The number of PCs that are thrown away could hit 2.4 billion by 2013, says Nottingham University. The 'Software Marketing and e-Waste: Standards for Sustainability' study by the university's Business School revealed that relentless pressure on consumers to upgrade their software is contributing to the increase in waste PCs.

(Photo from：www.greenelectronicscouncil.org)

Professor Peter Swann said many computers that are in perfectly good working order are rendered obsolete by up-to-date software versions that drain system resources in a process known as 'software bloat'. "The principal solution to the problem of PC e-waste is for developers and marketers to stop using strategies that contribute to bloat and enforced upgrading," said Swann.

Swann said the introduction of an industry standard that "discourages such a dysfunctional approach" would be applauded by both vendors and consumers.

According to Swann, Moore's Law - the theory that the power of a computer chip doubles every two years - has lead to software developers creating programs that use more processing power and memory than necessary.

Swann also blamed 'bundling' or selling PCs with huge amounts of pre-installed software that slows them down, and the need to download regular security upgrades, as key contributors to e-waste. The study also highlighted that only half of all the PCs ever sold are still in use, proving consumers are struggling to find a productive way to use older machines.

"Passing off old tools to developing countries may look like charity, but it consigns the country to a perpetual lack of competitiveness," said Swann. "Even charities that recycle old computers to schools in the least developed countries have to set limits on what they can accept."

1: Using environmental preferable hardware
Buy hardware with low power consumption, such as product meets the USEPA’s Energy Star guidelines, HKSAR EMSD’s Voluntary Energy Efficiency Labelling Scheme, Gold status of EPEAT ratings, etc. Besides, product meeting the Hong Kong Green Label Scheme or TOC certificate requirements are not only having low energy consumption but also considering other environmental impacts such as hazardous substance content, products’ recyclability, etc.

2: Using power management technology
Many hardware vendors [vs manufacturers?] and software developers provide products to reduce computers’ energy consumption by setting the systems to hibernate mode automatically when not in use, allowing the user to turn computers on and off remotely,  etc.

3: Using virtualization technology
Virtualization technology can reduce the number of physical servers, and thus reduce the resource consumption. The virtualized infrastructure can decrease energy costs by as much as 80 percent.

4: Optimize data center design
The data centers consume huge amount of energy on keeping the optimal room temperature. A good design of the data center can help a lot. For example, better insulation, coupled cooling (placing cooling systems closer to heat sources), or using water cooling system can also help to reduce the energy needed to run the data center.

5: 4”R” concept on upgrading computer system
Apply the 4”R” concept when upgrading your computer system. In many cases,For graphics designers or engineers, they needto maintain their systems to be new and high-end. To avoid wastage, these high-performance computers can be donated to charity, schools or non-profit organizations. Or even reuse it for someone only need to work on word processing, spreadsheets, or other less intensive tasks.

6: Reduce paper consumption
Switching from a paper-based to an electronic workflow: creating, editing, viewing, and delivering documents in digital rather than printed form not only can help you save money, but also avoid unnecessary printing. Besides, some software can help user to reduce paper consumption by encouraging duplex print.

Reference: http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/10things/?p=408

Epson Hong Kong Ltd.

E-Power (Material) Technical Engineering Co

*Chows Opto Technology Limited

Green Purchasing Seminar Series - Ecolabelling
"Whart T&T +EN Solution Day"

Forbo Flooring B.V. is please to offering the following discount to Green Council’s Corporate Members and HKGPC Members from period of 1 May 2010 to 31 June 2010.

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Email: daniel.cheng@forbo.com
Website: www.forbo-flooring.com
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fax: (852)27914231 /
email: romano@chinapaint.com/
website: www.chinapaint.com.
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