The PC Goes on an Energy Diet

公司里消耗能源最多的东西每天都摆在员工面前：他们的电脑。举例来说，位于华盛顿的宣传机构美国节能联盟(Alliance to Save Energy)2007年的一份报告估计，一家拥有1万部台式电脑的公司要是整晚让这些电脑开着，每年的电费就会超过16.5万美元，同时每年向大气中排放逾1,380吨二氧化碳。这差不多相当于开两个月车的温室气体排放量。总体上，该组织估计美国因电脑整晚开机而浪费的电费超过17亿美元，排放的二氧化碳约1,500万吨。惠普出品的 摸屏电脑号称比普通电脑节电37%结果，公司的IT经理纷纷想办法控制公司电脑能耗。科技生产厂商也做出了反应。比如说，Array Networks Inc.去年11月宣布，其DesktopDirect程序可以让人们在电脑关机的情况下仍能实现远程访问。戴尔公司(Dell Inc.)称，在以能效更高的发光二极管(LED)屏幕替换老一代阴极屏幕后，其笔记本电脑显示屏耗电量降低了43%。惠普公司(Hewlett-Packard Co.)也表示，由于元器件减少以及其他因素，其个人电脑系列产品与2005年的机型相比节能41%。许多其他高科技厂商也致力于环保节能。惠普个人系统全球营销资深副总裁查希尔(Satjiv Chahil)说，最终这一切都会给公司业务带来好处。投资回报电子商务开发商Guidance Solutions Inc.说，2008年以来其员工人数从30人增加到50人，但桌面设备能耗并未增加，因为公司改用了更节能的电脑。这家公司使用的200台惠普台式机和笔记本电脑耗电量比以前的机型低大约40%。这家公司位于加州，其首席技术长和老板之一普罗维索(Jon Provisor)说，这是环保投资的回报。惠普的另一家客户Molina HealthCare Inc.在2008年初开始将其总计3,000台电脑换成节能机型，该公司基础设施和运营主管Sriram Bharadwaj说，公司迄今节能逾30%。他说，节能其实只是副产品，公司更换电脑的主要意图是为了让员工更舒适，换掉体积庞大的老旧机型，那些电脑太占地方，通常发热量也过高。Bharadwaj说，这绝对是个良好的副产品。过去五年中，换用更环保的电脑的行动逐渐升温，此前股东和环保组织向公司施加了越来越大的压力，要求减少温室气体排放，大多数科学家认为温室气体导致了全球变暖。电脑厂商也面临压力，因为它们在旧机回收方面做得不够。许多厂商在那之后都开展了电脑回收活动，同时也改用更易再利用的材料。总部位于波士顿的Ceres的资深项目主管莫法特(Andrea Moffat)说，我觉得有两个因素促使电脑公司环保节能，其一是消费者的要求，第二个重大推动因素纯粹是竞争的需要。随着我们进入21世纪的低碳经济，电脑厂商必须得这样做。Ceres是由投资者环保组织和其他有志于推动公司加强环保的人士组成的。带头示范对于环保电脑最积极的三家生产商就是戴尔惠普和苹果公司(Apple Inc.)。惠普笔记本电脑的包装将浪费降低到最小程度查希尔说，2005年赫德(Mark Hurd)接任首席执行长后提出了这样一个问题：“我们还能再做些什么？”那之后，实施环保计划已经很久的惠普加大了个人电脑的环保力度。从2006年开始，惠普在12个月内就重新设计了全部的个人电脑产品线，将更高效的电源和更快进入节电休眠模式的能力等绿色环保功能包括进来。2008年，惠普还推出了EliteBook系列笔记本电脑，用户可以在不启动电脑的情况下，收发电子邮件使用日历和联系人功能。这款电脑使用一种独立的迷你操作系统“QuickLook”技术，而无需启动电脑的主操作系统。惠普的ProBook系列笔记本电脑也有QuickLook功能。今年早些时候，惠普开始销售一些消费笔记本电脑，电脑电池充电续航时间最高可达3年。惠普管理人士说，这可以降低能耗，因为电池充电次数减少。与此同时，戴尔过去几年来一直在改进OptiPlex台式电脑和Latitude笔记本电脑，将节电功能包括进来。去年，这家公司推出了Latitude电脑，也可以在不启动电脑的情况下收发电子邮件和上网；电脑的电池比老款续航时间长一倍，从过去的3个小时增加到6个小时。戴尔管理人士说，最大的节电特性是把笔记本电脑显示屏换成了LED显示屏。节能功能的最大受益者之一是：戴尔本身。一年多前，该公司在全球很多部门的5万部台式和笔记本电脑上安装了夜间关机软件，估计每年可节省电费180万美元。戴尔环保事务负责人李尔(David Lear)说，可以说这是“自产自用”，不过我们进行了大量这样的工作。在苹果公司，管理人士则宣传绿色个人电脑的另外一个好处：可以减少碳排放。这家位于加州的公司计算出每款电脑使用的碳量。对于2008年推出的MacBook Air笔记本电脑来说，苹果称有43%的碳排放来自所使用的能源。因此，为了节能，MacBook装配了更高效的电源和功能更强大的休眠模式。今年早些时候推出的新款13英寸MacBook Pro在不工作时开着显示屏的功率只有15瓦，相当于一个家用灯泡功率的四分之一，而其他新款笔记本电脑的功率约相当于MacBook Pro的两倍。远程控制软件生产商也加强了应对个人电脑能耗的问题。举例来讲，Verdiem Corp.的“Surveyor”程序可以使IT经理们远程调整电脑的能量使用，比如在不使用的时候关闭电脑。这家位于西雅图的公司表示，自3年前该公司开始提供这项服务以来，客户们已经节约下了逾3,000万美元的能源成本。Verdiem的客户之一Cox Communications Inc.表示，自公司去年4月份开始采用Surveyor软件以来，公司1.5万部台式电脑的能耗减少了40%。该公司负责IT和业务发展的副总裁韦斯特(Peter West)说，公司利用Surveyor软件来远程控制电脑，在夜间需要进行软件升级时，打开台式电脑，然后在下载完毕后关闭电脑。他说，这降低了能耗，此外公司通过使用节能型戴尔电脑也节省了能源。该公司是一家总部位于亚特兰大的电缆企业，是Cox Enterprises Inc.的子公司。韦斯特说，这真是一个进步。Jim Carlton 本文涉及股票或公司document.write (truthmeter('2009年09月09日10:48', 'HPQ'));惠普公司英文名称：Hewlett-Packard Co.总部地点：美国上市地点：纽约证交所股票代码：HPQdocument.write (truthmeter('2009年09月09日10:48', 'DELL'));戴尔公司英文名称：Dell Inc.总部地点：美国上市地点：纳斯达克股票代码：DELLdocument.write (truthmeter('2009年09月09日10:48', 'AAPL'));苹果公司英文名称：Apple Inc.总部地点：美国上市地点：纳斯达克股票代码：AAPL


