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The articles in this ebook look at different aspects of cloud comput-ing, from strategic and infrastructure considerations to legal and security issues, aiming to provide practical advice and a clearer picture of its benefits and drawbacks.

PDF ISBN: 978-1-78017-130-2 ePUB ISBN: 978-1-78017-131-9 Kindle ISBN: 978-1-78017-132-6

This ebook looks at the security pitfalls, and their possible solutions, of an increasingly mobile workforce. Written by security experts, topics covered include: using personal mobile devices in the enter-prise; data encryption; raising user awareness and the importance of appropriate security policies; securing networks; legal aspects of data security.

PDF ISBN: 978-1-78017-111-1 ePUB ISBN: 978-1-78017-112-8 Kindle ISBN: 978-1-78017-113-5

IT industry experts explore the challenges IT professionals face when moving from a technical into a managerial role. The authors look at the skills required to scale the career ladder, the opportuni-ties for training and development and how to progress from a first job in IT to CIO.

PDF ISBN: 978-1-78017-102-9 ePUB ISBN: 978-1-78017-103-6 Kindle ISBN: 978-1-78017-104-3

This collection of interviews provides insight into the thoughts and ideas of influential figures from the world of IT and comput-ing, such as Sir Tim Berners-Lee, Donald Knuth, Linus Torvalds, Jimmy Wales and Steve Wozniak. It gives an excellent overview of developments in this diverse field over recent years.

PDF ISBN: 978-1-78017-099-2 ePUB ISBN: 978-1-78017-100-5 Kindle ISBN: 978-1-78017-101-2

CONTENTS

Foreword iv

1 GREEN IT AS A BUSINESS STRATEGY – Martin Jackson 1

2 CLOUD COMPUTING, BPM AND GOING GREEN – Ian Gotts 5

3 BLUEPRINT FOR GREEN IT – Jim Hearnden 8

4 ACCOUNTING FOR CARBON IN YOUR GREEN IT STRATEGY – Alan Waller 11

5 WHERE THERE’S MUCK THERE’S MONEY – Simon Walsh 14

6 MAKING SAVINGS – Greg Taylor 17

7 NEED MORE CAPACITY? – Pete J Kearney 22

8 BEATING THE STORAGE BEAST – Nate Anderson 25

9 MAKING DATA CENTRES GREENER – Chris Smith 28

10 GREEN PROCUREMENT: GUIDELINES FOR BUYERS – Gary Price 31

11 DESTINATION LANDFILL – Justin Richards 35

12 WEEE REGULATIONS – Andy Lucas 37

13 RECASTING WEEE – Haley Bowcock 46

14 THE IMPACT OF HARDWARE – BCS Editorial Team 48

15 GREEN IT BEST PRACTICE – Rubi Kaur 58

Resources 60

iii

FOREWORD

The term ‘green IT’ is undefined and, to a large extent, indefinable. It means a variety of things to a variety of people. To some it is simply making sure that we sweat our ICT assets until they expire and then ensure that all the hardware is recycled properly and ethically – not in the developing world without regard for health and safety. To others it is making sure that we use ICT to enable carbon reduction (if not elimination) activities – like video conferencing instead of air travel. To me it is designing data centres that minimise the energy expended on housing the very fabric of the internet. However, to far too many the term ‘green IT’ simply means a marketing campaign with a large brush and bucket of ‘greenwash’.

However you view green ICT, we have a big job on our hands to reduce consump-tion of materials and energy, but even governments and politicians can be confused over which is the right strategy or, in fact, which is the right target. Take the EU as a prime example. On the one hand they have their digital agenda, which aims to bring super-fast internet access to all citizens, but on the other they complain about the growth in power consumption of ICT and data centres in particular. They seem to have missed the direct link between exponential internet traffic growth and increasing power demand. By their very actions they will be driving the growth in data centre power demand.

The trouble is, as we all know, that our modern businesses rely on the internet to function, let alone flourish, so investment in ICT infrastructure and fibre networks is just as important today as the traditional energy utilities and transport were to the Victorians. But is the current exponential growth in data enabling growth in GDP? It is certainly appearing so in the 3G and 4G mobile networks, which would lead to the conclusion that social demands (like Facebook and YouTube) are driving the traffic particularly with HD images and video. Should we be channelling our infrastructure for business generation? Or are video-gaming and HD movies at home enough of a business in the first place? Along with the exponential rise in data generation we need to get our green agenda on one page or, as Vint Cerf, one of the fathers of the internet, recently said ‘internet access will become a privilege, not a right.’

