October 10th, 2008
Print this: Actually, please don’t, but DO think about why printers should get more airtime in green tech discussions
I was talking to someone within the past couple of months (I honestly can’t remember who right now, sorry) who made a pretty profound statement that seems pertinent in the context of this post. I had just admitted, somewhat shamefacedly, to my ongoing addiction to printing out my notes, presentations and other reference materials that I use in my writing. For which I was rightly scolded.
But the person I was interviewing made the point that many sites across the Web actually pretty much encourage or dare you to print off a physical version of what you’re reading. People even offer widgets to help you make things more “printer-friendly.” Then, of course, you wind up printing five more pages than you want anyway because of funky page margins and the extraneous ads that just have to sneak their way into your world.
I digress, but my point is that printers and paper are becoming more widely recognized as a key puzzle piece in the green/sustainable/efficient technology debate. A study out of Microsoft a few weeks back (one conducted on their behalf by KRC Research) found that more small businesses (about 250 were surveyed) were interested in the drive to a paperless office than were focused on power management capabilities for their technology. That, my friends, is VERY interesting. I’ll be reporting more on that survey in the near future.
So, anyway, the REAL purpose of this blog is to let you know that printing behemoth Hewlett-Packard recently held a conference around its imaging and printing products to brief about all sorts of new products and services. And for those of you who get excited about such things, the company has updated its Carbon Footprint Calculator for printing, which is a free resource.
The main thing that is different is that the calculator adds the features and capabilities of the HP LaserJet Power Calculator. The sorts of things it handles are the following:
- Head-to-head comparisons of the impact that ONE particular inkjet or laser printer might on the environment compared with another model. (This includes energy usage, carbon footprint and any cost savings information that can be derived from your particular situation.)
- Printer fleet scenarios that let a business look at the metrics related to an entire portfolio of HP printers from the current line-up OR legacy printers from the past two decades OR competitive printer products produced during the past 10 years.
- Information that evaluates networked print management features (examining the “forgotten job” syndrome, etc.)
- Geographic-specific information for more than 146 countries (so WAY beyond U.S.-centric).
- Etc.
You can find a backgrounder on the new tool at this link. And, behold, a link to the calculator itself.
October 10th, 2008
Overachiever: Sun surpasses greenhouse gas reduction goals
Bully for Sun Microsystems. The company’s U.S. operations have actually already overshot the 20 percent reduction goal originally set for 2012 under the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Climate Leaders program. Yes, that’s right folks, a tech company has done something earlier than expected!
The company reports this week that it has cut its emissions by 23 percent over 2007 levels. So now, it has set a new bar: Slash another 20 percent in worldwide emission levels by 2015. (Again, compared with 2007 levels.)
October 9th, 2008
Up on the rooftop: Brightening prospects for solar technology
It’s midnight, do you know where your solar panel is?
I read somewhere yesterday where thefts of solar panels are on the rise, no doubt due to the rather dear price that they still command. Hopefully, that’s on a pace for change, given that many of us have less disposable income than we did in the past. For me, one of the brightest spots in the whole $700 billion bailout package approved last week by the federal government was the decision FINALLY to extend tax credits for investments that people make in solar and wind technology. I know that many solar companies and utilities are breathing a sigh of relief. We’ve waited long enough for this legislation. Now, let’s have at it. No more excuses.
The good news is that at least some of us have been plowing forward without waiting for the government. Here are just a few examples of new installations that I’ve become aware of during the past couple of months, ones that demonstrate the spirit of interest in solar projects across all facets of our society.
- One example: The San Domenico School (a Catholic school in Northern California) is planning to install a 412-kilowatt solar power system in conjunction with Recurrent Energy, which describes itself as the “solar as a service” company. Their deal calls for 2,300 photovoltaic panels to be spread across campus in rooftop and ground arrays, handling approximately 85 percent of the school’s electricity needs. Recurrent will make the investment and handle the installation with two partners, Solaris Solar and GreenLight Solar. It will sell the power back to the school at a pre-negotiated rate. The project is set to be operational by the end of the year; the school administration spent several years exploring its options.
- Recurrent Energy is also behind a 1-megawatt solar project in Visalia, Calif., with The North Force (the apparel and outdoor equipment company). Also set to be completed by the end of 2008, the design and construction of this project will be handled by EI Solutions, which supposedly has handled the largest corporate solar installation in the United States—the one at Google headquarters in Mountain View, Calif. The installation in question will be located ON and NEXT TO to a new 800,000-square-foot distribution center. It will feature 5,445 Suntech photovoltaic panels. Another pretty cool feature is that the panels will be mounted on RayTracker GC single-axis solar trackers from Energy Innovations that follow the sun, maximizing the amount of energy that any single panel can collected. Similar deal as the San Domenico school: Recurrent invests, The North Face buys back the power that the solar technology is producing on its property.
- To consider how interested Californians, at least, are in solar power, consider that another San Francisco-area organization, 1 Block Off the Grid, has just begun talking about the results of its solar power project in the city. The organization blitzed San Francisco residents to educate them about subsidies for solar technology. It signed up 180 residents, and 70 were prequalified to receive an on-site evaluation. Approximately 35 have signed up for solar installations. The first of those installations was finished on Sept. 27 and others are expected to be completed by early November, according to the organization. Six new cities will be targeted for the next wave of solar advocacy.
