Network & IT Decommissioning in Montreal
Decommissioning is the other half of an installation. When a business moves, closes a floor, replaces a phone system or racks new switches, the old equipment has to come out — disconnected, documented and taken away — and the space has to be handed back clean. We do that as part of the same visit, so nobody is left with a pallet of dead switches and no plan for it.
Equipment that still works can be reused elsewhere on your site. Everything else leaves with the crew and goes into Quebec’s electronics recovery system rather than a bin.
What decommissioning covers
- Old or replaced network devices — switches, routers, firewalls, access points
- Patch panels, surplus cable and rack hardware
- Servers, UPS units and small network cabinets
- VoIP desk phones and conference units
- TVs, monitors and displays we are replacing
- Removed from your site on the day the replacement goes in
- Data-bearing devices flagged during the survey, so nothing leaves with live accounts on it
- Everything leaves with the crew — nothing left in your bin or on the loading dock
What we take away
If we are installing it, or installing its replacement, we can take the old one with us. In practice that means network switches, routers and firewalls, wireless access points, patch panels and surplus cable, rack hardware and small cabinets, servers and UPS units, VoIP phones, and the TVs or displays coming off a wall.
The rule is simple: if it came out of the job, it does not have to become your problem. For equipment we did not install, ask during the survey — if we are already on site, taking it with us is usually straightforward.
Why it matters
Electronics do not belong in the garbage. In Quebec this material is recovered through the province’s own recovery programs (RECYC-QUÉBEC and ARPE-Québec) rather than sent to landfill — and old network gear, UPS units and displays are exactly what tends to end up in a bin because nobody wants to deal with it.
There are two practical reasons to have us take it. It leaves with the crew that was on site anyway, so there is no second pickup or bin to arrange. And the space is genuinely finished at handover — no pallet of dead switches in the corner waiting for somebody to decide what to do with it.
Data on the equipment before it goes
Anything with storage holds something: switches keep their configuration, servers keep accounts and shares, smart displays keep viewing history and Wi-Fi credentials. We identify those devices during the survey so they can be reset or wiped, or kept by you, before they leave your site — and we will tell you which ones need attention rather than assuming.
If your business handles personal information, disposing of devices properly is part of keeping your obligations under Quebec’s privacy law (Loi 25) in order. Our own handling of personal information is set out in our privacy policy.
If a device needs more than a reset — a wiped drive, or a destroyed one with a record to match — that is its own service: data destruction and drive sanitization.
How decommissioning fits into a project
Tell us at the survey what is coming out. On install day we remove the old unit as the new one goes in, take the equipment with us, and leave the rack, wall or cabinet in the state it should be in. There is no separate appointment to arrange, and no skip sitting in your parking lot for a week.
Where it ends up in Quebec
Quebec treats end-of-life electronics as a producer-funded problem rather than a bin problem. The province’s recovery regulation puts the cost of collecting and recovering the products on the companies that put them on the market, and RECYC-QUÉBEC recognises the organisation that runs each program. For electronics, that organisation is ARPE-Québec.
| Who | What they do |
|---|---|
| RECYC-QUÉBEC | The provincial body that recognises the recovery organisation for each product category |
| ARPE-Québec | Runs the recognised electronics recovery program in Quebec |
| Who pays | The companies that put the products on the market, under the province’s recovery regulation (Q-2, r. 40.1) |
| Business collections | The recognised program offers pickup for businesses rather than requiring a depot drop-off |
Where we work
We install and certify this work across Montreal, Laval, Longueuil, the Québec City area and the surrounding regions — see all service areas.
Related services
Often handled alongside this work:
- Structured Cabling Installation in Montreal
- Cat6 and Cat6a Network Cabling Installation
- Fiber Optic Installation, Splicing and Testing
- Network Cable Testing and Certification
- VoIP and Telephone Cabling
- Security Camera Cabling and Installation
- Server Room, Rack and Patch Panel Builds
- WiFi Site Surveys and Access Point Installation
Decommissioning questions
Anything we install or replace: network switches, routers, access points, patch panels, cable, rack hardware, servers, UPS units, VoIP phones, and TVs or displays. If we are installing the new unit, the old one can leave with us.
Usually yes, when we are already on site for other work. Mention it when you request the quote and we will confirm what we can take.
It leaves your site with us and goes into Quebec’s electronics recovery system rather than to landfill. Electronics are recovered in Quebec through the province’s recovery programs.
Devices with storage hold settings, accounts or history. We identify them during the survey so they can be reset or wiped before removal. If you need a record of what was disposed of, ask us and we will tell you what we can provide.
It is quoted with the work. Tell us what is coming out when you ask for a quote and it is included in the estimate rather than turning up as a surprise on install day.
Disconnecting and removing the equipment, resetting or wiping anything with storage on it, taking the hardware away, and leaving the rack, wall or cabinet in the state it should be in. It is booked with the installation work rather than as a separate pickup.
The companies that put the products on the market, through the province’s recovery regulation. The cost sits in the product system rather than being charged at the bin when the equipment is retired.
They go through the electronics recovery program run by ARPE-Québec and recognised by RECYC-QUÉBEC, where the equipment is dismantled and the recoverable metals and plastics are separated.
Yes. The recognised program includes collection for businesses, which is how most of the equipment we remove leaves a site.
Get a free site survey
Tell us what needs to be cabled and we will come out, look at the space and put together a written quote. Call (438) 817-4587 or send the details through the quote form.