Reducing energy consumption cost-effectively without impacting mission-criticality

Hemel Hempstead, 23rd July 2009 - The EU Code of Conduct on Data Centres aims to stimulate data centre operators and owners to reduce energy consumption in a cost-effective manner without harming the mission-critical function of the data centre.  3Com today announced that it is becoming an Endorser of the EU Code of Conduct on Data Centre, which commits 3Com to supporting the code and other participants through the development of products, information, services and education.

Electricity consumption in data centres, including enterprise servers, ICT equipment, cooling equipment and power equipment, is expected to contribute significantly to the electricity consumption of the EU commercial sector in the near future.  Western European electricity consumption is expected to grow from 56 terawatt hours per year (TWh/yr) in 2007 to 104 TWh/yr by 2020. 

Mike Ansley, EMEA VP, 3Com, says, “It is important for 3Com to endorse an initiative like this. We are developing solutions that exactly meet the changing needs of our customers in terms of energy-efficient networking. There is a need for more information across the industry on how vendors can help their customers reduce their network’s energy consumption.”

The decision to endorse the EU code aligns with 3Com’s new enterprise H3C networking strategy. This is founded on a mandate to deliver unmatched price/performance and a new approach to customer relationships.  Three tenets drive this strategy:

1.   Design solutions that lower TCO:  The H3C portfolio of solutions has been designed and built over the last four years, incorporating the latest in merchant silicon and energy efficiency, as well as a common management platform;

2.   Architect future-proof products:  The H3C solutions are based on open standards and leverage common hardware and software systems to help solve today’s problems while allowing the flexibility to adapt to future technology enhancements; and

3.   Deliver a new level of customer intimacy: 3Com has made responsiveness and flexibility a priority, underscored by the stability of a $1.3 billion, profitable, global organization. Elite partners authorized to sell H3C products will also help elevate the level of customer service and support.

In support of this strategy, 3Com recently expanded the H3C portfolio of edge-to-data centre solutions with two new switching platforms, the H3C S12500 for end-of-rack in data centres and the first-of-its-kind flex-chassis switching platform, the H3C S5800 for wiring closets, smaller network cores and top-of-rack in data centres.  All of  3Com’s H3C portfolio of products  are manageable by the new H3C Intelligent Management Center (IMC)—a single-pane management platform that allows for the effective integration of traditionally separate management tools, providing complete management of resources, services and users.

3Com is committed to helping organisations deploy open, affordable, high performance sustainable end-to-end networks. Networking is critical to reducing energy consumption, and a holistic approach to sustainability, led by IT, can result in significant improvements in cost savings and energy efficiency.  In-Stat has rated 3Com’s 24 and 48-port LAN switches the most energy-efficient in the industry.  3Com leads the drive for increased energy efficiency for the future. For example 3Com Consultant Engineer David Law is Chairman of the IEEE P802.3 Ethernet Working Group, which is currently defining a mechanism to reduce power consumption during periods of low link utilization and a protocol to coordinate transitions to or from a lower level of power consumption.