Comments on: Make ‘green’ pay

By: David Tebbutt

David Tebbutt — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 10:57:59 +0000

Thanks for the expansion Martyn. I’m with you and I agree about the shipping/waste/bloatware stuff.

The other angle a lot of people don’t consider is how IT, well ICT really, can actually help improve a company’s environmental credentials.

I hinted at it a bit in the piece. But have covered it in more depth on other occasions. And, soon, I hope I’ll be able to share some research findings which are primarily aimed at larger organisations but the principles hold true for small ones.

More as it unfolds…

By: Martyn

Martyn — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 10:47:18 +0000

David

Point taken about it being new for some businesses. However, IMHO many small businesses already think this way - the elimination of waste, being efficient, watching every penny spent - that is how they survive.

The point of my blog post is that many businesses forget this when it comes to IT. They usually seek to make efficient (and therefore green!) choices about production equipment, buildings, materials etc but forget all of that when it comes to IT and “just” buy the latest resource hungry kit because it can run Windows, Office and Sage, when there are other solutions.

Believe me I’m no tree-hugger, but I hate waste and think that an economic model based on buying cheap crap from China, shipping it half way around the world and dumping it in landfill is doomed - and as an owner of an SME that makes stuff in the UK, I can’t wait for its demise!

Martyn

By: David Tebbutt

David Tebbutt — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 10:32:08 +0000

I don’t think I made out it’s new. But it might be a new kind of thinking for some (many?) of the readers.

What is new is that the economics have shifted and what might have just have been so much hot air (no pun intended) now has a sharper relevance.

By: Martyn

Martyn — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 10:23:44 +0000

David,

You talk as if this is something “new”. Running a small business is always like this. An extract from a post I wrote a while back…

>>>>>>
That’s how the real world of manufacturing has always worked, so I don’t see why the IT bit of my business should be any different.

Part of my vision has been to install thin clients running Linux rather than “thick” windows PCs - possibly using regenerated (old) hardware.

Today we achieved step one of that vision.

For the record - Linux works. Out of the box. At low cost. And it is good for the environment.

I will never buy a Windows based PC ever again.
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
See here for the full post http://blogs.severndelta.co.uk/?p=5

Martyn