Firms set to get datacentre emissions tool

The Carbon Trust and the British Computer Society have announced a partnership, the first fruits of which are a software tool designed to help firms get a better grasp of the energy that they use in their datacentres.

The groups announced today that they had started development on the monitoring tool, which will offer up a virtual view of a datacentre, and is expected to be released in the first half of next year.

The project is being funded by the Carbon Trust's Low Carbon Collaboration initiative and Romonet. Both of which have said that they would focus on datacentres as they accounted for 25 per cent of all IT related carbon emissions. Romonet will produce the software, which will be based on a model created by the BCS' datacentre specialist group.

Bob Harvey, chair of the BCS’s Carbon Footprint group said, “We’re delighted to be working with the Carbon Trust to address this important area to meet the increasing need for the IT industry to reduce its carbon emissions. For most companies, the datacentre is the place to start, and with increasing energy costs and the threat of restricted power output to large datacentres, there has never been a better time for businesses to reassess their energy usage. The Carbon Trust’s support helps to reinforce the message that the IT industry needs to address this issue now.”

Liam Newcombe, Director of Research & Policy at Romonet added, “We believe this is a very positive step forward for our industry and shows commitment from two important industry bodies to help businesses understand and deal with the complexities of energy efficiency in their datacentre. Romonet are happy to be engaged and supporting this activity.”

By using the software firms will be able to create a virtual copy of their datacentre and simulate its mechanical, electrical, and equipment infrastructure.