Dr Ian F. Bitterlin MBCSChief Technology Officer

Ark Continuity Ltd

iv

1 GREEN IT AS A BUSINESS STRATEGY

Green IT is recognised as a means to deliver on most environmental and social commitments. However, unless it is fully integrated in business practices to become business as usual, it risks becoming another corporate and political buzzword. Martin Jackson, CEO of BWC, explains why organisations should be placing green IT at the heart of business strategy.

The IT industry appears to be at odds with itself. On the one hand, it is embracing commercial opportunities to develop green technology and IT enablers that help to cut down carbon emissions to meet country commitments. On the other hand, it has not yet pushed hard enough to ensure that green IT strategies and concepts are integrated into business strategies.

The strategic thinking that allows for any discussion to move from an IT forum to a boardroom level is still in its early days and the signs are that most businesses are failing to grasp what green IT brings to the table for the long term.

Discussions must take place at boardroom level where green IT is recognised as a long-term business enabler – a means to benchmark and keep the operations running at optimum level while reducing carbon emissions and realising ongoing savings.

WHY GREEN IT?

Most economies today are largely service-based and heavily dependent on informa-tion and communication technologies. This reliance has emerged as IT has made running operations easier, faster and more efficient.

Consequently, while the IT industry’s own carbon emissions are relatively low – accounting for around two per cent globally – the industry can indirectly help drive down a larger percentage of carbon emissions. According to a report by the Carbon Trust office equipment is the fastest growing energy user in the business world, consuming 15 per cent of the total electricity used in offices. This will most likely rise to 30 per cent by the year 2020. In addition, there is an ever increasing demand on energy diverted to meet the fast spreading needs of the information-rich society with its ubiquitous use of media, the internet, computerisation and servers.

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GREEN IT

Furthermore, IT companies are already adopting sustainability practices, formu-lating standards and policies, and putting pilot programmes in place. Many firms believe they can pass on this experience to benefit other industries, businesses and societies.

Therefore, as IT looks at its own responsibility to reduce its share of carbon emissions through ‘greener products’, it also is in a strong position to contribute enormously to the overall global drive by providing the technological solutions needed to reduce emissions across all industries and form a solid and real founda-tion for future low-carbon businesses and societies.

IT can empower energy users and create completely new business opportunities. In time, industrial and commercial processes would be optimised, energy production should have turned green based on renewable energy, and consumption in general should have been transformed to a more sustainable path. Such a world is the ideal green IT strategy in practice – a process much wider than just the application of technology. Indeed, it becomes a culture change that transforms businesses and societies.

THE UK INDUSTRY PULSE ON GREEN IT AND CARBON EMISSIONS

The UK Government is signed up to an 80 per cent reduction in the amount of CO2 being used by 2050. By September 2010, the most energy-consuming organisa-tions had to register with the UK Department of Energy’s CRC energy efficiency scheme. Since 2011, the biggest consumers have been listed in an annual league and charged £12 for each tonne of carbon emissions they produce. From 2013, the number of ‘licences to pollute’ is capped and they are auctioned off rather than sold at £12. At the beginning of 2011, the Carbon Trust Standard had 500 holders or 18 per cent of businesses in the UK that were actually committed to reducing carbon emissions.

Understandably, most of UK plc are dragging its feet. According to a paper on energy efficiency by the Carbon Trust Advisory (CTA), finance directors under-value the financial returns from investments in energy efficiency by more than half. And yet, the CTA easily demonstrates how energy efficiency projects deliver an average return on investment of 48 per cent – some four times the minimum level demanded by most senior finance officers.

Furthermore business investments in energy efficiency pay back within three years on average, satisfying the investment requirements of eight out of ten finance direc-tors. So, if the business case stacks up, what is still holding back finance directors from signing off energy efficiency projects?

