SUSTAINABILITY
OUR COMMITMENT
Our customers rely on Garmin products and services while enjoying the outdoors, whether on land, at sea or in the air. To preserve those spaces, we are committed to protecting the environment throughout all aspects of our business operations. We strive to continuously improve our performance by establishing environmental objectives that recognise the impact of our activities on the environment and meet or exceed our compliance obligations.
CERTIFICATIONS
Garmin is committed to incorporating environmental considerations throughout our operations. In addition to compliance with all legal requirements, we have received certification to the international standard ISO 14001 for the design, manufacture, distribution and support of our products.
PRODUCTS AND PACKAGING
In compliance with environmental standards, we have several measures in place to reduce hazardous materials used in our products. These include analysing each stage of our operation to identify materials that could have a potentially harmful effect on people and the environment, adoption of appropriate controls and safeguards, and documentation of all actions taken.
We also have ongoing initiatives to reduce environmental impacts associated with packaging. We continuously strive to improve package design by using more sustainable materials for packaging and reducing the packaging size. The majority of our products are shipped in cardboard packaging made of greater than 80 percent recycled content. We’ve also eliminated the use of plastic clamshell and blister packs. In certain instances where we partner with aircraft manufacturers through original equipment manufacturer (OEM) applications, we ship our avionics equipment in bulk using reusable shipping containers. These containers allow aircraft manufacturers to use our avionics equipment as needed and return the container once empty, eliminating the need for excess packaging.
RECYCLING
Garmin promotes the safe management of hazardous components and supports the recovery and reuse of valuable materials through recycling. We hold regular environmental meetings and monitor recycling trends to stay current with recycling needs and ensure compliance in other countries. A focus on recycling at our facilities has had a dramatic impact, lowering the amount of waste sent to landfills.
In 2020 our recycling programs in Olathe, Kansas, the U.K. and our Taiwan manufacturing facilities collected collected and recycled more than 1,950 metric tons of materials.
We also have established device recycling protocols in the U.S., Japan, Europe, China and other locations around the globe.
WEEE Takeback
As a responsible retailer, we have met the requirements placed on us by financially supporting the national network of WEEE recycling centres established by local authorities. This is achieved through membership of the national Distributor Take-back scheme (DTS).
MATERIALS
To reduce our environmental impact and offer our consumers additional product health safety assurances, Garmin restricts the use of hazardous materials in our product design and materials. We comply with the European Union’s Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) directive, which bans new electrical and electronic equipment from containing more than permissible levels of hazardous substances. We also support the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) regulation, which improves the protection of human health and the environment through the early and improved identification of the intrinsic properties of chemical substances.
END OF LIFE CYCLE
Garmin is compliant with the EU directive on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE), which helps promote safe and responsible disposal and recycling. We continue to seek opportunities globally that aid in the protection of the environment and assist in proper disposal and recycling of products that have reached the end of their life cycle. Our efforts include refurbishing products, reusing components and partnering with electronic waste recyclers for items we are unable to reuse. In 2020 we recycled more than 183 metric tons of e-waste. If requested, we provide the information needed by reuse centres and treatment and recycling facilities in the reuse, treatment or recycling of our products. In addition, if a product contains small quantities of mercury in the liquid crystal display panel or internal lamp, we disclose this in the owner’s manual and recommend that only a Garmin certified service technician handle any service or replacement needs.