Systems Development: Design, Implementation, Maintenance, and Review - Principles of Information Systems - page 545

ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS

Developing new systems and modifying existing ones in an environmentally sensitive way is
becoming increasingly important for many IS departments. 21 Environmental design , also
called green design, involves systems development efforts that slash power consumption, re-
quire less physical space, and result in systems that can be disposed in a way that doesn't
negatively affect the environment. Today, companies are using innovative ways to design
efficient systems and operations, including using virtual servers to save energy and space,
pushing cold air under data centers to cool equipment, using software to efficiently control
cooling fans, building facilities with more insulation, and even collecting rain water from
roofs to cool equipment. 22 VistaPrint ( www.vistaprint.com ), a graphics design and printing
company, switched from traditional servers to virtual servers and saved about $500,000
in electricity costs over a three-year period, representing a 75 percent reduction in energy
usage. 23 A Computerworld survey revealed that over 80 percent of IS managers considered
energy efficiency when selecting new computer equipment. 24 The Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) estimates that a 10 percent cut in data center electricity usage would be enough
to power about a million U.S. homes every year. 25 According to a McKinsey & Co. study,
the amount of greenhouse gases generated from data centers will increase by 400 percent by
2020 and become more than the greenhouse gases emitted by U.S. airlines. 26
Many companies are developing products and services to help save energy. EMC, for
example, has developed new disk drives that use substantially less energy. 27 Environmental
design also involves developing software and systems that help organizations reduce power
consumption for other aspects of their operations. Carbonetworks and Optimum Energy,
for example, have developed software products to help companies reduce energy costs by
helping them determine when and how to use electricity. 28 UPS developed its own software
to reduce the miles its 90,000 trucks and other vehicles drive by routing them more efficiently.
The new software helped UPS cut 30 million miles per year, slash fuel costs, and reduce
carbon emissions by over 30,000 metric tons. Hewlett-Packard and Dell Computer have
developed procedures and machines to dispose of old computers and computer equipment
in environmentally friendly ways. 29 Old computers and computer equipment are fed into
machines that shred them into small pieces and sort them into materials that can be reused.
The process is often called green death. 30 One study estimates that more than 130,000 PCs
in the United States are thrown out every day. The U.S. government is also involved in
environmental design. It has a plan to require federal agencies to purchase energy-efficient
computer systems and equipment. 31 The plan would require federal agencies to use the
Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT) to analyze the energy usage of new
systems. The U.S. Department of Energy rates products with the Energy Star designation to
help people select products that save energy. 32

environmental design
Also called green design, it involves
systems development efforts that
slash power consumption, require
less physical space, and result in
systems that can be disposed in a
way that doesn't negatively affect
the environment.

Companies such as Hewlett-
Packard and Dell Computer dispose
of old computers and computer
equipment in environmentally
friendly ways.
(Source: © Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty
Images.)