High-Tech Means High-Efficiency: The Business Case for EnergyManagement in High-Tech Industries Page: 3 of 20
This report is part of the collection entitled: Office of Scientific & Technical Information Technical Reports and was provided to UNT Digital Library by the UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
Introduction
In the race to apply new technologies in "high-tech" facilities such as data centers,
laboratories, and cleanrooms, much emphasis has been placed on improving service,
building capacity, and increasing speed. These facilities are socially and economically
important, as part of the critical infrastructure for pharmaceuticals, electronics,
communications, and many other sectors. With a singular focus on throughput, some
important design issues can be overlooked, such as the energy efficiency of individual
equipment (e.g., lasers, routers and switches) as well as the integration of high-tech
equipment into the power distribution system and the building envelope. Among
technology-based businesses, improving energy efficiency presents an often-untapped
opportunity to increase profits, enhance process control, maximize asset value, improve
the workplace environment, and manage a variety of business risks. Oddly enough, the
adoption of energy efficiency improvements in this sector lags behind many others. As a
result, billions of dollars are left on the table with each year of operation. Efficiency
improvements thus translate not only into operating cost savings, but into improved
product and service quality, competitive advantage and even earnings per share.
Energy inefficiency reflects organizational inefficiency. In the case of the high-tech
sector, facility engineers are in the trenches identifying opportunities to improve energy
productivity. These opportunities range from improving minor components to optimizing
entire systems. However, a virtual cultural divide between these engineers and corporate
decision makers can result in promising projects dying on the vine.
Staying on the cutting edge in one's core business requires maximizing energy
productivity. Because industries that have high-tech facilities require particularly energy-
intensive buildings that run 24/7, energy-efficient design and operation provides
significant leverage to reduce overall operating costs. At the extreme, cleanrooms and
high-density data centers can use up to 100-times as much energy per square foot as a
typical office building (Figure 1), spending more than $1 million per month on energy.'
Recent case studies for new construction show that some owners have saved a quarter or
more of the facility's energy costs through efficient design strategies without increasing
the project capital costs. Integrating energy efficiency throughout the design process has
also yielded significant first cost savings for many projects. Also, capital and operating
cost impacts must be considered in tandem in order to realize maximum value from
facility improvements. In one of many real-world examples, thanks to improved heating,
air-conditioning, and ventilation efficiency upgrades a major data center expanded
computing power by 25% while keeping total facility energy use unchanged.2,3
1 Naughton, P. 2001. "Energy Savings Turn into Cash-Flow Savings", Semiconductor Fab Tech
(December)
2 Blazek, M., H. Chong, W. Loh, and J.G. Koomey. 2004. "Data Centers Revisited: Assessment of the
Energy Impact of Retrofits and Technology Trends in a High-Density Computing Facility," Journal of
Infrastructure Systems, 10(3):98.
3 The energy-efficiency measures included better optimization of power distribution units, power
management modules, computer room air-conditioning units, alterations to operating conditions, facility-
wide reductions in lighting, and improved facility controls. Additional savings can be achieved by
improving efficiencies within the IT equipment network.
1
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This report can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Report.
Shanshoian, Gary; Blazek, Michele; Naughton, Phil; Seese, RobertS.; Mills, Evan & Tschudi, William. High-Tech Means High-Efficiency: The Business Case for EnergyManagement in High-Tech Industries, report, November 15, 2005; Berkeley, California. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc792630/m1/3/: accessed April 19, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.