Computacenter buys back ITAD business from Arrow

Services giant welcomes RDC unit back into the fold

Computacenter has bought back the RDC asset disposition (ITAD) unit from Arrow to ensure continuity of service for its customers.

Arrow announced last month that it would be shuttering its PC and mobility ITAD division in a number of countries, including the UK, with CEO Michael Long claiming it was no longer a "sustainable" business.

It had bought Computacenter's RDC ITAD business in 2015 for £56m in order to boost its European market presence.

As part of that deal, the distie entered into a five-year operating agreement with Computacenter for IT disposal services.

Last month, Computacenter's group CEO Mike Norris told CRN that he couldn't rule out the possibility of buying the business back but said that it wasn't a "likely" option.

"The motivation behind the acquisition was to protect the service for our major customers," Computacenter wrote in a statement.

"We have partnered successfully with RDC for many years, firstly under our ownership and over the last five years successfully while RDC has been owned by Arrow.

"We fully respect Arrow's decision to step out of the ITAD business globally.

"While we have investigated working with other partners, we believe that acquiring RDC is the most straightforward way to guarantee continuity of service to our major accounts, particularly given our historic knowledge of the business."

Norris added that he was happy to welcome RDC back into the fold.

"We are delighted that we will be maintaining a high level of IT Asset Disposal services to our customers into the future," he stated.

Financial details for the deal were not disclosed.

Fellow ITAD Restore Technology last week told CRN that it had approached Arrow with an interest in buying its UK ITAD business.