As part of the Swiss e-Waste Programme, Empa's sustec group organized from the 6th to 12th of september 2009 an e-Waste Study Tour with 19 participants from their partner institutions in Peru, Colombia, Brasil, Chile, Argentina and South Africa.
The Study Tour was designed to provide the participants an insight into the Swiss and other European e-waste management systems and recycling technologies. During the event, the group visited several e-Waste recycling companies in Switzerland and Austria (such as Immark AG, RUAG, Sorec, UFH Recycling and MBA Polymers), dismantling centers (such as Innorec, Dock AG and DRZ) and producer responsibility organizations (such as SWICO, S.EN.S, Inobat and UFH). Besides the technical visits, the tour offered opportunities for bilateral meetings, intercultural exchange and social happenings.
In the words of some of the participants, the Empa e-Waste Study Tour 2009 was a "great opportunity and experience" which allowed them to gain "a lot of new knowledge" and they are "sure that this experience will be very helpful for our project".
