Bulky Buddy
Old computers need two things sorted before they leave: the data and the collection. Put a name against both. Then list the desktops, laptops, servers and drives going out with the office clear-out.
This guide covers computer disposal, desktop recycling, server disposal and the data work to finish first. For desks, confidential paper, routine refuse and renovation debris, start with the office waste disposal hub.
Send item photos and access details. Tell us what data work your IT team is arranging.
Get an e-waste quoteList the IT equipment, including desktops and “CPUs”
If “CPU disposal” means a whole desktop tower, say so and send a photo. Show the collector whether it is a complete computer or loose parts. Count each equipment type and give IT the list before booking.
- Desktops and laptops: identify each device and get IT to clear the data and release.
- Servers and storage: include the model, rack location and the equipment or drives leaving.
- Printers and copiers: check ownership and ask IT about any data review for that model.
- Monitors and peripherals: list these separately from data-bearing equipment.
- UPS units and loose batteries: give the model and condition, then check acceptance with the receiving operator.
Set aside leased or supplier-owned devices until their owner gives instructions. Use your asset references on the internal list and match them at handover. Check ownership of the forgotten store-room machines too.
Choose the e-waste route
NEA's EPR framework separates regulated consumer and non-consumer products. Producers of regulated non-consumer products have take-back obligations on request or when the product is presented, with collection and treatment through the prescribed licensed channels. Check the producer's route for your equipment.
Use NEA's collection guidance and give the receiving operator the product type, quantity and condition. Check the category and acceptance before taking a business batch to a public e-waste bin. Keep the reply with your booking details.
IT signs off before the equipment goes. Mark which devices are cleared and which stay. Give that list to the collection coordinator, so the loading bay is not where the data decision gets made.
Data wiping versus physical destruction
NIST's media sanitisation guidance distinguishes Clear, Purge and Destroy. Wiping needs a specific technique suited to the media and intended outcome; deleting files alone is not enough to establish that outcome. Physical destruction makes the media unusable. Have IT or the specialist choose and validate the method.
Bulky Buddy is not a certified data-destruction service. Arrange the data work with your IT team or chosen specialist before release. Ask whether drives should be retained or removed for the actual laptop or server; leave unfamiliar hardware work to them.
Keep the sequence simple: identify the device, agree the data treatment, complete and check it, then clear it for collection. If the specialist collects the media first, arrange that handover separately. Keep anything unresolved out of the clearance pile.
What to ask for on a destruction certificate
Ask the data vendor what completion record it provides. NIST's sample sanitisation certificate includes device and media identifiers, method and tools, verification and validation, destination and sign-off. Get a record you can match to your asset list. A collection receipt covers the handover, not the data treatment.
Settle the paperwork before the work starts. Who signs it? Who receives it at your company? What happens if an asset cannot be processed as agreed? Ask the vendor to hold exceptions for a decision. Get certificates from the specialist doing the data work.
Servers: plan the release and the carry
Have IT confirm what can be disconnected and what still depends on it. Then give the crew the equipment list, with dimensions and weight from the model documentation where available. Mark what will already be out of the rack.
Photograph the rack, doors, service lift and route to the loading bay. Agree who removes equipment from the rack, who brings handling equipment and where the handover happens. Show the full load and attached parts.
Send item photos and access details. Tell us what data work your IT team is arranging.
Get an e-waste quoteFit IT disposal into the office clearance
Send photos of the furniture and IT equipment, with separate lists. Tell us what is cleared to leave and what specialist work you have arranged. Get the receiving route and collection scope agreed in the quote.
Use the office furniture guide for desks, chairs and cupboards, or our office and commercial clearance page for the full job. Put IT, facilities, management and the receiving operators on the same collection timetable.
