The third-quarter earnings reports from hardware, cloud, and lifecycle companies confirm that the decommissioning industry (decom) is expanding from hardware collection and recovery to the platforming of value creation through integration, compliance, and automation. Supply chains—from device makers to managed services—are recalibrating as enterprise clients demand deeper transparency, more resilient infrastructure, and lifecycle accountability.
First, What You Should Know in a Nutshell:
- Q3 saw once again strong top-line growth from Apple, Amazon, Iron Mountain, Ingram Micro, and Connection, powered by AI infrastructure, modernization, and ongoing cloud migrations.
- Hardware entering disposition channels is newer, often AI-enabled, and denser—making asset recovery more technical and highlighting the premium on compliance-driven data handling and secure teardown.
- Data center and enterprise refresh cycles are generating fewer, higher-value assets, changing the economics and operational demands of the ITAD and recycling sectors.
- Service models at major distributors and lifecycle firms are migrating toward integrated, contract-based orchestration—platforms that unify procurement, asset tracking, and compliance reporting for clients.
- Downstream operators face pressure to invest in automation, analytics, and workforce upskilling as OEMs and hyperscale players raise standards for sustainability and chain-of-custody.
- The next phase of industry growth is likely to reward firms that can combine device recovery, digital information management, and traceable reporting—a trend visible in client demand and Q3 performance across the sector.
This analysis is reserved for clients subscribing to the Pulse Service.
Already a subscriber?
Log in here.
Subscribe to Pulse
Book a 90-Minute Analyst Presentation
