{"id":608986,"date":"2023-02-17T07:49:11","date_gmt":"2023-02-17T13:49:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.sellorbuyhomefast.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/17\/schneider-electric-on-why-datacentre-operators-need-to-close-the-sustainability-gap\/"},"modified":"2023-02-17T07:49:11","modified_gmt":"2023-02-17T13:49:11","slug":"schneider-electric-on-why-datacentre-operators-need-to-close-the-sustainability-gap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/17\/schneider-electric-on-why-datacentre-operators-need-to-close-the-sustainability-gap\/","title":{"rendered":"Schneider Electric on why datacentre operators need to close the \u2018sustainability gap\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"content-header\">\n<h2>Datacentre operators sometimes have a hard time ensuring their actions match their words and pledges on sustainability matters, which could put the industry at risk of greenwashing accusations, Schneider Electric warns<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"content-center\">\n<ul>\n<li><i data-icon=\"1\"><\/i><\/li>\n<li><i data-icon=\"2\"><\/i><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div id=\"contributors-block\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.ttgtmedia.com\/rms\/computerweekly\/Caroline-Donnelly-CW-contributor-2022-140x180px.JPG\" alt=\"Caroline Donnelly\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p><span>By<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.techtarget.com\/contributor\/Caroline-Donnelly\">Caroline Donnelly,<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Senior Editor, UK<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\n\tPublished: <span>16 Feb 2023<\/span>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<section id=\"content-body\">\n<p>When it comes to figuring out how to run a sustainable business, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/news\/252522609\/Schneider-Electric-reinforces-commitment-to-addressing-datacentre-skills-gap-with-new-courses\">datacentre industry has more experience and expertise<\/a> at its disposal than the average enterprise, but operators are still running into accusations of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.techtarget.com\/whatis\/definition\/greenwashing\">greenwashing<\/a> when working towards their net-zero goals.<\/p>\n<p>In recent years, many of the hyperscale datacentre operators have gone public with promises to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/news\/252508339\/Government-flags-opportunity-for-re-use-of-waste-datacentre-heat-in-net-zero-strategy\">shrink the environmental footprint of their operations<\/a>, making time-sensitive pledges to ensure their sites run exclusively on renewable energy in the years to come.<\/p>\n<p>And <a href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/opinion\/IT-Sustainability-Think-Tank-The-circular-economy-in-the-context-of-the-datacentre\">while the datacentre industry<\/a>, as a whole, is making great strides towards becoming more environmentally friendly, there persists a disconnect between operators\u2019 sustainability ambitions and their ability to deliver on them.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe sector has multiple challenges to overcome when trying to build green datacentres,\u201d Pankaj Sharma, global executive vice-president of the secure power division at multinational energy management company Schneider Electric, tells Computer Weekly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFirstly, if you want to make a datacentre where your source of primary energy is from a green grid, then your choices are limited in where you can build it because not every grid on this planet is green.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAssuming you find that, operators will want to make sure the technology [inside their datacentres] is totally green \u2013 and that includes the infrastructure, software and compute.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He continues: \u201cThe third challenge is around redundancy and the alternate sources [of energy] being used as backup, which have to be greener and can\u2019t be fossil fuels. And that means operators need an infrastructure backed by renewables.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Another factor operators need to bear in mind is that the further away their sites are from the grid, the more energy will be lost during the transmission process in the form of heat and because of electrical resistance in the network.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOne of the biggest challenges is transmission losses, because the further away you are from the grid, the higher the transmission loss. So, even if you have a green grid, but you\u2019re 200 miles away, that\u2019s a potentially large loss.\u201d<\/p>\n<section data-menu-title=\"Sustainability gap\">\n<h3><i data-icon=\"1\"><\/i>Sustainability gap<\/h3>\n<p>Trying to overcome these obstacles while delivering on green goals has created a \u201csustainability gap\u201d, which is leaving the datacentre industry open to unfair accusations of greenwashing, says Sharma.