the three pilots
of participation between the first (18.5%) and third pilot (37.7%)
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Anything mains- or battery-powered when it stops being used. Smartphones, TVs, light bulbs, ovens, headphones, chargers. Italy produces more than 900,000 tonnes per year. Less than a third is collected properly.
Whoever makes and sells electronics in Italy pays a fee for each device placed on the market. These funds are redistributed to the municipalities that collect WEEE in a certified way. More WEEE intercepted = more funds returned.
The first collection event empties years of hoarding. An Italian household has on average 5–8 devices sitting at home for more than 2 years. From the second event onwards only the 'current flow' is collected: 1.5–3 kg per participant instead of 13–18 kg.
Producing recycled aluminium instead of virgin aluminium saves about 80% of the energy. Each kg of recycled copper avoids 4–5 kg of CO₂ compared with mining. WEEE is an urban mine: recovering it means not having to extract those materials elsewhere.
European principle: whoever puts a product on the market is responsible for its end of life. Samsung, Apple, Philips and all the others pay fees to CDC WEEE for every device sold. These funds finance collection · including the RecoServ service.
70% of Italians who don't recycle their WEEE cite logistic reasons: the civic amenity site is far, opening hours are inconvenient, it makes no sense to drive there for an old charger. Proximity removes that barrier. A collection point in the courtyard requires no extra effort.