SAP hones sustainability push; Unveils new app (and acronym)

SAP on Monday unveiled a multi-front sustainability push including the launch of an EHS--or environment, health and safety--management application.

The company unveiled its plans at CeBit (statement). Among the moving parts:

• SAP has teamed with TechniData AG to offer line of EHS applications dubbed SAP Environment, Health and Safety Management. The goal of the EHS application is to make sure corporate sustainability policies are met and ensure a company is meeting its regulatory targets. In other words, SAP is trying to align business processes with the enterprise's green IT talk. 
• SAP said it plans to cut its greenhouse gas emissions 51 percent from its 2007 levels by 2020. If successful, SAP will cut its CO2 levels to year 2000 levels.  
• And SAP announced that Peter Graf, will be the company's first chief sustainability officer. Graf will report to SAP Executive Board member Jim Hagermann Snabe. 

In a blog post, Graf said:

Sustainability is about much more than environmental concerns or “being green”. It’s the ability to holistically manage economic, social and environmental risks and opportunities for increased profitability.

I'll be curious to see how this line of software sells amid weak IT spending.

Also see James Farrar: Green is still Gold (But Beware of the Politics of Gesture)