IT Sector Working To Reduce Carbon Emissions
Posted on: Wednesday, 28 January 2009, 14:25 CST
Under recent criticism for its high carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, the IT industry is embracing new initiatives that work towards increasing energy efficiency.
Operators say that a number of IT companies are developing new power management technology that will reduce the sector’s harmful contribution to global climate change.
According to research firm Gartner, the IT industry now accounts for 2 percent of the world’s total carbon emissions, matching that of the aviation industry.
The new power management technologies would allow companies to automatically switch off computers and other electronic devices, reducing both costs and emissions.
Leading network equipment maker Cisco Systems Inc. plans to launch a new technology, known as EnergyWise, in February. The company said the software will monitor the energy consumption of electronic devices and switch them off when idle.
The potential savings for Cisco’s customers could be substantial.
"A bank branch could save nearly 40,000 euros ($53,020) just by turning off phones and wireless access points outside business hours," said Cisco’s David Frampton, VP and general manager of the company’s LAN switching business unit, during an interview with Reuters.
The software will initially manage power consumption for laptops, phones and access points, and will ultimately manage heating, air conditioning, lights, elevators and security systems by 2010.
In a similar initiative, British software firm 1E estimates that implementing its power management technology is equivalent to banning cars from a city the size of Liverpool in terms of carbon reduction.
The software, already in use by large financial institutions, the government and other businesses, can turn computers off and on.
"The government wants a 1 million ton reduction in carbon emissions from large companies. We can achieve 85 percent of that just from our UK pipeline -- just from turning off computers," 1Es’ CEO, Sumir Karayi, told Reuters.
"Half of the computers in the UK, U.S. or Germany are not switched off. That equates to potential savings of 115 million pounds in the UK.Ó
Other firms are also working to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Philips Electronics is working with Lawrence Berkeley Laboratories to conduct research on the development of an intelligent lighting control system that would respond to external daylight levels, people's movements and other events.
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Source: redOrbit Staff & Wire Reports
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