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFrom a sustainability perspective, I think the datacentre industry is doing a better job than some other industries, because it isn\u2019t a very old industry \u2026 and energy efficiency hasn\u2019t been as much of a focus for other industries as it has been for datacentres,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<div>\n<figure>\n    \u201cA lot of companies are making [sustainability] commitments, but don\u2019t really know how to [deliver on] those commitments\u201d<br \/>\n   <\/figure><figcaption>\n    <strong>Pankaj Sharma, Schneider Electric<\/strong><br \/>\n   <\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>That said, datacentre operators are under huge pressure from clients and investors to make public declarations about how they plan to make their operations leaner and greener, because \u2013 as Sharma puts it \u2013 if \u201cyou\u2019re not sustainable, you can\u2019t survive as a company\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>He continues: \u201cIt\u2019s not like five years ago, when nobody cared about sustainability like they do today \u2026 what is happening now is a lot of companies are making commitments, but don\u2019t really know how to [deliver on] those commitments.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>And this lack of knowledge means they might be at risk of over-promising and under-delivering on their green goals because the technology they need to achieve them has not been invented yet. Similarly, the individuals with the know-how needed to guide them towards achieving their sustainability goals are in short supply.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe pressure is high for our [datacentre] clients from investors and from customers, and greenwashing is happening now because suddenly they need to be sustainable. People have made commitments. The big question is, do you have a plan \u2013 and do you know how to execute on that plan?\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDo I think the industry is knowingly greenwashing? I hope not, but it\u2019s definitely a real issue today that needs to be dealt with pretty quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Especially as the validity of the workarounds some companies rely on to become carbon-neutral entities are increasingly being called into question, Sharma continues. A prime example of this is the \u201ccarbon credit\u201d schemes that some enterprises rely on to offset their emissions.<\/p>\n<p>The owner of these credits is typically allowed to emit a certain amount of carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gases, and they can sell on any credits they do not use to another company that may need some extra leeway with regard to the emissions they produce.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere are a lot of conversation nowadays on carbon credits \u2013 if you\u2019re running a carbon-neutral operation, you can sell your carbon credits to me, and if I don\u2019t have a carbon-neutral operation, I can use carbon credits to meet some of my emission goals,\u201d Sharma states.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs good as this sounds, the reality is my operation is still not becoming carbon neutral \u2013 I\u2019m just buying a credit and using that to my advantage and paying money to buy that credit, right?\u201d<\/p>\n<\/section>\n<section data-menu-title=\"Making progress\">\n<h3><i data-icon=\"1\"><\/i>Making progress<\/h3>\n<p>On the upside, there is real progress being made on making the underlying infrastructure of datacentres greener, he says, pointing to the work Schneider has done to eradicate the amount of sulphur hexafluoride (SF6) greenhouse gas emissions generated by server farms.<\/p>\n<p>This gas is typically used in the medium voltage switchgear component parts of a datacentre\u2019s wider power infrastructure, but Schneider has since created a version that relies on fresh air to run.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSF6 gas is at least a few thousand times worse than carbon dioxide emissions, so we\u2019ve created switchgears that will run on the air we breathe,\u201d says Sharma.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve done a lot in terms of making power distribution setups greener too. We\u2019re building far more highly efficient uninterruptible power supply systems now that use 30% less material that come in green packaging and they [play into] the circular economy too.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He continues: \u201cFor a datacentre client, if they can build an [underlying] infrastructure that is green and can put compute on top of that, which is green too, and are in locations where they can power their sites with renewable energy, then they can go in the direction of being carbon neutral with greater ease.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Finding the people with the right skills and experience to help datacentre operators achieve their sustainability goals can also be a challenge, but is one that Sharma is convinced will become easier in time.<\/p>\n<\/section>\n<section data-menu-title=\"Attracting new talent\">\n<h3><i data-icon=\"1\"><\/i>Attracting new talent<\/h3>\n<p>Presently, the datacentre industry is grappling with a well-documented and growing skills gap, on account of the fact there are not enough young people looking to pursue a career in this field, but one area many of them are taking a keen interest in is sustainability.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe have very good experts in the datacentre industry today, but it\u2019s an ageing population, so bringing the next generation in was becoming harder. And that\u2019s had a lagging effect on the whole industry,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe better news now is that sustainability is a top of mind concern for everybody, but especially where the younger generation are concerned. The ease with which we are able to convince people to go into that industry is higher than it used to be, so I think the skills gap we have today [in the datacentre world] may \u2013 over the next decade \u2013 start to close.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This observation is based on the feedback Sharma has gained while touring universities and speaking to students who are pursuing qualifications in fields related to what Schneider Electric does.