October 8th, 2008
Another bit of positive green investment news. Smart grid is again the focus.
More positive news on the clean-tech investment front (announced before the market meltdown but significant nonetheless): Another smart-grid player, GridPoint, is using at least some of its $120 million in recently raised equity financing to buy V2Green, which sells technology for integrating infrastructure for supporting plug-in electric hybrids with the electric utility grid.
GridPoint’s mission in life is to provide a platform that can better connect the various alternative energy resources that are popping up around the globe—including hybrids, solar panels, wind turbines and other energy storage devices—with the means of managing them—thermostats, etc.
The focus of this particular investment has got me thinking about how critically important it will be for us to adopt standards-based technology that can communicate with each other over the “network” (in this case the electric grid). Consider, as an example, what would happen if we all drove our hybrids home and then plugged them in to charge at exactly the same time every evening. This scenario, outlined by Oak Ridge National Lab, suggests that without proper management, another 160 new power plants would be needed to accommodate electric hybrids. UNLESS the charging process is handled properly, in which cases we might only need eight new plants (although that’s kind of a lot, too, isn’t it). Makes you think about how far we have to go, doesn’t it?
October 8th, 2008
Do we we have a way to defeat global warming?
Is the recession the ultimate way to fight global warming? That’s the suggestrion from one market commentator. Less spending=less greenhouse gas, he says. The outlook from international finance organizations is decidely gloomy. It follows that if spending’s down, industrial output from China and elsewhere will be down. That means less coal and oil used. So lower fossil fuel prices may not keep consumption at 2007 levels.
There has been a steep drop in crude oil prices this fall. Less consumption has worked its way. But there are still increased home heating bills in much of the Northern Hemisphere with winter on its way. Global warming will NOT prevent all winter weather. So the official US government price forecast on crude oil is now below $115 per barrel for this full year.
As the markets and financial systems in general have been battered, greentech stocks have plunged along with oil, many currencies and stock markets all over. Some commentators urge any economic rebuilding be based on greener industries and retooling an energy-inefficient infrastructure the world over. There is some bitter consolation for us oil consumers. Oil-rich Russia has seen its stock markets hit harder than most. Bet some of those Russian capitalists are longing for more government control. Just like the big-time capitalists in Western Europe and North America are getting.
WHAT NEXT FOR GREENTECH?
I will not pretend to have an answer. The guys with the long titles and big bonuses can’t get it right, so I’m surely no better than an interested guesser. Here are a few guesses I will hazard. Bank and investment jobs are going to be far fewer. That means smart folks will be mofre available for greentech start-ups. And greentech still needs to get less costly through innovative or scale or both.
October 8th, 2008
Smart grid tech player Silver Spring receives a cool $75M
Despite the ongoing financial meltdown, people still are throwing money around for greentech/cleantech companies. For now, at least.
Silver Spring Networks, which develops Smart Grid technology, said it has received an additional $75 million in funding intended for global expansion. The investment round was led by Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, but it also includes Foundation Capital, JVB Properties and Northgate Capital.
Here’s some of my past coverage of Silver Spring, so you have a sense of what they do. But the thing that the venture capitalists said gave them comfort was the fact that Silver Spring boasts some live customers (not just pilots) for its energy management products. Those customers include Florida Power & Light Company, Pacific Gas & Electric Company, Modesto Irrigation District, Oklahoma Gas & Electric, Consumers Energy and so on.
One key differentiator for Silver Spring lies in its ability to support multiple applications and multiple protocols with its flagship product, Smart Energy Network. As an example, the company just finished phase one of interoperability testing with S&C Electric Company, which sells the IntelliTeam II Automatic Restoration System (basically a solution for restoring power to line segments without overloading a system).
October 7th, 2008
Magink aims to outshine LED technology, but not outpower
A six-year-old developer of reflective display technologies has snagged an indoor (albeit heavily sunlit) installation with the New England Patriots.
Take a look.
What makes Magink’s technology interesting is not just the brightness of the picture OR the fact that images including video can be viewed in bright sunlight, BUT the fact that the technology typically uses less power than comparable LED-based displays, according to Gadi Tirosh, chairman of the Israel-based company Magink. Tirosh estimates that nine-square-feet of LEDs would consume about 500 watts, while Magink would use about a fifth of that amount. And, because it doesn’t emit light, it will not emit the same sort of heat.
You can expect to pay about the same price of slightly higher for a Magink display as you would shell out for a 22-millimeter LED format, but Tirosh claims Magink is more cost-effective than 10-millimeter LED technology. The company is pitching its products for applications in architecture and digital signage (read, advertising).
October 6th, 2008
The color that shall not be named. AMD’s Vertal downplays green credentials, plays up efficiency arguments
I realize Advanced Micro Devices has some news in the offing this week that likely will supersede the urgency of this blog’s content, but I wanted to recount some high points from a conversation I had about two weeks ago with Larry Vertal, the company’s senior strategist when it comes to matters green.
