In a recent interview, Colt Data Centre Service director of energy and sustainability Scott Balloch said that “sustainability is central to how Colt DCS operates as a whole, with environmental priorities integrated into all parts of operations”. Balloch explained that Colt CDS aimed to hit net-zero across their facilities by 2040, in line with the Paris Agreement goal to realise a net-zero economy by 2050.
To achieve the goal, Colt DCS said it would operate its facilities using renewable power by as much as 75% by 2023. In addition, 75% of leased vehicles used by the company will be electric by 2030, when the company will have made a “complete transition” from natural gas to renewable fuels.
Balloch insisted that “it’s crucial that businesses examine the sustainability of the entire operation chain”. He further explained that data centres should be designed with “environmental concerns in mind” and that sustainability should be an integral part of data centre facilities.
The COVID-19 pandemic has moved daily interactions to the internet. This also prompted many to shift to remote work and learning. The phenomenon resulted in a drastic increase in global energy consumption as the mass transition to the digital world means data centres need to work harder. Balloch explained that in 2021, data centres globally consumed at least 5% of global electricity.
Therefore, Balloch said, both consumers and businesses now must be enabled to make the decision to cut their own emissions by choosing the right data centre provider. “For example, Colt DCS is choosing to invest in renewable power for the running of buildings and leased vehicles and is committed to a policy of Zero Waste to Landfill,” he continued.
This is supported by the result of the Digital Ecosystem Panel at Procurement & Supply Chain LIVE, where Andy Chivers, Head of Procurement at Walgreens Boots Alliance, Martin McKie, Principal Advisor of Supply Chain at AWS, and Soroosh Saghiri, Programme Director at Cranfield School of Management, discussed some of the important factors of adopting digital technologies.
The panel eventually agreed that digital ecosystems can provide an agile approach to planning, helping businesses to manage risk and become more resilient.
