JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – As students across Duval County head back to school, one Jacksonville company is making sure a need for technology doesn’t stand in the way of learning.
Urban Tech and Repair on Beach Boulevard is a trusted partner of Duval County Public Schools (DCPS), offering refurbished laptops and devices to students at steep discounts — sometimes for as little as $35 to $40.
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“Old IT is the largest waste stream into landfills today, so our goal was really to try and address that and take end-of-life equipment and make it available for reuse and resale,” said Steven Kaufman, CEO of Urban Technologies.
The company works directly with DCPS to collect end-of-life school technology, refurbish it, and resell it through a special e-commerce site. All computers come with a 90-day warranty.
DCPS students registered with a OneView account receive a 50% discount, while DCPS employees are eligible for a 25% discount on a one-time purchase per year. Purchases must be made online through a parent or employee OneView account.
Buyers have the option of shipping or pickup at their new location on 11840 Beach Blvd.
Kaufman said the partnership fills a critical gap for families who can’t afford new devices.
“It’s really wonderful. I mean, if you think about what’s happened since the pandemic with at-home learning and the drive toward technology in the classroom,” he said.
Inside the company’s warehouse, Director of Operations Byron Simmons walked through the step-by-step process of how discarded devices get a second life.
The first step is receiving the technology in the warehouse from corporate clients.
“Everything is weighed here, and then once it’s weighed, our sort team determines what’s good from bad from a visual inspection,” Simmons said.
After passing inspection, devices move through the refurbishing process before landing in the finished goods section — right next to the shipping area, where the company fulfills orders across multiple e-commerce platforms.
Simmons said the team ships out dozens of devices each day, anywhere from 80 to 100 laptops on average.
Beyond laptops, Urban Tech and Repair also handles cellphone repairs — a service that hits close to home for many students.
“If you have your own computers that you need repairs done on, you’re able to bring them in here to us. We have a section for that and also cellphone repairs,” Simmons said. “A lot of our students use cellphones, and they keep them with them at all times, and they break.”