Green IT: The Solution for Gen-next Business

Business is not only meant for making profit rather it must have some social and environmental obligations too. If your business is contributing to make the environment unsustainable, causing irrepairable loss to the society, country and this planet then making money is just not worthy. All businesses need to act in an environmentally responsible manner, not only to fulfil their legal and moral duties but also to raise the brand and to ameliorate their corporate image. In a competitive market where companies are progressively sensible to the ‘green’ market, they must avoid the increasing financial penalties that are being levied against carbon production.

In the wake of rising energy costs and goverment's imposition on carbon production, the survival for the businesses has become quite unmanageable. And the impact is mainly not on the power hungry businesses but it is the least expexted IT sector that is going to suffer the most. After all in future all businesses will progressively be judged according to their environmental credentials, by their shareholders, legislators, and customers.

Why the IT sector is most Vulnerable?

IT has been a profligate consumer of energy. The IT function of all businesses is driving an exponential rise in need for energy, and, along with it, is having to bear the associated cost increments. A typical computer consumes about 0.65 kilowatts perhour when in use, or 0.35 kWh in stand-by mode and 0.03kWh in hibernate mode. According to an approximation 1kWh produces 0.51kg of carbon dioxide (CO2). Though the figures look meagre but when added for one entire year and summed for the number of computers used in a single organization, the data looks enormous and gigantic. According to an estimation a single PC in office mode costs a peanut amount of £16.00 per annum to run, but generates 1.094 tonnes of CO2 per annum equivalent to the CO2 produced by a single passenger flying from London to Cairo.

In the preliminary age of IT industry, the emphasis was on processing power and storage capacity, and power consumption has been ignored. Energy consumption was regarded much less important

than performance. Smaller transistors and faster processors, which consume more electricity and become hot frequently, were used to form the basis of each new generation of processors. The alleviated operating temperatures enhanced the consumption of power, requiring more number of cooling fans. Though the advent of faster, smaller chips has provided smaller and stackable servers facilitating greater computing power but with no exemption in overall energy consumption, and often with an increased requirement for cooling.

Need for change in strategies

Keeping all the points in mind, it has become prevalent to make some changes in the strategies in the businesses. The ultimate aim of IT is to make businesses more efficient and productive, and to save money. Businesses are used to having to ‘do more with less’ to remain competitive. They must learn to use less electricity in the same way, using green (sustainable) computing to save money. This will take major changes in IT policies and user behaviours.

There is a dire need for a power-based IT optimisation strategy, bringing power right to the fore of IT policy. The companies will have to take modest steps, making sure that desktop PCs, computer monitors and printers are turned off at night, and/or using more effective power-saving modes on unused equipment. Switch to more energy-efficient equipment, such as LCDs rather than CRT monitors when buying new hardware. The dual-core processors are faster and consume less energy than traditional chips. The latest generation of dual-core processors consume about one third less power than their predecessors while offering up to 80% better performance.

The issues of growing environmental damage and rising energy costs will become more significant in future, economically and politically. They would keep driving the cost of living as well as the cost of doing business. An environment comprised of hazardous gases would throw all the living species in an endangered state. Ultimately it is the people and the society who is going to suffer the most. It is the right time for the businesses to take the right steps towards making them green and specially for the IT sector.