5 Easy Ways To Save Money And "Go Green"
Want to save money while simultaneously saving the planet? Then listen up...
We've come up with 5 easy ways to go green while still adding to your bottom line profits.
1. Power down your workstations at night.
A recent Gartner study measured carbon emissions from a variety of IT devices and found that the top three are PCs/monitors, data centers, and fixed-line telecommunications systems, in that order. PCs and monitors alone contribute 40% of total carbon emissions, data centers around 23%. You can save $50-100 per year by turning them off when you leave the office. In summer it also reduces the a/c load in cooling.
2. Stop printing unneeded documents, E-mails, faxes.
Not only will this save your company money on ink and toner, but you'll reduce the amount of paper and ink waste clogging up landfills.
3. Stop wasting CDs and DVDs.
CDs and DVDs can hold a lot of data, but most people only use a tiny portion of the space by burning small files. This results in a lot of unused and wasted space (it's the equivalent of storing a postage stamp in a warehouse). CDs and DVDs are difficult to recycle so use them intelligently and conservatively. USB flash drives are a more efficient way of storing small amounts of data.
4. Change your power settings.
Almost all computers have lower energy settings that will power down the computer (or parts of the computer) that aren't being used. For example, after 10 minutes of inactivity, set your PC to power off the monitor. Most systems have pre-determined profiles that make it easy to set up. Changing a laser printer to go to standby will provide significant savings.
5. Turn off peripheral devices when not in use.
Specialized peripherals like printers, scanners and bar code readers consume large amounts of energy and, in some offices, are rarely used. Keep them turned off until they're really needed.
Additional tip - recycle.
Many communities have municipal drop off points that will take your computer equipment and recycle it at no charge to you. Check with the recycling offices at your local municipality. Be green, help the environment and save money
