Five Steps to a Greener Enterprise
By Abhinna Shreshtha
Mumbai, Oct 18, 2007

Astronomical electricity bills are a major concern for enterprises. People are also demanding that enterprises get more responsible where usage of natural resources and pollution is concerned. In such circumstances 'Green IT' has emerged as the hottest trend in the industry.

'Green IT' can be defined as the application of environmental friendly techniques in the IT infrastructure of an organization. This includes efficient usage of electrical appliances like computers, printers, etc., with a view to conserve energy. It also aims at reducing the usage of hazardous materials and proper disposal of unwanted office equipment.

Enterprises can benefit from environmental friendly techniques in various ways, like, efficient energy utilization, reduction in electricity bills, and subjective gain of consumer goodwill.

Some aspects enterprises need to keep in mind when deploying 'Green IT' practices are:

* Educate yourselves and the staff

Proper knowledge regarding the requirements, drawbacks, benefits, etc., should be in hand before the actual implementation. 'Green IT' is an ongoing process where the Return of Investment (RoI) comes over a period of time. Hence, implementing it requires a proper understanding by the management and staff alike. Although, most company executives find the initial investments a major deterrent, yet once the power bills start coming down the investment begins to repay itself.

Besides, awareness programs should be conducted to educate the staff about the advantages of conserving energy, such as switching off computers, photocopiers etc when not in use.

* Opt for an 'environmentally responsible' vendor

The U.S Environment Protection Agency's (EPA) Energy Star program is recognized as a standard that all IT appliances vendors must adhere to. When purchasing new office equipments like computers, printers, photocopiers, etc., enterprises need to check whether the vendor conforms to the Energy Star specifications. These vendors can be identified by the Energy Star sticker that's present on all appliances deemed conforming to the specifications.

Although, India doesn't have a nationally recognized standard for IT protects as of now, yet some vendors, like HCL, Wipro, etc., have launched a range of 'Green PCs' in the market.

Another internationally recognized standard is the European Union's 'Restriction of Hazardous Waste', in short, RoHS directive, which restricts the use of certain hazardous materials in the manufacture of electrical appliances.

* Replace old equipment with newer and more efficient appliances

Computers and other office equipments should be replaced after every 5 years, since they start losing their efficiency leading to energy wastage. Appliances complying with the international energy standards should be opted for. The discarded office equipment should be properly disposed, since they're the major pollutants. For example old circuit-boards and cathode ray tubes used in computers, after a period of time, start emitting harmful radiations.

* Reduce the number of physical servers and machines

Virtualization can enable datacenter managers and CIOs to reduce resource allocations. With virtualization, the number of physical servers and computers can be reduced and optimum allocation of resources can be done.

* Communicate with others

Expert opinion should be taken from government organizations as well as NGOs on ways to establish energy efficient infrastructure and techniques. Case studies of 'Green IT' principles in business processes can also help. However, the most important thing is to have a proper plan of action to avoid hiccups later on.


Related Links:
IDC's Green IT and Digital Marketplace Research
Move to Green Computing Still Slow
Project Big Green toward Energy Conservation