Group Publications

Speedy ROI with Quick Green IT Fixes

Though nearly half (42%) of ITdepartments have no plans to launch
projects in the next 12 months toreduce energy consumption orcarbon emissions - accordingto a 2008 ComputerWorld survey - plenty of CEOs and CIOs do agree that IT will play a very important role in their efforts to reduce environmental impact.

Still, many see green as an unnecessary increase in expenses, and many are reluctant to "fi x" something that's not broken - that is, mess with IT processes that work and re-engineering them to make them more effi cient, accordint to computerworld. But rising energy costs are a big motivating factor for them to rework at least a little, according to IDC's "U.S. Green IT Survey."

Among the quick ROI projects that will save money :

• Power management, such as making sure that employee's desktops  "sleep" at night and during other times of inactivity. Management features on desktop PCs can save $50 per computer per year, and  enabling power managementm tools on monitors can save another $12 to $90 annually per monitor Other devices that draw power (e.g., fax machines, printers, copiers) can also be identifi ed and turned off when not in use.
• Set new procurement policies that specify that all new equipment must be Energy Star-compliant.
• Enable more telecommuting and teleconferencing.
•  Consolidate data centers and control the temperature in those in operation. Scottrade recently  identifi ed air fl ow issues in its Arizona data center and was able to safely reduce air conditioning levels by making a few minor design
  changes.