In 2007, a Walmart executive was contacted by a remote farmer who had discovered an issue on his property. A large piece of Walmart signage ended up on his property and he wanted it removed. This event sparked a question for the large global retailer: “Where is all our construction waste going and what level of liability do we have out there?” That question initiated an in-depth investigation into all construction and renovation waste streams for Walmart. They found that one of the biggest environmental exposures was from their retired HVAC assets – and they had no way to document where that equipment was going.

During this time, AES Industries President Jason Benton was part of the vendor collaboration for Walmart. He participated in an event discussing the need to document Walmart’s construction waste streams, and from this event, AES Reclaim was born and Walmart was our first client.

As of 2014, over 700 Walmart stores have had their HVAC units recycled through AES Reclaim. Beyond the peace of mind that the world’s largest retailer receives knowing that their liabilities have been 100% recycled, Walmart has received cost avoidance in excess of $1 million from our managed inventory of reusable service parts. The results for Walmart have been tremendous for the retailer financially as well as environmentally – so much so that Walmart has begun to implement additional mechanical and refrigeration equipment recycling through AES Reclaim.

Walmart’s documentation of need and risk assessment opened up the door for AES Industries to create a unique service in the mechanical industry. AES Reclaim is now used by a number of the largest users of HVAC equipment in the U.S. To discuss how AES Reclaim can provide your company with a profitable sustainability and risk avoidance program, contact us at info@aesreclaim.com.