We’re One Year Old!

The Climate Savers Computing Initiative celebrates its first anniversary this month! The relevance of our mission has never been higher. Since our founding in June 2007, the cost of a barrel of oil has doubled, climate change has continued to intensify, and the global demand for energy efficiency has accelerated. In response to these growing challenges, many organizations, governments, and individuals have stepped forward to join us and share their resources and expertise.

In the past 12 months, we’ve grown our membership to nearly 250 companies, published best practices for power management, completed our first round of technical specifications for more energy-efficient computers, and formed alliances with organizations who share our vision. Starting with a small membership base and small marketing budget, we have steadily increased the visibility of the organization, and with the help of new members, have also raised our worldwide impact and goals moving forward.

Tokyo, Hanover, Beijing, Taipei, Stockholm, Shanghai, Melbourne, not to mention Kansas City, New York and San Francisco – just some of the places where we’ve promoted energy efficient computers and use of power management. The organization has become more and more global as we’ve added active sponsor and associate members outside the U.S. Regional Committees are driving the Climate Savers Computing agenda in Japan, Europe and Asia.

CeBIT gave us a big boost in Europe and just last month we signed an MOU with the Green IT Promotional Council in Japan. And we formed an alliance with the China Electronics Energy Saving Council in China who will carry out the Climate Savers Computing effort there. In the U.S. we’ve aligned with the EPA to promote common efficiency targets and power management.

We are in the middle of compiling the results of our first member survey to calculate the performance against our energy savings goals. We should have an update for you on that in the next few weeks, but the early data looks very good.

And that brings me to the point that we’re not finished. We need to stay focused on the 2010 goals! Along with our anniversary comes the first increment in our efficiency goals. All members should review the efficiency criteria for our 2^nd year and be sure to update procurement plans accordingly. Achieving the 50% savings by 2010 requires that we move to more efficient systems each year.

Thank you for the great support of the Climate Savers Computing Initiative’s work over the last year! Thanks to our growing list of members, we have considerable momentum and expertise heading into our second year. Please post comments on any ideas you have to make us more effective. We are in the midst of planning our annual members meeting -- you’ll hear more on this soon. And I hope to meet you soon.

- Lorie Wigle, Intel Corporation

The Power Smackdown in the Data Center: IT Department vs. Facilities Managers

OK, it’s not a smackdown like on TV, but it is a power struggle, so to speak. Data centers consume a lot of power in companies. In one corner you have the IT department who is tasked with keeping and meeting the IT needs of the organization, scaling and staying within what is usually a flat budget envelope. In the other corner you have the facilities manager that is trying to manage overall costs, power use, space utilization, and the needs of the organization as a whole. A couple years ago the two rarely needed to talk, except if the data center manager needed more space.

The new smackdown is about power. Not political power but electricity. Globally, electricity prices have risen nearly 60% in the past couple years. Gartner says that 50% of data centers will lack sufficient power by 2008.

IT managers haven’t really had to care too much about power consumption for a couple of reasons. Rarely has power used the data center or any other technology been isolated, so it hasn’t been tracked or measured. The primary focus has been on eliminating business disruption, building IT agility, and meeting business needs. And for most managers, 70% of their budget is spent on maintenance and managing an aging, heterogeneous infrastructure. It’s all about performance.

Facilities managers worry about the physical side of the equation: power costs, getting more compute power out of the same space, and cooling. They wonder where they will get the space, if the utility is going to be able to deliver enough power, if they have enough breakers for new equipment, exceeding rack capacity, and a lot more. For some, the only way to add a new server is to take one out.

So the two sides are forced to talk. The IT manager needs performance. The facilities manager needs control. And what happens if they don’t? Inefficiency, more complexity, and the problems will certainly get worse. But if they do collaborate great things can happen. Here are some examples of what is available today:

• Client desktop systems that use 70% less energy.

• Energy efficient servers that use up to 25% less energy, but deliver the same performance – saving up to $200 per year per server.

• Increasing compute capacity by being able to put five servers in the same power envelope as four.

• Spot cooling solutions that focus on hot spots – saving 30% or more --not on inefficiently cooling the entire room.

• Holistic solutions that reduce energy consumption by up to 75% with the same power usage, or twice the performance in the same space, or twice the number of servers in the same power envelope.

Are there reasons for the two sides to talk? Absolutely. Can the two sides, with the right outside partner, lower costs, increase performance, manage space and meet each others’ needs? Absolutely. Some companies have done a lot of work to simplify this process. But what I’m more interested in are your stories. How is the relationship between facilities and IT? How do you break down the barriers?

-Jeff S. Johnson, Enterprise Strategist at Dell

Delivering measurable improvements to green computing

When the Climate Savers Computing Initiative was founded last summer, we created a very focused goal of reducing the power consumed by PCs and servers by 50% in 2010. As I’ve traveled across the globe discussing Intel’s focus on eco-technology and the metrics laid out by the Climate Savers Computing program, I’ve become confident that the computing industry has the capability to deliver the core technologies which will enable us to achieve the levels of energy efficiency we’ve outlined. After all, the computing industry has never shied away from aggressive innovation since the birth of the PC three decades ago. But in looking at our goals it quickly becomes clear that this innovation only solves part of the issue. With over a billion connected PCs spanning the globe, it will take a major awareness shift in PC user habits to drive our success. With over 90% of desktop users currently not utilizing the power management capabilities provided free on their PCs today it becomes clear that we have a major task ahead of us in creating the awareness that a PC is a device that actually deserves the same attention as compact fluorescent bulbs or water heater blankets.

This is why my first blog for Climate Savers Computing is about how we can tackle this enormous challenge, and I think we can all receive a bit of inspiration from Alexander Lin. For those who haven’t heard of his impressive accomplishments, I’d like to share how I found out about this amazing young man… Okay, I hate to admit it, but yesterday I bought a HUGE bag of Doritos. Questions about dietary choices aside, there was something quite fascinating on the back of the package: a great story about a 13 year-old boy in Westerly, Rhode Island who started an electronic waste (ewaste) management system in his home town and recycled over 40 tons of ewaste to-date, established a new program for on-going collection of e-waste, and delivered hundreds of computers once destined for a landfill to children who would not otherwise have access to PCs. Awesome what he’s done! And awesome that Frito-Lay used some very valuable space on their package to promote it. Alexander is a prime example of the power of each individual to drive change in our communities.

With the Climate Savers Computing challenge of simply turning on power management on PCs and looking for an efficient model the next time you’re shopping for a computer, the change we’re driving is significantly less complex than Alexander’s program. This is why I’m asking you, today, to pledge your support for the Climate Savers Computing program. Additionally, I’m asking you to tell your friends, family and colleagues to do the same. If you’re as inspired by Alexander’s story as I am, you may want to take your communication of our program further to others in your community. It is with these simple actions that we will create the awareness necessary to reach our goal.

-Lorie Wigle