As the sustainability lead of Dell Technologies in the UK, I had the privilege of participating in a panel discussion on energy efficiency and progress towards a net zero future on the main stage at DTX (Digital Transformation Expo) Manchester.
I was joined by panellists Predrag Jaksic, Sales Director – Cloud & Enterprise EMEA at Intel; Matt Craggs, co-founder and CTO of Deep Green Technologies; Paul Edmondson, VP EMEA at Green Revolution Cooling; and David Pugh, Head of Sustainability at Digital Catapult. We explored innovative solutions and collaborative efforts that can drive us closer to a sustainable and decarbonised future.
The technology opportunity
Today, the IT industry could be contributing between 2.1% and 3.9% of global greenhouse gas emissions. But with the potential to reduce our overall global carbon footprint by up to 20%, through digital transformation, the sector can help to mitigate the remaining 96%.
To truly achieve a net zero future, collaboration and partnerships are essential. “No single company can achieve this goal alone, just as no technology is ever created in a silo – it is always done between partners” said David Pugh on our panel. “The only way to reach goals is to work together in an efficient way and support each other’s strengths, to create sustainable systems of the future.”
Matt Craggs echoed this, saying that everyone has their own role to play. “By recognising our individual strengths and working in synergy, we can create a sustainable ecosystem that benefits all stakeholders. Without all of us working together, from software providers to purchasers to component manufacturers, no ideas can have real impact.”
Predrag Jaksic added: “There can be no competition, only collaboration when it comes to sustainability. All industries must work together to make the planet habitable and healthy for a long time.”
The journey to net zero
In our pursuit of a sustainable future, it is crucial to acknowledge that “perfection is the enemy of progress” and change takes time, according to Matt Craggs. “We all need to be better. Whether it’s the components in our kit, the way we’re building our energy systems, we need to accept no-one is perfect yet.”
Net zero is not an overnight transformation; it is a journey that all businesses are embarking upon. Instead of judging the pace of change, we should support and learn from one another.
At Dell Technologies, we strive to be a company that our team members are proud to work for and that our customers are inspired to work with. To this end, we have set an important net zero emissions goal across all scopes by 2050.
One of the ways we work to address our carbon footprint and help our customers reduce theirs is by focusing on reducing energy waste and inefficiency in our products. Collaboration with our customers plays a vital role in optimising their assets and data to achieve greater efficiency, aligning business, financial and climate perspectives. By leveraging data, we measure and evaluate environmental impact to drive informed decision-making.
Accelerating the circular economy
According to a report from The Ellen Macarthur Foundation in partnership with Material Economics, moving to renewables can address 55% of global GHG emissions. However, to achieve UN climate goals it is imperative to tackle the remaining 45%, connected to how we make and use products, and how we produce food and manage land.
That’s why our focus on accelerating the circular economy is so critical to addressing climate change. We embrace product innovation to drive reuse of products, components and materials for as long as possible, reducing the emissions associated with manufacturing. We capture data on what percentage of products sold are reused or recycled, as well as the percentage of recycled or renewable materials we use in our products and packaging.
Fantastic examples of innovative circular economy solutions include Deep Green’s heat reuse technology – which uses the offset energy from a data centre to heat a swimming pool – and Dell Technologies’ Concept Luna, which illustrates our future vision of how we can reduce waste and emissions, reuse materials and achieve next-level innovation in the form of a breakthrough sustainable PC design.
As Predrag said on our panel: “Concept Luna is showing that sustainability is real, not theoretical or something that just happens in a factory. It makes it tangible and inspiring.”
These examples showcase the potential of circularity in reducing environmental impact, waste and emissions. Every pound of aluminium, plastic or copper that we recover is a pound of material that does not have to be manufactured or extracted from the ground.
Data as a tool for energy efficiency
When it comes to energy, while reuse is important, we must also focus on actively reducing energy usage itself. Green Revolution Cooling’s liquid immersion technology is a prime example of an innovative solution that enhances server performance while reducing the power intake of data centres, which use 1.5-2% of the world’s electricity.
By exploring and adopting such energy-efficient solutions, we can make significant strides towards our net zero aspirations. “Data centres have a footprint and that is only growing as the amount of data we use increased,” Paul explained to our panel. “AI has huge potential to help us measure and track our carbon footprint, but that in itself requires significant data, so we need to reduce the energy consumption of that data.”
As technology and data become the foundation of our modern society, it is essential to leverage data to understand and mitigate our environmental impact. By measuring and analysing data, businesses can identify areas for improvement and take informed action. Furthermore, mandatory ESG data reporting makes it even more important to prioritise sustainability in our operations.
“The technology industry is fantastic for decarbonisation, but equally the amount of data we create doubles every two years,” said David Pugh. “So, we need to think about how we make our own industry and technology more efficient, so we are not part of the problem.”
He added: “AI is exciting if deployed responsibly. It will be crucial for decarbonisation, making systems more efficient and allow humans to focus on what we do well, and letting technology help us and enhance our roles.”
Making Progress
Advancing energy efficiency and progressing towards a net zero future requires collective effort and collaboration. By embracing the circular economy, reducing energy usage and leveraging data-driven insights, we can make significant strides in mitigating the environmental impact of the tech sector.
“The drive towards efficiency, where we can share infrastructure and do so in a way that delivers great performance is exciting,” said Matt Craggs on our panel. “We need to just start. All of the technologies, hardware and software to facilitate a more sustainable approach to IT are there. We just need to open our minds to say it’s not about developing the best products for the here and now or for our own organisations, but the best for the planet for the long-term.”
Let us not judge each other’s progress, but work together as an industry, supporting one another on this transformative journey, and deliver a greater impact for businesses, people, and the planet.
