ADDING MULTIMEDIA HP Sets Sail with the Plastiki

PALO ALTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--HP (NYSE:HPQ) today announced it will be the official technology provider for the upcoming Plastiki expedition led by adventurer and environmental storyteller David de Rothschild and his organization Adventure Ecology.

“We all share the responsibility to preserve our environment”

HP joined the Plastiki expedition as the voyage’s official technology provider to inspire people to rethink waste as a resource. The Plastiki, a one-of-a-kind 60-foot catamaran created out of reclaimed plastic bottles, self-reinforced PET (polyethylene terephthalate) and recycled materials, is making its momentous voyage across the Pacific Ocean later this year.

HP will equip Adventure Ecology and the Plastiki crew with the powerful yet efficient technology products needed to make the 10,000-mile expedition from San Francisco to Sydney, Australia. HP also collaborated with Adventure Ecology on its interactive activity and educational center, Plastiki Mission Control.

Located at San Francisco’s Pier 45, Plastiki Mission Control was built to educate and inform people about the Plastiki expedition by showcasing the groundbreaking thinking, technologies and sustainable design solutions that are transforming 10,000 plastic soda bottles into a seaworthy vessel. By interacting with 10 energy-efficient HP TouchSmart IQ816 PCs, visitors can find blueprints and sketches, expedition equipment, maps and films, along with fun ways to interact with the Plastiki expedition. Guests will leave the interactive educational center with a better understanding of the effects of waste on the planet and of Adventure Ecology’s and HP’s visions for sustainability.

“We all share the responsibility to preserve our environment,” said Satjiv Chahil, senior vice president, Global Marketing, Personal Systems Group, HP. “Through technology innovation, HP helps raise awareness of some of the world’s most pressing environmental needs, and delivers solutions – from energy-efficient products to sustainable packaging and transforming processes – that make it easier for our customers to be green.”

“We are pleased to announce HP as the technology partner for our forthcoming expedition, The Plastiki,” said David de Rothschild, founder, Adventure Ecology. “This partnership is not only of great significance due to the long-term mission of Adventure Ecology to promote and influence smarter ‘Planet 2.0’ ways of working, but also because of the exciting opportunity for us to help support HP’s ongoing commitment to reducing the environmental impact of its products, services and operations. It is our shared vision to create a smarter, more sustainable ‘Planet 2.0’ way of living, through inspiration, education, storytelling and the empowerment of individuals. This partnership has all the right ingredients to create the agents of change that will help to sculpt our future.”

Technology on the Plastiki

During the voyage, the Plastiki vessel will pass through a number of environmentally sensitive regions, including the Great Eastern Pacific Garbage Patch, where plastic pollution twice the size of Texas has accumulated.

HP is equipping the Plastiki vessel with energy-efficient and durable technology that will be used to document and capture data from these regions to better understand the impact of pollution on the environment. With HP technology, the crew will be able to gather information, capture and store their story, and communicate with their land-based crew.

HP is providing:

HP EliteBook 6930p notebooks with durable magnesium-alloy casing and battery-efficient designs to support computing needs, including navigation, communication, reading and recording data, and video editing. More than 90 percent of each HP EliteBook 6930p PC, by weight, is recoverable or recyclable.
HP iPAQ 910C Business Messengers and HP Smartphones for reliable connectivity supporting short- and long-distance communications, including text, voice and data transfer.
HP Pocket Media and HP Personal Media drives for storing preloaded nautical charts, tactical software and maps. Pictures and video of the expedition will be saved to the HP Personal Media drive for the crew to share with a global audience via its website.

Plastiki Mission Control Center

The Mission Control Center at Pier 45 will be open Wednesdays to Sundays, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. for visitors to experience the Plastiki expedition firsthand using HP TouchSmart computers. At the center, visitors can:

View exhibits of the boat-building process, from plastic bottles to the final design
Learn about the effects of waste on the planet and understand some of the solutions to combat the problem
Track the Plastiki journey on animated maps with information on each stop along the voyage
Interact with the Plastiki crew by sending text and webcam messages at the “your planet your voice” station

Get involved with the HP Ecycling event

HP and retail partner Staples are encouraging San Francisco residents to recycle their outdated technology at no charge during the Ecycling event this month. On June 27 and 28 consumers can drop off technology at the Van Ness and California St. Staples stores in San Francisco and receive a chance to win an HP TouchSmart PC.

For those located outside of San Francisco, HP offers its Consumer Buyback and Planet Partners Recycling Program, which offers U.S. consumers a simple way to receive cash for their unwanted technology equipment or, if there is no value, to recycle it.

Through pioneering reuse and recycling services around the world, like its Consumer Buyback and Planet Partners Recycling Program, HP is making it easier for people to be environmentally responsible. Since 1987, HP has taken back more than 1.7 billion pounds of electronic equipment – roughly the weight of the Golden Gate Bridge – and is on track to reach its goal to recycle 2 billion pounds of products by the end of 2010.

HP and the environment

For decades HP has been an environmental leader, driving company stewardship through its HP Eco Solutions program, which spans product design, reuse and recycling as well as energy and resource efficiency. HP influences industry action by setting high environmental standards in its operations and supply chain, by providing practical solutions to make it easier for customers to reduce their climate impact and through its research on sustainability solutions that support a low-carbon economy. More information is available at www.hp.com/ecosolutions.

About HP

HP, the world’s largest technology company, simplifies the technology experience for consumers and businesses with a portfolio that spans printing, personal computing, software, services and IT infrastructure. More information about HP is available at http://www.hp.com/.

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