It is generally accepted that information technology (IT) plays an increasingly important role in society, and therefore it has become increasingly important to minimize the negative environmental impact of the production, use and disposal of IT equipment. At the same time, IT has the potential to reduce the negative environmental impacts of other activities in society. IT is therefore an important focus for those involved in efforts to counter global warming and other environmental problems.

Computers have almost completely saturated the business market, and naturally, therefore, the impact of computing systems on the environment has received increased attention. A study by Alex Wissner-Grothe, a physicist at Harvard, estimates that the average Google search released 7 grams of carbon dioxide (CO2).  Google, however, disputes this figure, arguing instead that a typical search produces only 0.2 grams of CO2. As a consequence, recent times have seen widespread adoption of technologies such as virtualization, as a means of becoming more energy efficient and - equally important - more cost efficient.  In 2010, more still needs to be done.
Companies and individuals must ensure that IT equipment is effectively managed from the beginning to the end of its lifecycle in order to ensure that it is recycled or destroyed in an eco-friendly way.

Although the global recession has squeezed IT budgets, hindered capital expenditure and slowed down IT development, green IT strategies and solutions have generated a significant ‘upside’ during the economic downturn.  This is because smart businesses have recognized that Green IT can help them save money, ensure compliance with Government regulations, as well as enjoying the ‘feel good’ factor of being seen to ‘do their bit for the environment’.

When we discuss ‘Green IT’, this refers to environmentally sustainable computing.  It is the practice of designing, manufacturing, using and disposing of computers, servers and associated subsystems - such as monitors, printers, storage devices and networking and communications systems – efficiently and effectively with minimal or no impact on the environment.  Green IT also includes facets of environmental sustainability, the economics of energy efficiency and total cost of ownership (including the cost of disposal and recycling).  

One of the ways in which organizations can reduce their carbon footprint and save money in the process, is to improve asset performance and utilization.   This can only be achieved, however, if business has a comprehensive understanding of what assets are within the organization’s estate, and what they are being used for.

For all organisations, electronic and physical equipment tracking is an unavoidable necessity.  In essence, IT departments are required to find ways of complying with the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) directive.  This includes producing precise records of the company’s assets, both physical and the more intangible (eg software) to enable lifecycle tracking and retirement processing.  It can be expensive to dispose of certain electronic components because of their hazardous material content. If an organization can set up a reuse and recycling program, this can in the large part eliminate the cost of disposal, prevent unnecessary waste, and save money by redeploying assets within an organization.

For companies and official bodies, electronic equipment tracking is thus becoming an unavoidable strategic necessity. For this reason, in response to imperatives from management , IT departments are having to find ways of complying with the WEEE directive and of producing precise records of the company’s IT equipment to enable its tracking and processing at the end of its life.

IT Management’s information-based solutions (inventory management and IT services) play a front-line role in equipment tracking. Regardless of the type of structure (simple or complex, single-site or multi-site, national or international), these tools can produce automatic inventories of IT equipment and provide centralised life cycle management: delivery, installation, physical relocation, repairs, scrapping, etc. In this way, the company has constant access to information about the equipment which forms its IT infrastructure, its operational status, its allocation to workers, and its current whereabouts, etc., right up to its final retirement from inventory. At the time of retirement, the fate of the equipment will be specified: scrapping, reuse (for the public sector), return to the manufacturer, etc. Using control panels created to track the equipment, companies can monitor the life cycle of their IT hardware and take appropriate steps to ensure compliance with environmental directives.

In this way, IT Management solutions not only form a key link in the IT governance chain, but also play a part in companies’ sustainable development policies. Environmental issues are becoming increasingly important in day to day business. The impact of new legislation, coupled with rising levels of concern from customers, means that few organizations can afford to be complacent when it comes to monitoring the environmental impact of business activities. Many organizations specify in their annual business report what they are doing to address the social and environmental consequences of their activities.

It is therefore evident that with regard to IT equipment, businesses need to find a way to trace their equipment life cycle - right through to scrapping or retirement. This is becoming increasingly important for most organization’s sustainable development policies. IT Management solutions assist in achieving compliance with environmental directives, helping businesses to avoid penalties and play a part in the creation of an eco-friendly image for the organization.

Once again, technology is stepping up to meet the needs of companies and official bodies in terms of change and compliance!