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27 December 2012

Austrian Procurement Agency opts for TCO Certified IT equipment

Austria’s Federal Procurement Agency (BBG) has announced that a major procurement for notebooks and tablets, scheduled for 2013, will include sustainability requirements based on certification label TCO. TCO certification works to ensure that the manufacturing, use and recycling of IT products are carried out with regard to environmental, social and economic responsibility.

Austria’s Federal Procurement Agency, BBG, manages purchasing for 450 000 public sector employees across all state-run agencies. Marcus Serringer, Team Leader for IT-procurement at BBG, said: “In our ongoing dialogue with our customers, we are frequently asked to include international standards for ergonomic and environmental requirements when we tender for products. TCO Certified is an important tool for us to make sure we’re meeting our organizational goals for quality as well as the environmental demands of our customers.”

“This step taken by the Austrian Federal Procurement Agency is further proof that purchasers want IT products that meet their sustainability demands, says Maria Sjölund, Market Developer at TCO Development. The criteria used in TCO certification is available online, and includes categories such as corporate social responsibility, environmental management systems, hazardous substances, energy efficiency, ergonomics, work environment, health and safety and more.

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