What does it mean to have an ENERGY STAR® rated business desktop?
Did you know that PCs make up for 40% of a company's average utility bill? Since PCs consume so much power, the EPA has set up guidelines that are updated from time to time in order to drive innovation around improving energy efficiency. The EPA's requirements for business PCs center around three distinct operating modes: standby, active and sleep modes. When a PC is configured to meet these requirements, it translates to higher energy savings through lower power consumption which means you pay less on your energy bill.
Why is the EPA changing the ENERGY STAR specification again?
The Environmental Protection Agency continually assesses the ENERGY STAR guidelines and tries to drive greater power efficiencies as hardware becomes more efficient. Their goal is to have no more than 25% of PC desktop shipments qualify for ENERGY STAR. The current ENERGY STAR 4.0 specification was released in July 2007. In their continued focus, they are preparing to introduce a new version 5.0, which takes effect on July 1, 2009.
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to find the latest information.
July 1, 2009, the new specification takes effect
Effective July 1, 2009 all business desktops will have to meet ENERGY STAR 5.0 specifications in order to receive the ENERGY STAR logo. What is important to keep in mind is that there is no grandfathering. This means that as of the July 1st date, there is no ENERGY STAR 4.0 and any new systems with the ENERGY STAR logo need to meet the 5.0 requirements.
From ENERGY STAR 4.0 to ENERGY STAR 5.0
While there are many changes in what will actually determine if a business desktop meets ENERGY STAR 5.0, below are the high level differences between ENERGY STAR 4.0 and ENERGY STAR 5.0:
ENERGY STAR 4.0
ENERGY STAR 5.0
1.
Power Supplies
80% efficient power supply
85% efficient power supply
2.
Sleep states enabled
15 minutes monitor
30 minutes for PC
15 minutes monitor
30 minutes for PC
3.
Idle wattage categories:
Determines max wattage based on configuration
Categories A, B, C
Categories A, B, C, D
HP Business Desktop PCs that qualify for ENERGY STAR 5.0
ENERGY STAR 5.0 is now available on select Advanced business desktops and Elite business desktops. You can get a head start on compliance, and savings. Find out more about HP Business Desktop PCs that are ENERGY STAR 5.0 qualified:
To see potential dollar savings from energy efficient products, please refer to the Energy Calculator. This will provide a great conversation tool for your organization to see what kind of savings can be gained from energy efficient hardware and software solutions.
Additional benefits attained by purchasing an ENERGY STAR 5.0 qualified business desktop
The lower idle specification plus the 85% efficient power supply together provide big benefits to your business beyond simple compliance:
•
Increased power supply reliability due to greater efficiency
•
Decreased system maintenance due to increased reliability
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Lower total cost of ownership due to reduced maintenance and longer equipment life
•
Improved worker environment with less noise from the PC
•
Potential reduction in cooling bill due to less heat being generated by PCs
Reducing energy consumption translates to bottom line savings for your organization. Get ready now for the upcoming changes by requiring ENERGY STAR version 5.0 and make the transition easy for you and start saving today.
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