The picture is similar across the rest of the UK business landscape. Despite the push and commitments by government and business communities to sign up to environmental initiatives, there is an understandable concern that today’s tough climate could make the green agenda for these business sectors a casualty of the economic downturn. The reality is that for such companies, the move towards a greener approach is primarily driven by cost savings.

2

GREEN IT AS A BUSINESS STRATEGY

THE ARGUMENT FOR GREENING THE COMPANY

The business community is faced with strong economic measures to drive down carbon emissions. Coupled with the same argument are the reductions in ensuing costs and improvements in efficiency. Underlying the argument is the green IT approach.

It appears that while these economic initiatives ‘control’ the impact on society, as do other measures such as carbon offsetting and neutrality, on their own they are not enough to solve long-term challenges on sustainability and ongoing optimisa-tion. What is missing is the joined-up thinking for a truly green strategy that is all-encompassing: the integration of green goals and initiatives in the enterprise-wide strategy. Indeed, what is missing is the commitment to benchmark progress and efficiency on an ongoing basis and work towards sustainability. And this is precisely what a green IT strategy can facilitate.

GREEN IT STRATEGY

A green IT strategy is more about changing an organisation’s culture than about changing technology or business processes. The greening of an organisation through IT is an evolving, sustainable process. Its largest potential impact lies in the fact that IT has the ability to improve efficiency in areas as diverse as electricity trans-mission, supply chain management, building information systems and business processes in general.

Initially green IT focuses on making the company’s own IT greener by improving end-user working practices, creating an energy-efficient office environment and reducing energy consumption. Monitoring of utilities’ consumption, driving down energy, equipment and data centre costs are all quick wins that can be attributed to IT audits and assessments. The challenge, however, lies in convincing manage-ment of the need for regular auditing and benchmarking of their operations. In order to sustain these savings and efficiencies, they must integrate green IT into their business-as-usual and include green key performance indicators (KPIs) in the overall business KPIs.

As the company matures in its green IT strategy, IT becomes the enabler to ‘green’ the company across the other business functions such as compliance, procurement, the supply chain, travel, acquisition, packaging, deliveries and disposals.

Deploying a green IT strategy starts to change behaviours across stakeholder groups: employees, suppliers and partners. Ultimately it enhances the organisa-tion’s competitive position, giving it a distinct competitive advantage. What is vital is that any policies introduced are strategic and meet the overall sustainability objectives of the organisation.

THE MISSING PIECE

The IT industry must align the green IT strategy with the organisation’s overall sustainability and business strategies; and it must then integrate sustainability

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GREEN IT

objectives across the entire operations using IT-enabled business processes. A successful green IT strategy will change behaviours, delivering far more than the original business case.

If left only with economic measures and stand-alone IT projects, the green IT business case will never truly stack up. Implementing piecemeal or stand-alone projects will not stand the test of time and will certainly not add up to meet finan-cial expectations.

The challenge facing the IT industry is to move the discussion into the boardroom and introduce the concept of green IT as an enabler for long-term efficiency, sustain-ability and revenue generation. Only then can the industry successfully work in tandem with the business community to deliver on carbon emissions targets and sustainability through the universal adoption of green IT strategies.

4

BCS, THE CHARTERED INSTITUTE FOR IT

Our mission as BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, is to enable the information society. We promote wider social and economic progress through the advancement of informa-tion technology science and practice. We bring together industry, academics, practition-ers and government to share knowledge, promote new thinking, inform the design of new curricula, shape public policy and inform the public.

Our vision is to be a world-class organisation for IT. Our 70,000 strong membership includes practitioners, businesses, academics and students in the UK and internation-ally. We deliver a range of professional development tools for practitioners and employ-ees. A leading IT qualification body, we offer a range of widely recognised qualifications.

Further InformationBCS, The Chartered Institute for IT,First Floor, Block D,North Star House, North Star Avenue,Swindon, SN2 1FA, United Kingdom.T +44 (0) 1793 417 424F +44 (0) 1793 417 444www.bcs.org/contactus

© 2012 British Informatics Society Limited

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Published by British Informatics Society Limited (BISL), a wholly owned subsidiary of BCS The Chartered Institute for IT, First Floor, Block D, North Star House, North Star Avenue, Swindon, SN2 1FA, UK.www.bcs.org

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