Two hallmarks of our age are the pursuit of global sustainability and rapid advancements in technology and IT, yet, incredibly the average person rarely thinks about how the latter can conflate the former. Apparently it is all too easy for us to view both characteristics either in isolation or subscribe, without rigorous consideration, to the notion that going digital is inevitably better for the environment than an alternative. “Not printing this email” is all very well, but the carbon footprint of being on the internet more and more, using an increasing amount of electrical equipment simultaneously and dealing with larger servers and big data is significant, and deciding how we deal with technology and IT is arguably the most pressing concern for environmentalism.
Fortunately engineers, scientists, entrepreneurs and industry experts are aware of the looming problem of technology’s mark on the environment, and solutions to reduce impact are growing exponentially. One of these systems is the Iceotope Solution, which works on a simple premise that cooling with liquid is far more efficient than cooling with air. Commonly, data centre servers (the physical bulk which your server and data lives in) have been cooled using air and fans. As Dr Jon Summers who has worked on the Iceotope technology rightly points out,
“Air is a great insulator. We use it in double glazing, so why would you use it to cool servers?”
The Iceotope Solution is comprised of two components, the Iceotope Platform and the Iceotope Module. Both feature elements of Iceotope’s unique patented liquid engineered design. The platform uses liquid to not only cool the servers but to harvest their heat, which needs to be captured and disposed of regardless. This harvested heat, in the form of hot water, can be used to heat buildings via central heating systems.
In total the technology typically reduces data centre cooling costs by 97{af589cdba9d77786c8c861317dbad60bba1e2ebbf56e2ffab874a1b59fde9ce3}, ICT power load by 20{af589cdba9d77786c8c861317dbad60bba1e2ebbf56e2ffab874a1b59fde9ce3} and overall ICT infrastructure costs by 50{af589cdba9d77786c8c861317dbad60bba1e2ebbf56e2ffab874a1b59fde9ce3}. Energy consumed by ICT is significantly reduced, thereby reducing carbon footprint, and moreover the design follows a “cradle to cradle” ethos so that parts can be recycled and reused many times.
Using this kind of cooling system in conjunction with a technology, which reduces the size of data centres, will only decrease the overall environmental impact of prevalent IT use. Cloud servers consolidate a lot of IT users’ energy use into one infrastructure which reduces carbon footprint. Google estimate that a typical company that migrates to a cloud computing solution can save an estimated 68-87{af589cdba9d77786c8c861317dbad60bba1e2ebbf56e2ffab874a1b59fde9ce3} in energy for its office computing. If you use a cloud system managed by an IT support company then you’ll often only pay for what you use (similar to using a utility like gas or electricity) and therefore save a lot of money.
Though the increasing momentum of technological development might imply the potential of an environmental crisis, happily we can capitalise on the innovative minds creating these new technologies to solve the problems their inventions create. Moreover, since the IT and technology market is changing so much it wouldn’t be difficult to introduce new standards and policies relating to our IT practices in every application; something as simple as introducing labelling which indicates power consumption of hardware or encourages the procurement process to take into account power consumption could make a difference. Nurturing a conscientious attitude to the sustainability of technology in the average IT user, as well as innovations in sustainable technology, will ensure we work towards a future which intertwines global sustainability goals and the digital revolution in a mutually beneficial way.
About Author: The Article is contributed by Richard Thompson, Sales Director & IT Guru, who is also founding member of IT Company Central Technology.
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