Product Reuse

The Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Iowa City, Iowa, created both a recycling innovation product and process to solve some local computer hardware and software problems, while at the same time diverting, unusable, electronic devices from the facilities local landfill. By using generic software, available on the Internet, to reconfigure some outdated workstations, the medical center was able to re-use old workstations and reconfigure them to ease the need for electronic support by hospital staff. This low cost process recycles hospital-owned, out of date workstations with Linux software, enabling reconfiguration, and then installs commercially sold video and interface cards to meet facility IT needs. The new workstations enable hospital staff to connect to the Network Server and utilize their Imaging software. Not only does this process aid medical staff in electronic support but it also removes the workstations from the general waste stream and saves the environment from the toxins associated with this type of waste. For more information, contact Frank Lower at Francis.Lower@med.va.gov.