Earth Day 2023: 5 Technologies That Help Your Business Reduce Carbon Footprint
Many global citizens and businesses have been actively taking measures to reduce carbon emissions as of late.
- Most businesses want to be stewards of the environment and fulfill their due diligence in doing their part to ensure that the Earth is around for another million years or so.
- The good news is that many global citizens and businesses have been actively taking measures to reduce carbon emissions as of late.
- Let’s understand the five technologies that can help you reduce the carbon footprint of your business.
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. saw a 7% decrease in greenhouse emissions since 1990 and a 20% decrease since 2005. In other words, greenhouse gas emissions peaked in 2005 and have been going down since. The country is now producing greenhouse gas emissions not seen since the 1980s. Other countries have done the same, some better, some worse. The truth is that we are all in this together, and anything we can do towards this effort is something worth doing.
Going green isn’t as easy as it sounds. For instance, what can a business do to reduce the carbon footprint of its computer fleet? On the surface, laptops appear to be a superior choice to traditional desktop computers for the following reasons:
- Laptops are generally smaller and thus require less power. Laptop components such as CPUs and displays are smaller and reduce overall energy consumption.
- Because laptops are battery-powered mobile units, they are designed to conserve energy as much as possible.
- Laptops generally have better power management capabilities than desktops, such as hibernation options and controls to reduce display brightness.
Because of all these factors, laptops use 20-50% less power than comparable desktop computers. So, laptops are a superior choice for on-prem computer users. The problem is that the usage only tells a partial story. Overall, laptops have a shorter lifespan as they can break or even get lost or stolen while being transported. The product refresh cycle of a laptop is typically shorter as these units are outdated more quickly. They are also more resource intensive to produce as many of their smaller components use rare earth components.
1. Cloud Computing
One obvious technology that most businesses can take advantage of to some extent is cloud computing. Cloud service providers can achieve greater economies of scale and can distribute digital infrastructure amongst multiple tenants to increase their infrastructure utilization.
Because a data center can be located anywhere, cloud providers can place data centers in geographic locations where they can take advantage of renewable energy resources such as wind or solar. By optimizing server utilization, they need fewer servers. Cloud providers utilize virtualization and container technologies that are far more efficient than traditional hardware servers.
2. Remote Work Technologies
The world witnessed a significant drop in carbon emissions in 2020, and one of the reasons was the implementation of remote work technologies. Remote work reduces the necessity of constantly commuting to the office, and video conferencing and virtual collaboration tools reduce the need for business travel.
Remote work technologies facilitate the move towards the paperless office that the world has talked about for decades but, for some reason, never seems to achieve. Like the laptop vs. desktop debate, these advantages get a little convoluted as the cost of energy is shifted from the business to the employees.
Besides the fact that remote workers will see their home energy utilization go up, older homes are not insulated as well as traditional office buildings and often lack the energy-efficient systems that an office might have.
See More: Top Tips on Enhancing IT Efficiency & Cutting Your Energy Bills
3. AI-managed Energy
There is no doubt that AI is changing the world. AI is great at finding a million micro ways to improve upon something. Businesses are using AI and ML to optimize their supply chains to reduce transportation distance, improve efficiency and reduce waste. AI-integrated smart building management can help businesses monitor and control building systems such as HVAC, lighting and computing to optimize performance and energy efficiency. AI can squeeze out energy savings that humans alone never could.
4. IoT-driven Smart Offices
You’ve heard the expression, work smarter, not harder. Thanks to AI and IoT sensory technologies, that can now apply to how your actual corporate office operates as well. For instance, there is no reason to leave all the lights on for a few people who may come into the office after hours, nor is there any reason for those individuals to fumble for the light switches in the dark when they arrive.
Instead, IoT sensors will identify them by their employee badge or smart card. The AI-driven system will know where they work and turn on the exact lights, then need to illuminate the path to their designated office. AI will ensure all lights are turned off once the employee exits the building.
In an age where companies are scrambling to be as nimble and agile as possible, why does a waste management company come to empty the waste bins according to a rigid schedule, regardless of necessity? IoT sensors in the bins can alert the vendor to send a truck once the bins reach capacity.
These are just two examples of how IoT monitoring tools could integrate with analytics to identify ways to reduce a company’s carbon footprint every month. It is time to start thinking out of the box.
5. Low Carbon Electricity
If homeowners can install their own solar panels on top of their houses to capture energy, why can’t businesses do the same? The average office building is probably better suited for solar panels because there usually aren’t trees located immediately around their structures.
A one-time capital investment could allow a business to clip its dependence on the local energy provider and save countless thousands of dollars over the life cycle of the panels. Of course, solar is just one example of renewable energy. Companies looking for a new office location could consider the energy reliance of any proposed areas.
For example, an area that drew its energy from nuclear energy would be preferred over one that relied on coal energy. Many countries offer a variety of tax credits and incentives for businesses to invest in renewable energy as well. These incentives can help offset the upfront costs of implementation.
The benefits of prioritizing renewable energy go far beyond mere cost savings. Many companies are effectively promoting their use of low-carbon energy as part of their corporate branding efforts, as many consumers value businesses that work towards being better global citizens of the environment. Some countries are beginning to enact regulatory objectives that companies must comply with in the future or face possible fines and other penalties.
There is no doubt that the mission to reduce carbon emissions is highly complex. The good news is that businesses are becoming more green-conscious every day. It doesn’t take a massive transformation to help the planet, just little steps that compound into big benefits.
Can you list a few more ways businesses can reduce their carbon footprint? Comment below or let us know on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn. We’d love to hear from you!
Image Source: Shutterstock
MORE ON SUSTAINABILITY