Some of the biggest energy hogs in a company sit in front of workers everyday: their PCs.For a company that has 10,000 personal-computer desktops, for example, just leaving most of them turned on all night can cost more than $165,000 a year in electricity bills, while spewing more than 1,380 tons of carbon dioxide into the air per year, estimates a 2007 report by the Alliance to Save Energy, an advocacy group in Washington, D.C. That's roughly the amount of greenhouse gas emissions that come from driving a car for two months. In all, the group estimates upwards of $1.7 billion is being wasted in the U.S. with about 15 million tons of carbon emitted by desktops left on overnight.As a result, corporate IT managers are clamoring for ways to rein in their PC energy expenses. And technology manufacturers are responding. For instance, Array Networks Inc. last November announced that its DesktopDirect program would let people remotely access their desktop even when it is turned off. Dell Inc. says the displays on its laptop computers use 43% less energy after older cathode screens have been swapped out with more efficient LED ones. And Hewlett-Packard Co. says its has saved 41% energy consumption on its lineup of PCs, compared with 2005 models, because of fewer components and other factors. Many other technology manufacturers are going green, as well.'In the end, this all adds up to smart business,' says Satjiv Chahil, senior vice president of personal systems world-wide marketing for H-P, which is based in Palo Alto, Calif.Returns on InvestmentGuidance Solutions Inc., an e-commerce developer, says its desktop energy consumption has stayed roughly the same despite increasing the work force to 50 from 30 employees since 2008 because it switched to more efficient machines. The company's 200 desktops and laptops from H-P use about 40% less power than earlier models. 'It's a return on the investment of being green,' says Jon Provisor, chief technology officer and co-owner of the Marina del Rey, Calif., firm.Another H-P customer, Molina HealthCare Inc., began converting its 3,000-PC fleet to energy-efficient models in early 2008 and has realized more than 30% energy savings on the machines it has replaced so far, says Sriram Bharadwaj, director of infrastructure and operations. He says the savings came as a by-product of the company's main intent in replacing the computers: making work stations more comfortable for workers of the Long Beach, Calif., health-care provider by taking out bulky, older models that took up too much space and often produced too much heat.'It is definitely a good by-product,' Mr. Bharadwaj says.The move to greener PCs has picked up steam over the past five years, following mounting pressure from shareholders and environmental groups to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions that most scientists believe cause global warming. The PC makers have also faced heat for not doing enough to keep obsolete models out of the scrap heap. Many have since launched computer take-back programs, and have also switched to more recyclable materials.'I think what motivates PC companies to be green is two things: One, the customers are asking for it. And the other big driver is pure competition. As we enter the 21st century low-carbon economy, they are going to have to do it,' says Andrea Moffat, senior director of programs at Ceres, a Boston-based network of investors, environmental groups and others interested in pushing corporations to be greener.Leading the WayThree of the more active manufacturers in green PCs have been Dell, H-P and Apple Inc.H-P, which has long operated an environmental program, ramped up its efforts on PCs in 2005 after Mark Hurd took over as chief executive and asked, 'What more can we do?,' Mr. Chahil