Hampshire County Council's innovative environmentally-friendly approach to IT has won praise at an international conference showcasing ways businesses can cut carbon emissions.
Improvements made through the refurbishment work at the council's Winchester headquarters, reductions in staff travel and using longer-life equipment have already saved taxpayers £1m.
The overhaul of Ashburton Court will make it one of the country's leading low-carbon offices. It is being used as a case study by the Carbon Trust.
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The building's energy consumption will be halved through the use of highly-insulated materials, natural ventilation, the recycling of waste heat and the installation of efficient plant, heating and lighting systems.
While simple steps like encouraging staff to turn off computers and cutting down on printing have saved £100,000 from the council's electricity bill, the introduction of new technology has also played a key role.
Using a central server for processing instead of individual PCs has saved 792,000 kWh a year - enough to power 180 homes for 12 months.
The improvements have been so successful that the council's head of IT, Jos Creese, was invited to speak at this months' Green IT 08 event in London.
The conference and exhibition shows businesses how to deliver the best green technologies and solutions for IT and attracts key figures from across the world.
Said Jos: "Green IT is beginning to dominate the business agenda partly because it accounts for two per cent of total global emissions - the same as the airline industry."
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