It’s almost impossible to imagine just how many SATA, SAN, SAS and other hard drives are stacked in closets or warehouses throughout the Silicon Valley. While many companies realize that these retired or unused hard drives have value, they may have no idea how to recover it.One company in Minnesota is working with Silicon Valley businesses to help them recover some of the value of these drives they are no longer using. That company is OceanTech, one of the fastest growing and most reputable electronics recycling companies in the country.Recycling SATA, SAN, SAS and other hard drives raises the issue of data security. After all, this hardware was designed to hold a lot of data, and as everyone knows, a company’s data is its lifeblood, full of company secrets, proprietary information, customer data, financial information and more.Destroying that data doesn’t mean destroying the hard drives. In fact, data can be eliminated through a secure data destruction process, leaving a valuable SATA drive, SAN drive or SAS drive that can be reused or sold to a company that needs it.OceanTech works with more than 1500 companies that recycle their electronics, including hard drives, on a regular basis. It’s the most responsible way to dispose of electronics that are no longer needed, and OceanTech is R2 certified, which means they follow the strictest protocols in the industry, ensuring that memories are erased and equipment is fit for resale.Silicon Valley hard drive recycling can be a competitive business, but before you go with the vendor down the street, you’ll want to compare the offers from several electronics recyclers. Historically, Minneapolis-based OceanTech pays more than anyone else in the industry – often two to three times more, in fact.OceanTech also provides reporting services and documentation that helps companies comply with auditing requirements. Every hard drive they recycle is logged and documented before data is destroyed. Once data is destroyed, documentation is provided to the company and the SATA, SAN, SAS or other hard drive is sold.Responsible recycling and the elimination of ewaste is a critical issue facing the IT industry. Working with a reputable partner for electronics recycling is key. OceanTech provides hard drive sanitization services from coast to coast, so to get started on your hard drive recycling effort, contact the company at 612 331 4456.