IT industry experiencing a Green change

Looking at the IT market from a holistic perspective, environmentally friendly isn’t the word that springs to mind. On closer inspection it becomes apparent that there are Green recycling programs and initiatives in the technology marketplace and even more planned for the year ahead. Social responsibility is a concept that is becoming front of mind and is being forced by the need to introduce government regulations.

Vendors across multiple facets of the channel are announcing a strong commitment to the environment this year, with programs and initiatives being introduced to drive community awareness to a sector that hasn’t always been associated with recycling or ‘being Green’.

The area is being touted as a big push for the channel this year, with the majority of vendors announcing a commitment to the environment. Last year, analyst firm Gartner placed Green IT as the number one technology and trend that would be strategic for most organisations in 2008. IDC’s U.S. Green IT survey showed that it is a global business concern that is significantly impacting how IT executives will make technology-buying decisions now and in
the future.

On the local front, IBRS has also recognised the space, releasing a report that says senior IT teams should have a Green IT strategy agreed with senior management, in place, and active. This is so companies will already be focused on their organisation’s strategic Green issues instead of hastily adopting ad hoc and less than optimal green IT measures in the future. Dr. Kevin McIsaac, analyst for IBRS, explained that Green IT is not like a product, it is more of an IT strategy that is applied to IT infrastructure and projects.
“Some vendors are trying to use Green as an angle to sell their product, however customers need to examine these claims carefully to separate hype from fact. Vendors need to ensure that Green is just “another” benefit not “the” benefit and recognise that most organisations will only take the Green initiative if all the other boxes are ticked too, such as cost, risk and functionality,” said Dr. McIsaac.

Major Green directions for vendors include LCDs for the desktop which allow a large reduction in heat and power, although many organisations did this a few years ago when prices of LCDs became competitive. According to Dr. McIsaac, reducing heat and power consumption in the data centre is starting to get traction, partially because the data centre is the single largest IT resource and is directly under IT’s control, with server virtualisation proving to be one direction that pays great Green and financial dividends, “Some organisations are trying to reduce the impact of printing, i.e. reduce the amount that is printed and replacing the old printer fleet. Desktops are also getting some interest with new 80 percent-plus power supplies, lower power units and turning off or ‘sleeping” systems overnight.”

Reaching the consumer

Looking at the social responsibility angle of Green IT, it is good to see that some vendors are working with programs such as Mobile Muster to encourage the recycling of mobile phones and other products. Companies such as Planet Ark have created programs in conjunction with vendors and work with them to promote the need for recycling.

Channel organisations have started adopting the trend of appointing environmental managers. They have an interesting job of ensuring the companies they work for are socially aware and conscious of the impact their products may have on the environment.

Annukka Dickens, environmental manager, Hewlett-Packard South Pacific, explained that the vendor has been involved with Cartridges 4 Planet Ark (C4PA) from the very beginning. As an OEM partner to the program, HP takes responsibility for the collection and recycling of products as well as taking on the aspect of communication and education. The vendor is also involved in recruiting collection partners and promoting the initiative to customers.

“Our involvement means that we can provide customers in consumer and commercial segments with the means to return printing supplies for environmentally sound recycling,” said Dickens. “The partnership provides HP with a strong focal point for environmental programs in Australia. C4PA sets a benchmark for the responsible management of end-of-life hardware and we’d like to see every industry member step up to the plate
and take responsibility for the products they manufacture.”

Janet Leslie, quality, safety and environment manager at Canon said Canon has been involved with the Planet Ark program since its inception in 1984. The printing vendor said it joined the program as it allowed them to provide a service that was not already offered. According to Leslie it was a convenient method for consumers of ink jet cartridges to dispose of their cartridges responsibly and business customers could have boxes throughout their offices to place toner and ink cartridges in as well as drums.

“It’s also cheaper and more efficient for us to join together with other OEMs in this way. Finally the customer gets a certificate saying exactly how much waste they have diverted from landfill every month. They can use this in calculating their own environmental footprint as the program has a zero waste to landfill guarantee,” explained Leslie. “The program has just hit six million cartridges collated since its inception 2003 and the program is growing every year.”

Adding another string to its bow, Canon has just introduced its first locally produced sustainability report for the Oceania region. The report identifies economic, environmental and social sustainability challenges and opportunities that face the company.

Owning responsibility

Product take-back days have been started by a few vendors, with Apple receiving good feedback on its initiative last year. In 2006 Apple announced that globally it recycled around six million kilograms of e-waste, the equivalent of 9.5 percent of the weight of all products sold seven years earlier. The company is expecting this number to continue to grow and is forecasting that it will recycle around 8.6 million kilograms of e-waste a year by 2010.

On Australian shores, Acer Computers runs a national take-back scheme and currently offers the service to some corporate and government customers. The program involves transporting end-of-life hardware back to its facility to be recycled.

Previously, Acer has run recycling programs for the end consumer where customers were able to drop off their old hardware for recycling during designated days. The vendor is looking to expand this to reach all its customers by launching a number of recycling programs for end consumers this year.

“While there is no current legal requirement to have a recycling program, unlike in the UK and some parts of Europe, Acer understands that legislation will occur in Australia in the next few years. Acer also realises that IT vendors need to look at this issue more closely than ever before,” said Andrew Bosch, Acer’s operations director. “The combined environmental impact made upon the planet by households, and large vendors such as Acer cannot be ignored. Acer understands that the manufacture and use of its products as well as other vendors contribute to a larger
carbon footprint.”