Actually, I take that back, Mr. Vertal is decidedly not a fan of the Green IT label, much along the veins of the Forrester report that I blogged about last night. “We are not a fan of the phrase Green IT,” Vertal told me when he checked in from the recent AlwaysOn GoingGreen conference, where he was a speaker. “Fundamentally, where we have influence is in energy-efficiency.” I should note that he IS a board member of the Green Grid, so he hasn’t entirely escaped the word on his business card. (In fun, Mr. Vertal!)
Any, so far, so good. I’ve always strongly urged IT managers and executives to focus less on the green word when making their energy-efficiency and environmental arguments. Definitely, you could make the case that AMD has gone really pushed Intel to new heights of innovation when it comes to low-powered processors. You can argue about which company has done what first and who leads where. I’m not going to. I’ll merely point out that for all its ongoing corporate challenges, this is, after all, a company that has really helped push the multi-core dialogue, which is at its heart one of green-ness, er power-efficiency.
For illustration, Vertal points out that one of AMD’s current desktop quad-core designs uses a mere 60 watts, and the release of its 45-nanometer version will bring additional power and thermal advantages.
One of the things that I think is even cooler to mention is the work that AMD is doing to help account for the power drain that features road warriors love, like super-duper high-end graphics, aren’t such a huge power-suck on your notebook computer. AMD’s dual-mode graphics defaults to the high-end features when plugged in, but switches to an integrated approach when the system is running on battery. Green? Perhaps not. Energy-efficient? You betcha, to steal a phrase from VP-wannabe Sarah Palin.
What else is on Vertal’s strategy plate? Well, AMD is about ready to crank out its eighth Global Climate Protection Plan. Yes, the company has been producing statements regarding its focus on environmental issues for that long. It’s not up on their site yet, but here’s the link for when it DOES become available. The company recently opened up a Gold-certified facility under the Leadership in Energy Efficiency and Environmental Design rating system.
Vertal contends that the next phase for AMD’s focus on environmental leadership will be on its supply chain, which should be interesting given the ongoing rumor that it will spin off its manufacturing operations moving forward. As more companies explore this route (remember the Dell stories of about a month ago), energy-efficiency and environmental/materials responsibility will be new checkoff items in the outsourcing process. How green is the high-tech industry willing to be in this economy?
October 5th, 2008
Forrester: There’s really no such thing as “green IT”
News flash. In a recent report called “Is Green IT Your Emperor With No Clothes?,” market research house Forrester is advising IT managers to forget about the notion that there’s any such thing as TRULY green technology. Yes, folks, it’s part of that green tech backlash that we’ve all been expecting.
What with toxic chemicals AND ecologically taxing manufacturing processes AND onerous disposal requirements AND huge energy requirements, technology is just inherently flawed when it comes to green-ness.
Well, no kidding. BUT, Forrester says, technology CAN aid businesses in setting forth strategies that can help reduce overall energy consumption and, by association, overall operating expenses. Plus, this is the sort of thing that’s more likely to get your boss’s attention rather than a green proclamation. No matter how much I believe in the green cause myself, I know that the world at large is much more cynical about green tech.
But, you too can work toward reduced energy consumption even if you don’t like what “green” implies. Here’s the simplest way to get started: Reverse the IT department’s traditional lack of visibility into power consumption. Only 11 percent of IT departments include electricity costs in their annual budgeting process, according to Forrester, and this will not do.
IT departments should work now to establish baseline benchmarks for energy consumption, carbon dioxide emissions and related operational costs. That means your regular inventory of IT assets should include not just the types of systems you have (inside and outside the data center) but also what sort of power draw they require and what sort of cooling and backup power equipment is needed to keep them running efficiently.
Forrester has created an online calculator to help companies keep track of this (it’s included in the report, which you have to buy unless you’re a corporate research client). It looks at factors such as energy draw per assets, annual uptime per asset and so on. This data is used to calculate your power usage effectiveness ratio and infrastructure efficiency ratio. Even if you can’t really buy technology that is green, you can use these measures to procure and manage the most energy-efficient systems possible.
October 4th, 2008
Wind: A sound investment in unsound times?
The first intra-state public offering associated with the development of community-backed wind farms in Dodge, Olmsted and Mower counties in Minnesota has been completed in just four months.
The project managers, National Wind and High Country Energy, reported this week that the offering pulled in 60 Minnesota investors, who will reap the rewards (and the risks) of the utility-scale projects being worked on in those locations.
National Wind will look to institutional investors to handle additional financing. The figures cited as a carrot by the National Wind folks are pretty compelling: They believe the industry will grow from 16,800 megawatts installed in 2007 to 49,000 in 2015. Let’s hope the money needed to drive these projects doesn’t disappear with the financial market turmoil.
Recent Entries
- Print this: Actually, please don’t, but DO think about why printers should get more airtime in green tech discussions
- Overachiever: Sun surpasses greenhouse gas reduction goals
- Up on the rooftop: Brightening prospects for solar technology
- Another bit of positive green investment news. Smart grid is again the focus.
- Do we we have a way to defeat global warming?
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