Asian data centers mind energy use

Energy efficiency is a key issue in Asian data centers, according to the findings of a new global study commissioned by Symantec.

Released last week, results of the survey titled Green Data Center found that 66 percent of respondents in the Asia-Pacific and Japan (APJ) region, indicated a critical or high priority on increasing the energy efficiency of their data center. The survey polled 800 data center managers in Global 2000 organizations across 14 countries worldwide.

This is higher than the global average of 57 percent, said the report which is part of Symantec's 2007 State of the Data Center study conducted in September this year.

According to Symantec, space, power and cooling issues are key considerations driving the adoption of green data centers in the region. Infrastructure, for instance, is an important factor to reduce power consumption.

The survey also revealed that 28 percent of APJ respondents perceived virtualization/consolidation as the No. 1 technology for the reduction of power consumption in the data center, while energy-efficient CPUs (central processing units) came in second place.

"The report findings indicate that cost savings and constant business pressure to maintain performance and meet increasingly aggressive service level agreements are the main reasons for implementing many green strategies," Darric Hor, general manager of Symantec Singapore, said in a statement.

He added that for data center managers around the world, it is less of environmental concerns and more about meeting business goals and reducing costs.

The study found that organizations in the region are warming up to green IT. For instance, almost 60 percent of respondents polled said they have adopted or announced a general green policy, not just for their data center, but for the organization as a whole.

In addition, 76 percent have started to consider implementing a green strategy for their data centers, while 16 percent of respondents said they have started to deploy green data centers. Meanwhile, 13 percent of respondents said they are in the midst of implementation, and 3 percent have completed their deployment of green data centers.

The Symantec study defines a green data center is a data center that has "increased efficiencies in energy usage, power consumption, space utilization and reduction of polluting energy sources".