Energy Savings

The Government’s sustainable development strategy emphasises the importance of measures that enable and encourage behavioural change within organisations and highlights ways in which the Government can lead by example
This was reiterated as a priority by John Healey MP, Financial Secretary to the Treasury, in his recent speech announcing the changes underway at the Office of Government Commerce (OGC)
NightWatchman is a simple and effective method for the public sector to cut energy bills, increase efficiency of IT systems and reduce their carbon footprint
It is estimated that by using NightWatchman across the estimated two million government PCs, government departments would save 140,000 tonnes of CO2 annually
On average, the initial investment in NightWatchman is recouped through savings in energy bills within three to six months
The OGC has been seeking to measure energy usage within government departments through the Property Benchmarking Scheme. NightWatchman can help achieve this by providing instantly accessible information about the energy usage of PCs across an entire departmental network
The Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Education and Skills have both already recognised the value of NightWatchman in achieving their environmental and efficiency goals, as have a number of local authorities, police forces and NHS Trusts
This is a real area where Government can lead by example with minimal up-front investment

• If the UK is to meet its Kyoto targets of reducing emissions by 12.5% by 2012, business has a key role to play in changing attitudes and behaviour
• Already some major companies, such as HSBC are using NightWatchman to cut their carbon footprint and their energy bills
• However, it is clear that a step-change in behaviour within organisations in required. National Energy Foundation (NEF) research found that 87.7% of employees have never been asked to shut down their PC at night by their employers
• Worker apathy and lack of awareness obviously need to be addressed, but using NightWatchman is a simple way for organisations to be confident that they are taking significant action to operate in an environmentally sustainable way, which has a tangible and immediate impact
• According to the Government’s Market Transformation Programme, office energy consumption is expected to grow by 40% between 2006 and 2020. This means that taking all possible steps to reduce unnecessary energy wastage in offices is crucial if national and international CO2 reduction targets are to be met

By automatically shutting down networked PC’s using NightWatchman, significant energy savings can be made. The annual drop in CO2 emissions if all UK businesses shut down their PCs when not in use would contribute:

• 10% of the Government’s Climate Change Levy target
• 10% of the carbon savings anticipated from voluntary reductions in the first stage of the EU Emissions Trading Schemes
• 40% of the energy efficiency targets set by the Carbon Trust