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs part of my role, I travel around the world and speak to undergraduate students and explain to them how to make a connection between what you can do with Schneider Electric and how that plays into the power electronics space and saving the planet,\u201d he says. \u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s a direct connection there and that story is changing quite a bit now. Yes, we have a skills gap today, but I think we are heading in the right direction to fix that.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/section>\n<section id=\"DigDeeperSplash\">\n<h4>\n\t\t\t<i data-icon=\"m\"><\/i>Read more on Datacentre performance troubleshooting, monitoring and optimisation<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li><a id=\"DigDeeperItem-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/news\/252528005\/Survey-Most-want-green-IT-but-many-wont-get-it-soon\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.ttgtmedia.com\/visuals\/ComputerWeekly\/Hero Images\/Sustainable-green-recycling-fotolia_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.ttgtmedia.com\/visuals\/ComputerWeekly\/Hero%20Images\/Sustainable-green-recycling-fotolia_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg 960w,https:\/\/cdn.ttgtmedia.com\/visuals\/ComputerWeekly\/Hero%20Images\/Sustainable-green-recycling-fotolia.jpg 1280w\" alt ><\/p>\n<h5>Survey: Most want green IT but many won\u2019t get it soon<\/h5>\n<div>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.ttgtmedia.com\/rms\/computerweekly\/adshead_antony2018.jpg\" alt=\"AntonyAdshead\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p><span>By: <span>Antony\u00a0Adshead<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a id=\"DigDeeperItem-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/microscope\/news\/252526380\/Schneider-Sustainability-is-a-team-sport\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.ttgtmedia.com\/visuals\/ComputerWeekly\/Hero Images\/leaf-nature-growth-adobe_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.ttgtmedia.com\/visuals\/ComputerWeekly\/Hero%20Images\/leaf-nature-growth-adobe_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg 960w,https:\/\/cdn.ttgtmedia.com\/visuals\/ComputerWeekly\/Hero%20Images\/leaf-nature-growth-adobe.jpeg 1280w\" alt ><\/p>\n<h5>Schneider Electric: Sustainability is a team sport<\/h5>\n<p><span>By: <span>Simon\u00a0Quicke<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a id=\"DigDeeperItem-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/news\/252521934\/HPE-commits-to-achieving-net-zero-business-goals-10-years-ahead-of-schedule\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.ttgtmedia.com\/visuals\/ComputerWeekly\/Hero Images\/Waste-recycle-adobe_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.ttgtmedia.com\/visuals\/ComputerWeekly\/Hero%20Images\/Waste-recycle-adobe_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg 960w,https:\/\/cdn.ttgtmedia.com\/visuals\/ComputerWeekly\/Hero%20Images\/Waste-recycle-adobe.jpg 1280w\" alt ><\/p>\n<h5>HPE commits to achieving net-zero business goals 10 years ahead of schedule<\/h5>\n<div>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.ttgtmedia.com\/rms\/computerweekly\/Caroline-Donnelly-CW-contributor-2022-140x180px.JPG\" alt=\"CarolineDonnelly\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p><span>By: <span>Caroline\u00a0Donnelly<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a id=\"DigDeeperItem-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/microscope\/news\/252521365\/Schneider-Electric-Maintel-and-DataSolutions-highlight-green-efforts\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.ttgtmedia.com\/visuals\/ComputerWeekly\/Hero Images\/globe-raindrop-nature-green-eco-fotolia_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.ttgtmedia.com\/visuals\/ComputerWeekly\/Hero%20Images\/globe-raindrop-nature-green-eco-fotolia_searchsitetablet_520X173.jpg 960w,https:\/\/cdn.ttgtmedia.com\/visuals\/ComputerWeekly\/Hero%20Images\/globe-raindrop-nature-green-eco-fotolia.jpg 1280w\" alt ><\/p>\n<h5>Schneider Electric, Maintel and DataSolutions highlight green efforts<\/h5>\n<p><span>By: <span>Simon\u00a0Quicke<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.computerweekly.com\/feature\/Schneider-Electric-on-why-datacentre-operators-need-to-close-the-sustainability-gap\" class=\"button purchase\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Read More<\/a><br \/>\n Christeen Badon<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Datacentre operators sometimes have a hard time ensuring their actions match their words and pledges on sustainability matters, which could put the industry at risk of greenwashing accusations, Schneider Electric warns By Caroline Donnelly, Senior Editor, UK Published: 16 Feb 2023 When it comes to figuring out how to run a sustainable business, the datacentre<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":608987,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3589,32717,46],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-608986","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-electric","8":"category-schneider","9":"category-technology"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/608986","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=608986"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/608986\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/608987"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=608986"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=608986"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=608986"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}