Energy Efficiency Takes Centre Stage

By Greg McNevin

November 1, 2007: According to analysts from the 451 Group, IT energy efficiency will soon be under the corporate spotlight for financial, environmental and availability reasons.

The New York-based group says energy concerns are headed to the top of the corporate IT agenda and will remain there for many years. It claims that while IT firms almost always favour reliability and cost over conformance to 'green metrics' or vague green objectives, many organisations will be forced to adopt specific policies that mandate eco-efficient purchasing and management.

The group’s analysts claim that over the next one to five years, organisations of all kinds will begin to aggressively tackle IT power use and, to a lesser extent, ensure sustainability of the products they use.

451 says this will be done to ensure an adequate supply of energy to meet the continued demand for greater computing resources, to energy costs which have been and will continue to increase steeply, to reduce carbon emissions for environmental, ethical and public relations reasons (as well as to qualify for carbon-offset incentives) and to conform to new legislation.

“Instead of presuming a defensive position, IT should assert its role as a positive force for change, in which it embraces innovative technologies and uses them to improve energy efficiency across the enterprise,” said John Abbott, chief analyst and co-author of this report.

“Because of the importance and the power of IT, innovative CIOs have an opportunity to be involved in energy management beyond traditional IT, and to take a leadership role – driving efficiency through IT.”

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