Dell Tells Business How To Become Greener

As energy prices rise and the use of technology guzzles power supply, Dell today urged small and medium businesses (SMBs) to be more environmentally responsible and energy efficient while saving money in the process. Rather than being a cost to the business which is a worry of many SMBs, there are, according to the PC maker, green business practices that can help businesses save money.

Erin Nelson, Director, Marketing for Small and Medium Business division, Dell UK, said: “As a result of rising energy prices and global environmental concerns, green business practices are a hot topic in today’s marketplace. If correctly implemented, these practices can lead to significant cost savings and increased profitability. As such, embracing environmentally responsible practices often makes smart business sense.”

“But being environmentally smart in the office extends beyond switching to energy efficient light-bulbs and turning off heating when it is not in use,” continued Nelson, Dell UK. “Knowing where to begin to reduce carbon footprint can be daunting, particularly for small businesses so Dell has put together some easy to implement top tips to help businesses.”

Tips from Dell:-

- Consider power management software. It can remotely switch PCs off and on and automatically saves any documents open on the screen. PCs can be set to come on in the mornings, ready for when employees get into the office.

- Default printers to print double sided and do the same for photocopies; this reduces the amount of paper used.

- Consider virtual working methods which allow employees to work from home and utilise ‘hot desks’ when in the office. This can cut down the amount of office space and furniture required and the energy used.

- Invest in server consolidation and virtualisation technologies that are not only more energy efficient but also make better use of existing hardware.

- Invest in power efficient products. Many servers on today’s market for example, consume up to 25 per cent less energy than previous generations and many computers use up to 70 per cent less power than previous models.

- Recycle or donate end-of-life computer equipment. There are a number of services available to businesses that offer safe and environmentally acceptable IT disposal solutions. Additionally, the EU has introduced the Waste Electrical and Electronic.

- Equipment (WEEE) Directive, which means that manufacturers of electrical goods will be responsible for the safe disposal of their products, even after they are sold.

src: http://www.carbonfree.co.uk/cf/news/wk44-07-0003.htm