Building sustainable data center practices

How asset lifecycle management can reduce IT’s environmental impact.

As the world faces the growing threat of global climate change, businesses across all sectors are under increasing pressure to reduce their environmental impact. IT is no exception. In fact, IT, particularly data centers, is a major contributor to carbon emissions and the direct and indirect generation of CO2 and the production of 53 million tons of electronic waste (e-waste) every year. IT leaders are in a critical position to take tangible action against climate change.

At Iron Mountain ALM, creating sustainable IT solutions that support the circular economy is part of our strategy for building a resilient future—for our company, our clients, and the global community. Amidst urgent calls for action from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, we’re here to help clients do their part to limit the generation of greenhouse gasses like CO2. In this paper, we’ll share our holistic approach to reducing the environmental impact of IT.

Full-cycle sustainability for IT leaders

Building truly sustainable IT requires us to look beyond e-waste management and implement sustainable IT practices that address the entire IT lifecycle, from design and production to end-of-life disposition. Our Asset Lifecycle Management (ALM) solutions help IT leaders maximize the value and extend the life of their IT assets while minimizing environmental impact. By leveraging our expertise in decommissioning, redeployment, remarketing, reengineering, and harvesting of components, IT leaders can divert waste from landfills, avoid greenhouse gas emissions, recover valuable metals, and save energy.

We believe the good news is that industry experts like Gartner expect rapid adoption of sustainable IT practices. By 2027, 75% of organizations will have implemented a data center infrastructure sustainability program driven by both cost optimization and stakeholder pressures, up from less than 5% in 2022*.

And Iron Mountain provides tools like our Environmental Benefits Report to help IT leaders quantify and report the positive environmental impact of their IT Asset Disposition programs.

“By 2027, 75% of organizations will have implemented a data center infrastructure sustainability program driven by both cost optimization and stakeholder pressures, up from less than 5% in 2022.”

- GARTNER, UNLOCK THE BUSINESS BENEFITS OF SUSTAINABLE IT INFRASTRUCTURE

Net-zero by 2040: Building a sustainable future

Iron Mountain is committed to working with our clients on all aspects of data center sustainability and taking key steps to reduce our environmental impact. As part of our dedication to fighting climate change, we have set ambitious goals to further our sustainability initiatives:

• Renewable energy adoption: By 2025, 90% of the energy consumed company wide will come from renewable sources
• Climate neutral data centers: We aim to achieve net-zero carbon emissions in our data center operations by 2030
• Electrifying transportation: By 2030, we plan to have all of Iron Mountain’s automobile fleets and 50% of our van fleets powered by electricity
• Company-wide climate neutrality: Our goal is to achieve company-wide net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040.

By setting these ambitious targets, Iron Mountain not only advances our own sustainability objectives but also supports the goals of our clients, fostering a collaborative approach to building a more sustainable future.

A step towards sustainable IT practices

The time to act on climate change is now. Organizations can start by assessing their environmental impact, setting sustainability goals, and implementing circular economy principles. With the help of Iron Mountain ALM’s Asset Lifecycle Management solutions, IT leaders can make informed decisions that reduce the carbon footprint of IT assets and contribute to a sustainable future. Gartner states that “More than 85% of business leaders agreed that sustainability is an investment that protects the organization from disruption.”

By prioritizing sustainable IT practices and taking advantage of data center sustainability measures, businesses can ensure resilience and long-term success.

“More than 85% of business leaders agreed that sustainability is an investment that protects the organization from disruption.”

- Gartner, Market guide for IT asset disposition

Learn how we can support your business needs with our Data Center Decommissioning services.

Gartner, Unlock the Business Benefits of Sustainable IT Infrastructure; Published 16 March 2023 - ID G00774182. Gartner, Market Guide for IT Asset Disposition; Rob Schafer, Christopher Dixon; January 23, 2023 Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product, or service depicted in its research publications and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner’s research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. Gartner Logo: GARTNER is a registered trademark and service mark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally and is used herein with permission. All rights reserved.