The Nedbank group, the first carbon-neutral bank in Africa, has now rolled out a power management system that is set to save the group between R2,2-million and R3,5-million per year.
Once fully implemented, it will also realise a carbon saving equivalent to taking 1 800 cars off the road each year.
The three-month roll-out will be completed this month (July 2013) and will dramatically reduce the power consumption of the 30 000 PCs and laptops used by Nedbank staff members nationally.
Colin Wheater, divisional executive of Group Technology’s Infrastructure & Operations Division, says: “The power management system is simple by design and encourages all 29 000 staff members to take charge of their PC or laptop’s power usage.
“As a result, when not in use, computers will be in a state of standby or low power, as opposed to the previous ‘idle’ or ‘screensaver’ mode, which, despite the name, still uses approximately 30% of electricity.”
The system is easy to manage and will dramatically reduce the current consumption rate of approximately 8-million kilowatts a year. Staff members are prompted by a pop-up on their screens to select the power management profile that best suits their needs. Staff can also track their own power consumption.
Wheater adds: “We are anticipating an average power saving of 12kWh per laptop device per year, which equates to 11,8kg of CO2 emissions per laptop, and 131kWh per desktop per year, equating to 129,69kg CO2 emissions per desktop. It’s a massive saving for the bank and is also in line with empowering staff to embark on their own journey towards climate change.”