INDUSTRY WATCH
The critical issue of climate change is driving strategic discussions within board rooms as sustainability has become a major factor in business decision-making over the last year – particularly in light of COP26 . As one of the industries which contributes most to carbon emissions , the onus is on data centre teams to make smarter , greener decisions when investing in new technologies .
The IT industry as a whole must play its part by making strategic eco-friendly decisions which serve to benefit the planet rather than threaten it . Intelligent CIO spoke to Pankaj Sharma , Executive Vice President – Secure Power Division , Schneider Electric , to find out more about how the climate crisis impacts the sector – and vice versa – as well as how data centre teams can make bold steps on the path to a more sustainable future and the importance of sustainability for Schneider Electric as a business .
How has increased consumer awareness and demand for sustainability impacted organisations across Europe ?
In the last few years , the appreciation , or awareness of sustainability has gone up substantially , especially within the data centre industry . There are of course organisations which have been talking about sustainability for a long time .
At Schneider Electric , for example , we ’ ve had the Sustainability Index for almost a decade . However , the increased need for digitisation due to the COVID-19 pandemic , coupled with more people working from home and growing awareness of how technology is impacting the environment , has caused many businesses , both in and outside of the industry , to focus on reducing carbon emissions .
People are also realising that to meet the needs of digitisation , you need to build more and more digital infrastructure . And , of course , when you build more infrastructure , the need for it to become more sustainable is even greater .
There are certain studies which highlight how important sustainability has become in terms of decision-making . Last year , for example , 451 did a study focused on the data centre colocation providers , which highlighted that 44 % of customers expect efficiency and sustainability .
A recent study by HP found that 61 % of employees believe business sustainability is mandatory .
What level of responsibility do data centre leaders have in reducing their facility ’ s carbon footprint ?
It ’ s an important question and professionals within industry have a key responsibility to reduce their carbon footprint . Studies show that globally , data centres are responsible for between 1 % to 2 % of the world ’ s electricity usage , and this is almost equal to the airline industry ’ s carbon emissions . Because the need for digitalisation has risen so much in the last year and a half , it means more data centres need to be built .
Hence there is a need for the industry to build more data centres in an extremely sustainable fashion . That ’ s why data centres play a very important role .
Our study with 451 Research also found that 97 % of providers ’ customers are asking for contractual sustainability commitments , so it ’ s a key requirement for end-users . In Europe , we also have the Climate Pledge 2030 and the EU Green Deal , which further demonstrate the need for sustainability within the industry .
Can you tell us how sustainability is central to Schneider Electric ’ s own strategy and how that ’ s embedded across the business ?
Sustainability has been a part of Schneider Electric ’ s DNA for the last 15 years and we ’ ve had the Sustainability Index in place to help us report in a transparent way .
Our mission is to be the world ’ s digital partner for sustainability and efficiency . We were ranked as the world ’ s most sustainable corporation by Corporate Knights in 2021 and we are continuing to work with our customers and partners to help them understand the need to become more sustainable , and to support them on that journey .
Which tools and technologies should organisations consider investing in to enable more sustainability across their functions ?
In general , when you think of data centre operators , I think there is a need for a new mindset . There ’ s often this misconception between resiliency and sustainability . It ’ s generally felt that if you must build a more resilient data centre , it cannot be sustainable because you ’ re building more infrastructure . But that ’ s not true – both can be achieved in data centre operations without a huge compromise . This does
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