Best way to take a big bite out of your computer operation’s electric bill? It’s not about new computer equipment!

Instead, the best Green IT efficiency move is to improve your company’s heating and air conditioning system to use less electricity. It’s this kind of efficiency that reduces those pesky greenhouse gas emissions.

That’s the advice from Allen Falcon, president of the technology consulting company, Horizon Information Group. In a recent Horizon blog post, Falcon says paying more for equipment that’s more energy efficient is helpful, but it doesn’t compare to the savings your IT department can take credit for if you instead focus on reducing current electricity usage.

He recommends taking steps to improve air flow in your computer room and using in-rack cooling systems. To improve air flow, try repositioning HVAC vents and returns. Of course, be sure to track before and after energy bills to prove the changes are working.

By focusing on reducing power consumption, you’re working on the first R in the Reduce, Reuse and Recycle mantra promoted by EPA and various industries.

The reuse chapter for Green IT is to use less equipment. With fewer devices, there’s less e-waste to dispose of, and that means fewer compliance hassles. Regulators are increasingly cracking down on e-waste because it contains hazardous materials, such as lead, cadmium, zinc and chromium. Strategies to embrace for computer departments: resource reallocation, virtualization and other steps that prolong the useful life of existing equipment.

When it finally comes to upgrading gear, it’s time to recycle what you don’t want anymore. Falcon recommends working with vendors to arrange for recycling, not just servers, but laptops, batteries, cell phones, printers and other peripherals as well.

Falcon’s Green IT posts are here.

Tags: carbon, Green IT, Horizon Information Group, recycle, reduce, reuse