IT Eco-labeling – Purchasing Greener IT equipment which reduces impact on the environment, saves energy and carbon footprint..
I have a lot of people asking me what PC they should buy next. Depends on what you want it for and what your budget is usually. Can you upgrade what you currently have first, it is usually better to reuse and recycle. For personal usage, there may just be a need to use a PC for website browsing, documentation, emails, iplayer, music/itunes, games, etc. An organisation’s usage can only be best determined when you have a current understanding of the people, (business) processes and technology.
What are the guidelines a buyer follows when they purchase a PC? The brand name/manufacturer, latest deal in store/online, cheapest price, battery power, speed of machine, graphics ability, appearance, storage ability – files for music, photos and/or videos and backing up features. Do you need a desktop, laptop or netbook? What monitor would you want with the desktop? Does it need to connect to another external device? The processor speed, memory size, monitor and applications you run will affect the PC energy and battery usage. This may therefore increase the IT CO2 and energy usage costs.
Eco-labeling for IT equipment is also another area which needs to be looked into as a criteria and I will also explain this in more detail in separate blog posts. Much in the same way buyers look at labeling on food packaging (Carbon Trust C02, recycling), energy star rating for fridges and washing machines, some IT manufacturers also provide information on the environmental attributes for technology. These include a breakdown of product information on the hazardhous substances, packaging, recycling, product lifetime, etc.
I have already addressed the need to provide some awareness to the buyer for IT equipment eco-labeling with a well known PC store a couple of weeks ago and am awaiting a response to this.
Purchasing technology which fits the specific needs for personal usage/organisation/schools, saves money, uses less energy and reduces the environmental impact is a Green IT service Giving Time and Solutions can assist with.
DATE: 23/05/2010
Tripta Prashar
www.givingtimeandsolutions.com
