Grant Sewell, e-Management
Going green is more than turning off lights. It helps to reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, which in the long run can save you and your organization the other green (money).
“Going Green” is an important part of business for any technology operation these days. Recently, we have implemented a number of strategies in my office to help answer questions. But the truth is, many people only know the buzzword, and not the concepts that define it. In our 2009 blog, “Is Green the New Black?” we gave an overview of benefits of green operations for businesses, as well as a number of resources to find out more information. In this thread, I’m going to focus on what green means to information technology (IT), the important areas on which to concentrate, and some of the strategies that will yield the highest return on investment (ROI).
Green IT is More than Turning Off Lights
Many people look at implementing green policies as actions, like turning off lights when leaving an office, or enabling power saving features on a computer. In fact, that’s just one part of a larger process. Environmentally sustainable computing methods are joined in a lifecycle:
Design: Simple designs, non-proprietary parts, and efficiency certifications such as TCO ensure that products can be used and maintained more productively in the workplace.
Manufacturing: Technology that is built with recycled or less hazardous materials yield a more environmentally-friendly product. Studies estimate that manufacturing accounts for 70 percent of the natural resources utilized in the lifetime of a computer.
Usage: Configuring computer systems, printers and other peripherals for optimal efficiency during operation can save a company more than 25% in power expenses alone.
Disposal: Appropriately recycling or disposing of equipment at end of life ensures that the overall ecological footprint is reduced, such as landfill reduction and equipment re-use and re-purposing.
If you’re just getting started, you are probably not just going to throw away perfectly good, working equipment to buy something new and shiny – and that’s okay. A lot of the initial changes will be made in the “Usage” and “Disposal” phases, but too many organizations overlook the impact they have when selecting what to purchase.
Fact vs. Fiction
The concept of Green IT began in 1992 when the EPA and the U.S. Department of Energy launched Energy Star, a program designed to reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. As technology has advanced, companies are realizing they can do just as much (or more) with less. Let’s debunk some popular myths:
Green hardware isn’t powerful enough: Using less power doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice performance. Using technologies like solid-state drives (SSD) and high efficiency power supplies will reduce power consumption and increase performance.
It won’t make a difference: Technology represents 4 percent of the overall power consumption in the United States. Implementing green procedures can save you money, reduce management requirements and promotes a responsible image of your organization.
It’s more expensive: Okay, this one may be true – kind of. Many green technologies will burn a hole in your pocket (initially), but don’t rule them out before you see how they will benefit your budget and decrease in costs over the long run.
It’s too much work: The changes don’t have to be dramatic to make a difference. In Part II, I’ll highlight options that won’t take much manpower.
Your Thoughts?
Please be sure to stop by next week for the final installment (Part II) of this Green IT blog series, when I will discuss how you can get big results, with little effort.
In the meantime, we want to hear from you. What has your organization done to “Go Green?” Do you have other strategies to share? What actions were the most beneficial? How critical do you think “Green IT” will be in the next 5 years?
Tags: carbon emissions, carbon footprint, DOE, , Energy, ENERGY STAR, EPA, Going green, Grant Sewell, SSD, sustainability, TCO
Hi Grant, many government and nonprofit organizations are leading the charge in going green in terms IT and even building construction. What can consumers or everyday people do to be green in the tech age? Are there special phones or computers we can look out for?
I set-up a business for a friend in the transportation industry. The entire business was able to run out of small suitcase. I used technology to our advantage. I am setting up digital business cards and emailed bills rather than paper ones. We used devices instead of buying equipment such as fax, we could also choose what was printed. In the first year, we used less than a ream of paper, and 1 soy ink cartridge.
Grant. Well written blog, can’t wait for the next installment.
I guess I am with you on the concept of “Green”. The recent push for green IT is driving multiple initiatives. Companies are searching for the best ways to go about achieving their desire for green data centers. At the top of the list is an attempt to replace old equipment with newer, more efficient hardware. Close behind are monitoring power consumption and improving the utilization capacity of storage devices.
Interestingly, companies are considering SaaS, and other Cloud computing services, as a strategy to reduce power consumption. Can you highlight your thoughts on this idea given that some companies may utilize a private cloud or a public cloud or both?
@Dennis – Yes! Green computing is super popular, even when people don’t really know it! Devices such as netbooks and tablets (i.e. iPads), use processors that are designed to use less power and and have extended battery life. New low-power desktops, commonly called nettops use the same processors as netbooks, and consume much less power. Personally, I’ve switched my home desktop to a nettop, and it’s great for word processing, checking email, browsing the web and syncing my iPod, plus I’m saving about $12 on my monthly electric bill!
@Douglas – Thank you! I recently read a very good article on how the General Services Administration (GSA) was moving email services into Google’s federal cloud, which passed a Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) certification and accreditation in July 2010. Personally, I would be trusting of a privately run cloud, but it is important to support our public companies as well. We’ll see what the reactions are when – because it WILL happen – a security breach occurs on a federal customer in the public cloud. The balance between public and private can be done, for example, I see no issues in a federal entity hosting public websites in a public cloud, similar to many personal and business hosting services offered today. The solutions are all about the level of risk you wish to accept and finding the right balance.
@Grant, thanks for the tips…I am looking into upgrading my laptop, data storage, and other electronic devices at home…so I will definitely consider your reply and other options in terms of saving energy…and continuing my quest toward Green.
@Stacey – Wow! That sounds like a great solution, especially in transportation. It’s great to hear that you were able to reduce your carbon footprint so significantly, and use soy ink on top of that! I believe that electronic receipts and business cards are the future, companies like Square (https://squareup.com/) offer payment processing solutions that can be done from mobile phones and tablets, and truly bring business to the individual.
@Grant..Absolutely it is no different from a federal entity hosting public websites in a public cloud. Becase what peolpe fail to realise is..we have been the touching the “Cloud” for over 20 years..the “Internet”. So the question is all about security! I think infrastructure solutions are key in driving the Cloud computing Grid..So lets see what the likes like Cisco, NetApps, IBM and a slew of vendors have to offer to get the Federal Govt to buy into the Cloud without any if’s and but’s.
Grant, I am looking forward to part two. I recently changed jobs and I am happy to report that this new company is green. There is an actual policy in our employee handbook that talks about the company’s commitment to going green. The place I worked before did a poor job in this area.
All the link below provides latest news on an IDC Government Insights report for 2011 predicting the adoption of cloud computing by government organizations. Check it out!
@Sanjay – It’s great to hear that your new company is focused on green efforts, and go as as far to put them in the handbook. As I mentioned, I think too many organizations say they “Go Green” but don’t give much guidance beyond that. I’d be interested in learning about some of the initiatives that are being used – check back and see if they match any of those I’ll highlight in Part II.