By JOHN E. WEARE
KAB
Friends separate trudging through the scorching desert sands – never the best idea even if you and your buddy are both made of metal and have no use for water. The taller, golden one finds “help” first. The shorter, cylindrical one rolls into an ambush by the same little folks with glowing eyes under the hoods of their dark robes. It seems AI failed to see the wisdom of electronics recycling even “a long time ago in a galaxy far far away”.
I could not help thinking of the jawas from “Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope” last month during the final outing on the agenda at the Keep Nebraska Beautiful conference. American Steed, which we visited in Lincoln on June 6 before everyone dispersed, is an R2 certified company offering I.T. disposition services. That certification, as well as three under the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), 14001:2015, 45001:2018, and 9001:2015, have nothing to do with science fiction. Though, if C3PO were to walk in the door the owner/operators who showed us around could, in no time, securely erase his memory “using certified data destruction methods; document steps taken during the process while generating compliance reports”; “assess the potential value . . . refurbishing viable assets for resale or donation, and engaging with third-party vendors for asset sales.” If the droid was no good they could segregate him into “components for recycling, partnering with certified e-waste recyclers, and adhering to best practices for reducing environmental impact.” The above, taken from an informational handout, also explains how American Steed is “establishing metrics to measure the efficiency and effectiveness of ITAD (IT Asset Disposition)” and “providing secure and reliable pickup services for your excess and obsolete inventory”.
The company’s space was among other tenants in shop/warehouse type buildings on the outskirts of the city. Much of their well-organized inventory (in a space about a third the size of the KAB Recycling Center) is similar to what we have collected on a daily basis over the years. Although KAB is partnering with the city of Alliance for electronics recycling during the 2025 community cleanup (date TBA), we have elected to accept electronics year-round instead of during a concentrated drive the past several years. The volume American Steed handles dwarfs what we send to Colorado to be recycled. They mentioned a recent trip to Oklahoma that netted 25,000 pounds in a single day.
Most commendable from this operation, tucked away in a 6,400-square foot location, is that recycling is typically offered free of charge to organizations. Profit from the process allows them to service partners (schools, hospitals and NGOs) “in the middle of nowhere” and palletize and get it with their own truck. Items brought in otherwise may have a fee such as microwaves, which contain radioactive components, and large copiers and smartboards.
The owners said that what we were seeing was from a recent drive and would be gone in two weeks. They contract with sorters and processors. Everyone down the line they work with is also R2 certified, thereby held to the same standards to “be very careful with your personal data”.
Being connected pays dividends. American Steed is part of a network with this vendor taking all their televisions. Volume is also essential as they said, “We work on pennies.” Success out of Lincoln, since they began in March 2023, is the model as the company aims to expand to three
or four other locations throughout America. As of June 2025, they have processed roughly 2 million pounds of electronics.
The four men who told us about their company would not describe themselves foremost as recyclers. They, more than once, used the term technologists who focus on computers. “We don’t see ourselves as doing this for eternity,” one of the partners emphasized. “We see this as going back and helping the environment. Long term, our goal is to really focus on the data sanctification (and security).”