Lenovo Sustainability

Packaged with the Environment in Mind

Our Approach

From using bio-based packaging materials and designing lighter pallets to reducing the use of packaging tape, Lenovo is resolute in its aim to reduce the environmental impacts of its packaging.

This can be seen through many initiatives, including:

Greener, lighter packaging
Packaging specifications for suppliers
Bulk and reusable packaging solutions

To learn more about Lenovo’s sustainable product packaging solutions, click here for the latest Sustainability Report.

Our Packaging at a Glance

3,100 tons

We’ve eliminated 3,100 tons of packaging consumption by weight since 2008
100%

We transitioned the packaging for the ThinkPad series to 100 percent biodegradable or recycled cushioning materials.
6.7%

Our thinner, lighter bio-based packaging resulted in a 6.7% less transportation CO2 emissions

Greener, Lighter Packaging

In 2018, we began implementing the use of an innovative bio-based packaging made from bamboo and sugar cane fiber. The material is not only 100 percent biodegradable, it is lighter than previous packaging and its strength characteristics enable design improvements that reduce overall package size.

This new packaging was used to to ship memory cards and one of our ThinkPad models. With lighter packaging materials and package weight, the result was 6.7 percent less transportation CO2 emissions. We are therefore looking to expand the use of this bamboo and sugar cane fiber packaging innovation.

Over a decade ago, Lenovo began using 100% recycled and recyclable packaging material. Instead of using polystyrene packaging, we now encourage the use of molded pulp, fiber and low-density polyethylene (LDPE).

A number of our green packaging initiatives include:

With 100% recycled thermoformed cushions, our PCs can now be stacked closer together and require less packaging material, helping to minimize shipping costs
Many of our notebook product lines now use 100% post-consumer molded fiber (or paper pulp) packaging, which can be readily recycled in municipal waste streams
All Think product primary carton boxes contain a minimum of 50% post-consumer fiber content and are required to use the maximum available post-consumer material
98% of ThinkPad products now use recycled cushioning material, with the printing on boxes done via flexography with water-based, non-toxic, RoHS compliant inks
The high recycled content foam we use for server packaging contains a minimum of 65% recycled resin content
We are also working with suppliers to reuse packaging used for shipping between our suppliers and Lenovo factories

Packaging Specifications for Suppliers

All our suppliers are required to meet a number of environmental specifications for packaging. These include: minimum amounts of recycled and recovered fiber, proper recycling marking, and lists of banned materials, etc.

In addition, many of our suppliers provide Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified products for our packaging. And we are currently assessing the global availability of FSC-certified packaging to support manufacturing facilities in all geographies.

Bulk Packaging

Bulk packaging and reusable bulk packaging may be available for many of Lenovo's products in select regions. Contact your sales rep or environment@lenovo.com for more information.