As we celebrate Earth Day, the role of IT cannot be ignored. IT can make a major difference in a company’s sustainability efforts, and Green IT can help reduce carbon emissions at an individual and company level.
The Impact of IT on the Environment
Although we often think of the digital world as separate from the physical environment, there are major impacts on the environment due to technology.
In fact:
- One computer left on 24 hours emits 1,500 pounds of CO2 into the atmosphere.
- One tree absorbs between 3-15 lbs of CO2 each year. That means that 100-500 trees would be needed to offset the yearly emissions of one computer left on all the time!
- Multiply that by the number of computers in your enterprise and your company’s IT alone accounts for several tons of carbon emissions each year.
Not to mention, digital technologies are responsible for 4% of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) and its energy consumption is increasing by 9% a year. Plus: the internet emits an astonishing 1.6 billion annual tons of greenhouse gas emissions!
So what can you do to reduce your company’s carbon footprint and remain aware of your carbon emisssions? By thinking about Green IT.
How EasyVista Promotes Green IT
EasyVista is leading the charge in Green IT, but what does that mean? Green IT refers to the ecological management of IT equipment in terms of:
- Energy Consumption of IT Infrastructure: The hourly energy consumption and equipment usage rate inherited from the model;
- Carbon Creation: The calculation of electricity needed for each piece of equipment and the amount of electricity that will create what amount of carbon; and
- Recycling of Equipment: Contractor in charge of recycling, the equipment discard and recycling date.
IT equipment plays a major role in our daily lives. Whether you are working remotely or in-office, or are a hybrid of the two, your energy consumption can quickly add up. For example, think of the impact of each individual laptop, printer, cell phone, tablet, or other equipment. This all should be considered when thinking about environmental impacts of a business on the planet. It is not just nuclear power plants who have the responsibility to reduce waste and emissions.
Without the traditional model of the in-office only environment to create sustainability efforts, for example switching to reusable dishes or switching to energy efficient lighting, heating, and air conditioning, businesses must take a deeper look at the impacts of their business model. One way to do this is by monitoring the energy consumption of your IT devices and maintain strict recycling protocols.
To understand how we are making this possible, the following three features are integrated into EV Service Manager’s Green IT features.
Tracking Daily Electricity Consumption
In the EV Service Manager Green IT tab, you can track daily electricity consumption in Kilowatts (KW). This information can be displayed by manufacturer, location, equipment type, or other parameters.
This is important because with teams spread due to Covid, it can give an accurate measurement of KW consumption that normally could be assessed in an in-person setting. This is a helpful feature for remote and hybrid teams.
Further, by monitoring KW usage, you can properly assess which devices are increasing carbon emissions in order to work to effectively lower them.
Estimate Cost and Electricity Savings
Understanding the current KW usage is helpful for current needs, but how do you assess whether future assets will impact your carbon footprint? The ability to estimate cost and electricity savings is just as important as the ability to monitor these factors on a daily basis and at the most precise level.
In EV Service Manager, you can estimate your expected cost and electricity usage and can assess whether that will be higher or lower than current use. This is important in asset management and making sure you understand the impact new equipment will have on the environment.
Ultimately, this helps in the decision-making process because it allows leaders to see the bigger picture of possible decisions. This also helps with keeping in mind the cost to each employee working from home and what increases they might face in their energy bill as they change equipment, as well as the impact on the environment.
Equipment Recycling Process
If a piece of equipment is no longer functioning, your team should know how to recycle it. However, this process is different in every country and specific to your region, with each company using a recycling vendor of their choosing.
In EV Service Manager, you can customize the information of the contractor in charge of recycling and track the discard or recycling date. You will also be able to keep track of equipment that has previously been recycled.
How We Help the Planet
Now you’ve heard how EasyVista is trying to help the planet on a product-level. But what about how we are helping the earth in a more tangible way?
To offset our company’s carbon footprint, we have spent the last year planting trees through EcoTree, with 15 new trees planted for each new customer signed to offset the carbon footprint of server space. In only six months, 900 new trees were planted, and by the end of 2021 it is estimated that over 13 tons of carbon have been offset by the EasyVista forest, which includes a variety of trees native to the regions where they are planted.
We also made a commitment as a company to reduce our carbon footprint in the way that our team travels, opting for the lowest emission options for any business trip.
We’re excited to continue these efforts and create a better world for everyone.
Conclusion
Don’t let Earth Day be the only time you think about the impact of IT’s carbon emissions. Understanding how to keep your IT green, from the people manning your IT team to the devices used in your entire organization, can have a positive effect on the planet.
To learn about EasyVista’s Green IT, request a demo today!
