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Industry View
Capitalizing on Green IT
Making ICT infrastructure sustainable adds economic and environmental value
by Harry McDermott, Hudson & Yorke Ltd.
In the current climate, enterprises are acutely focused on decreasing costs and unlocking value in order to survive. However, in this period of introspection, CIOs should not lose sight of the value, both economic and environmental, of making ICT infrastructures sustainable.
With CO2 emissions having exceeded even the most pessimistic projections, and the government’s Carbon Reduction Commitment Programme set to penalize excessive CO2 levels, Green IT is the next big compliance challenge facing business. Increasingly, pressure will be placed on enterprises to avoid causing further damage to the environment.
CIOs can make the business green on two levels: first, by sourcing and applying core ICT systems which are more efficient, and second by applying systems which encourage an eco-friendly, productive company culture.
A sustainable culture
Corporate social responsibility and corporate sustainability represent the way companies achieve enhanced ethical standards and a balance of economic, environmental and social imperatives, addressing the concerns and expectations of their stakeholders.
Nowadays, technology offers a far greater level of flexibility than before, which immediately has a positive impact on CO2 emissions. Virtualization, for example, allows enterprises to consolidate existing applications onto fewer machines reducing the drain on energy, as well as creating a far more flexible environment where applications can dynamically grow and shrink with the demands on workload.
Convergent technologies, such as IP communications, play an increasingly significant role in fostering a culture of sustainability — by freeing up employees to work from anywhere. By migrating to a single, converged IP communications network, businesses can take advantage of IP telephony, unified messaging and IP contact center applications, which provide green working benefits, as well as reducing call costs.
With virtualization of office services providing shared access to equipment, such as PCs, printers or faxes, employees can be distributed across remote locations and spend time working productively away from the office. In addition to being beneficial to the environment, a teleworking program significantly reduces travel time and its associated costs, and results in real estate savings. Furthermore, allowing staff to work flexibly from home recovers lost time otherwise spent in the car or on the train and gives it back to employees’ families, thereby improving employees’ quality of life and reducing ‘burn out’.
Is your journey really necessary?
The provision of virtual meeting technologies has become vital for cutting back on international travel, which is attractive from both an environmental and an economic viewpoint. The emergence of High Definition IP-based technology means that videoconferencing is now a viable alternative to face-to-face meetings. Along with the increased availability of advanced virtual meeting technology, there has been a shift in the way businesses interact with one another.
Those companies that streamline their interaction appropriately, by limiting necessary face-time, are achieving more in a shorter time frame. The global environmental by-product of replacing just one out of four business trips by a videoconference is 28 million tonnes of CO2.
The role of IT in emissions
Gartner estimates that the ICT industry is responsible for two percent of global CO2 emissions — which is equal to the entire global air traffic system, or approximately 320 million vehicles. Core ICT tools, such as servers, processors and data centres are the main culprits. According to IDC, European server and data centre energy consumption climbed by 13 percent from 2006 to 2007. Indeed, increasing the speed and reliability of the flow of network data itself, requires ever greater computing power and, in turn, higher electricity consumption.
With a myriad of paths available for achieving a sustainable IT infrastructure, it’s crucial to conduct a baseline assessment of your current position, in order to understand where to deploy IT to improve efficiency, while also identifying and mitigating risk. Once you have evaluated your infrastructure’s carbon footprint, it is advisable to get some objective advice on how to match your needs against the most cost effective Green IT.
Making the switch
Having assessed the potential energy and cost savings of a fit-for-purpose ICT infrastructure, the next stage is to tie-in improvements with a compelling event, for example, an office move or a system reaching the end of its life, in order to justify the change.
Exchanging an older generation networking switch for a new one can make savings of over 150 watts per switch. When you consider that network improvements are made hundreds, if not thousands, of times, the savings soon accumulate to an impressive figure. The key is to get a perspective on your existing contracts, in order to make a more informed view of when to apply new technologies and when to sweat existing ones to reduce contribution to a landfill site.
Green compliance — “When” not “If”
Starting in 2010, UK companies must comply with the Carbon Reduction Commitment legislation, which will cap emissions caused by British enterprises. Similarly, the EU Commission has declared that by 2010, PCs may consume no more than one watt per hour in standby mode. Just as with Y2K and Basel II, it’s far more cost efficient for businesses to face the challenges of compliance proactively within a company-wide framework, rather than running the risk of incurring financial penalties once carbon limits are introduced.
Staying ahead of the compliance curve provides the opportunity to spot business opportunities and risks sooner, as well as offering substantial tax credits. One thing is for certain: those businesses that adopt a laissez faire attitude will miss out on early adopter advantages and be forced to catch-up in the long run. For those that are well prepared, there’s an opportunity to ride the Green IT wave and thrive on the efficiencies and productivity gains that it brings.
Harry McDermott is the CEO and co-founder of Hudson & Yorke Limited.
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