Adams: Obviously, measurement is critical. Citi tracks energy consumption in all of its 14,500 facilities. And we benchmark energy efficiency (by watts per square foot, watts per seat, watts per FTE) against both internal and external data, including Energy Star. We are looking for ways to measure efficiency of energy per some significant IT measure. Our data centers account for 11 percent of our overall electrical usage.

We are also looking at the relative loads on servers; putting programs in place to make sure that servers are optimally loaded and testing software that reduces energy consumption in idle PCs. While there are some technical hurdles to overcome, we are optimistic we will see a reduction of up to 80 percent when compared to current idle mode consumption.

Meanwhile, we are optimizing the power densities (measured as watts per square foot) in our data centers by consolidating into new centers that are more efficient and we are using LEED (The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design green building rating system) as our reference model, with commitment to LEED certification for all new centers plus retrofitting some.

CIO: You mentioned LEED and EPA benchmarks. Tell us how they help you. Do you need better benchmarks?

Kepler: Energy STAR and LEED bring attention to the opportunity and provide some “How-tos.”

Koomey: But I’m not convinced that LEED as it now stands is particularly useful in the data center space. The metrics that are required are so different from those in typical commercial buildings that a LEED rating doesn’t convey much useful information for a data center.

The metrics I’ve been working on with the EPA—one for volume servers and one for infrastructure—will allow comparisons between products and between facilities, and will support goal setting and continuous improvement. Right now server purchasers and facility operators don’t have an objective way to compare servers from different manufacturers in a consistent way, or to compare a new facility’s efficiency to an existing one. Having real, consistent, and widely reported metrics will allow market forces to promote efficiency in a way that is not now possible.

Klustner: It’s almost as if we need to invent a LEED program specifically for data centers. I’m thinking a consortium along the lines of Green Grid that incorporates representatives from IT data centers (corporate CIOs, for example), cooling/thermal engineers and hardware vendors coming together to develop LEED-like standards for data centers.

I have yet to see a specific requirement from our IT customers that their vendors be green, but you can see it coming. I know PC manufacturers that we speak with are diligently designing green PCs that include more recyclable materials, more efficient power supplies and power management capabilities in anticipation of just this sort of IT green filtering.