says. H-P redesigned its entire PC product line in 12 months, beginning in 2006, to include green features such as more efficient power supplies and the ability to go into power-saving sleep mode faster.More recently, H-P in 2008 launched an EliteBook line of laptops that lets the user access email, calendars and contacts without having to power up the computer. The laptops use a technology called QuickLook, a separate, miniature operating system that doesn't require booting up the machine's main OS. QuickLook is also a feature on H-P's ProBook line of laptops.Earlier this year, the company began shipping some consumer laptops featuring batteries that can hold a charge for as long as three years. That saves energy because they don't have to be recharged as much, H-P officials say.Meanwhile, Dell over the past few years has revamped its OptiPlex desktop and Latitude laptop lines to include energy-saving features. Last year, the Round Rock, Texas, company introduced Latitude models that also can access email and Internet sites without booting up the computer; these models also have batteries that last twice as long as those of the previous model -- six hours instead of three. One of the biggest savings, Dell officials say, has come from the shift to LED screens on laptops.Among the biggest beneficiaries of the energy savings: Dell itself. The company more than a year ago installed night shut-off software in 50,000 desktops and notebooks across a number of its operations world-wide, achieving an estimated $1.8 million in power savings annually. 'It's eating your own dog food, if you will, but we practice a lot of this,' says David Lear, Dell's director of environmental affairs.At Apple, company officials play up another benefit of green PCs: their reduced carbon output. The Cupertino, Calif., company calculates the amount of carbon each model uses. In the case of the MacBook Air laptop launched in 2008, the company says 43% of its carbon emissions come from the energy it uses. So to cut down on energy, the MacBook is equipped with features such as more efficient power supplies and enhanced sleep mode. The new 13-inch MacBook Pro released earlier this year draws just 15 watts when idle with display on -- a quarter of the power needed to run a single household lightbulb -- versus about double that for some other new laptops.Remote ControlSoftware makers are also stepping up to address the problem of PC energy. Verdiem Corp.'s Surveyor program, for example, lets IT managers remotely adjust energy use of computers -- such as being able to shut them off when not in use. The Seattle company says its customers have saved more than $30 million in energy costs since it began offering the service about three years ago.One customer, Cox Communications Inc., says it has seen a 40% drop in energy consumption in 15,000 desktops since the company began deploying Surveyor last April. The Atlanta cable firm, a unit of Cox Enterprises Inc., uses Surveyor to remotely turn on desktops at night when they need software updates, and then turn them back off when the download is complete, says Peter West, vice president of IT and operational development. Mr. West says the efficiency gains add to those the company has achieved by using energy-saving Dell computers.'This really does just take it up a notch,' Mr. West says.Jim Carlton