Green tech and greenbacks: the money case for eco-friendly computing

No corporation is going to adopt environmentally friendly policies simply out of the goodness of its heart. Going green has to provide some sort of benefit. What financial gains can be made by increasing IT's efficiency? Lower power costs and increased efficiency of operations come into play, as do tax benefits and an overall PR spit-shine.

One interpretation of the term "green computing" focuses on the machine's energy consumption. The less power a computer needs, the less harm to the environment it does -- and the less the owner has to spend on energy costs.

Are those energy savings enough of a reason to make major enterprise buying decisions based in part on how green a computer is? A recent report by Ohio University's Ecology and Energy Conservation Committee says they are.

The need for companies to reduce their energy consumption and carbon footprints extends beyond the data center itself, according to the study. In fact, statistics from Ohio University's computer usage guidelines indicate that a continuously running computer emits 2,161 pounds of carbon dioxide per year and costs approximately US$45 per year to power (based on $0.0372 per kilowatt hour). Simply turning off a computer at night so that it only runs eight hours a day reduces its consumption input to 810 kWh, or about $30 per year. For an organization running 200 machines, this equates to an annual savings of $3,000 -- which can mean the difference between writing financial statements using red or black ink, according to the university's Green Computing Guide.

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