Tech chiefs put cost before green concerns

UK companies are failing to choose eco-friendly IT and are more concerned with getting cheap and secure technology, research reveals.

More than 60 per cent of companies continue to regard cost as the key factor in IT purchasing decisions and 35 per cent view security as the primary concern, according to the survey of 100 UK IT managers.

Environmental concerns ranked third, with just three per cent of respondents citing this as a priority, research from Windows management software company 1E reveals.

It also found that more than two-thirds of companies surveyed have no formal policy for shutting down company computers during the evening and weekends.

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Sumir Karayi, CEO of 1E, said given the ever-increasing focus on corporate carbon footprints, the findings indicate the need to raise awareness of IT power consumption issues.

But the UK is slowly cottoning on to green IT options with 63 per cent of companies surveyed planning to review the power consumption of their technology infrastructure.

Employees who leave their PCs on overnight are costing their companies £70 per year, according to research from the National Energy Foundation.