Green technologies just a short time ago had a reputation for being costly, rather than cost-saving. However, business owners are starting to see a multitude of benefits for going green, from cost savings to increased customer appreciation for environmental conservation.

Businesses of all sizes are discovering the vast amount of approaches they can take to going green. While there are simple efficiency-saving methods such as changing to LED bulbs, there are countless other ways your business can make a difference. One major method is leveraging the cloud.

Cloud Computing

Cloud computing allows businesses to access data from wherever, whenever. New servers can be created without the need for bulky hardware. This eliminates necessary real estate and power costs. Server rooms require an enormous amount of electricity to operate, not only to run but to maintain. Server rooms are required to be climate controlled. Overcoming the heat output of hardware is not an efficient task.

While it might seem like this is a “there is no such thing as a free lunch” scenario. This has to cost someone, somewhere. Surely the reduced carbon footprint is negated by the host of your cloud, but that is not the case.

While it is true that the cloud is itself a server, and does need to be hosted somewhere, it is far more efficient to host numerous virtual servers in one efficient data center, rather than businesses hosting their own. Cloud providers have efficiency down to a science, even to the point that they take advantage of naturally cool, low humidity environments. After all, their biggest long-term expense depends on the efficiency of their infrastructure.

Remote Workforce

In the U.S., the average one-way commute is over 26 minutes. Multiply this drive by two (after all your employees need to go home). During a five-day work week, your employees on average are spending nearly five hours per week commuting. Remote work options are one of the most carbon-reducing options your business can take to not only reduce emissions, but also reduce the required real estate, thus reducing cost.

Remote workers are still capable of communicating with clients despite being off-premise. There are numerous different meeting software options. The same options are available to employees who need to ask a colleague a question. Instant messaging and online meetings have revolutionized the way we do business. Along with convenience, comes the satisfaction knowing your business is making a difference cutting the carbon footprint.

Reduce Printing

Ask yourself, do you sometimes print out a document that you could just read on your desktop or smartphone? Reducing the amount of printing will save your business money, space, and resources.

You might think that some industries can’t get away from all the excess paper. You need to sign contracts, store records, and file everything away in big bulky file cabinets, right?

Actually, modern day document management systems will let you handle all of that and more with digital files. You can convert contracts to digital files and let clients sign them on a touch device, and then you can backup these documents and pull them up with a quick search.

At Argentum IT, we have implemented, and encourage our clients to use, green technologies. If you would like to find out how your business can introduce efficient, cost saving technology, call us at (502) 473-6407.