Archive → September, 2011

Glance the Green spectrum

25 September, 05:38, by Tags: , ,

Glance the Green spectrum

                                                        K.Anil Kumar, K.Kiran Kumar

In the last two years, green has become the most used term across industries. It’s no longer a hype, rather it’s real and happening. Today, green is not just about saving the environment, it is about significant cost savings as well. Energy-efficient products something that has caught tremendous momentum over the years have bought in substantial cost-savings in terms of power consumption and performance. So every organization with a focus on cost-savings has put in place a green strategy (our CIO survey seconds this opinion!). As we look at the year ahead, there are some key trends that will give more shape and form to green and make the grass look even greener. Of course, there will be a lot of green grazers upon it too.

 

Keywords: Green IT, Green IT Myths, smart 2020,green strategies

Here are some examples of other green fallacies we often hear while out working with businesses:

Why it’s so important to switch off your equipment at night, here are a few stats to ponder. On average an office wastes £6,000 each year by leaving equipment on during weekends and bank holidays. A computer left on overnight uses 1 kWh of electricity; if 1,000 people turned off their computers when they went home, they would save 180 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions every year. Just one tonne of carbon dioxide fills six double decker buses!

You’d think with ‘saver’ in its name that would be the case, but no, screensavers can actually use more energy than just leaving the screen on! This is especially true for older style CRT monitors, which use a lot more energy than the newer flat screen monitors.

Also, while the screen is on, it gives off heat, which is wasted energy. In an office with air conditioning, the more monitors that are left on, the more heat that is given off and the harder the air conditioning has to work to keep the temperature cool.

It’s actually more energy efficient to turn off the monitor. And, while we are dispelling myths, switching a screen off doesn’t damage its life.

A ceramic mug still wins out, even after taking into account the manufacture of the mug and washing it up after every use. We often encourage employees to bring a mug to work to keep on their desks or ask their canteen to offer mugs instead of disposable cups. Some businesses even offer a discounted price on drinks if you bring you own receptacle.

Using recycled paper is the best choice. Recycling to make paper uses half the energy required to make paper from virgin tree pulp. If we continue to grow trees for paper, rather than using recycled paper, we will have to find something else to do with all the used paper. Recycling would not be an option as no one would buy it, and incineration or landfill would release the carbon into the atmosphere.

If you are leaving the room for more than a minute and a half it is better to switch the lights off and then switch them back on again, even though in the start up phase they use more energy than when they are running.

There is a common view that man-made emissions are too small in the grand scheme of things to cause climate change. It is true that in the annual carbon cycle only a small amount of emissions are caused by humans. But it is also the case that the other emissions are in natural balance, and it is our contribution which is the mess that the seas and the land can’t mop up.

Someone who feels this way can often be resistant to making practical changes in behaviour, such as switching off computer monitors and limiting their paper use. Their reasoning is, it is too small an action to make a difference, so why bother?

Our response is to practically show how individuals can truly make a difference by demonstrating the scalability of everything. Paper is a powerful example. In a workplace of about 1,000 people, if everyone used two sheets less per day it would save a tree every week. And that’s enough to make a difference.

The Global demand to become environmentally sustainable has intensified over the past few years. Increased Economic pressures, Energy costs, Customer awareness, and Regulations have pushed companies to reassess their (Green) Policies. But how does a company “Go Green” while keeping the Bottom-line thick Black? The right set of strategies can turn the green Challenge into a competitive advantage for the company.

Companies everywhere are feeling the pressure to “Go Green” and include the environmental sustainability into their business strategies. This imperative is reflected in consumers demanding more environment friendly products, environmental groups pushing for waste reduction, and legislators enacting/citing increasingly complex regulations. Even the investment banks and VC funds are taking into account potential charges for CO2 emissions when deciding whether to extend financial help to the companies that have large carbon footprints or the “Polluters”.

In the current market situation most firms would hardly argue against the need to take a greener approach.  A big chunk of the companies in the world are making the Environmental sustainability as the part of their Global Strategy and some of them going green to fulfill customers’ requirements or increase customer confidence.
But it’s one thing to embrace green and another thing entirely to practice it while growing revenues and profit margins. The right path forward is inherent in the company’s business strategy- How a company leverages the various facets of its operations for competitive advantage. In order for a Green Business Strategy to be effective; it’s essential to incorporate sustainable practices into both product lifecycle and Project and Process management.

In the past most of the companies used cradle to grave approach in product life cycle management, the company was not responsible after the product was sold but now the Green trend is cradle to cradle that is reuse and recycle the product. The idea behind this approach is simple the companies start at the conception of the product. They design, manufacture and deliver the product in the most energy efficient way and also device the ways and means to reuse or recycle these.  Most applaud-able and recent example is Nokia, they have incentivised the customers to return the used mobile device back to company through its dealers to get the discount on the new device and to connect the ends Nokia designed a mobile device with recycled materials. These and energy efficient approaches like Green Infrastructure, buildings and Data centers are the inward looking approaches.

And there is no one who can doubt about the inward looking approaches, but the other part of looking outward is as important if not more. Looking outward is an approach to allow the customers save the energy and become Green by offering the energy efficient solutions. IT industry can play a very important role here. IT can help all other industries to measure, control and maintain the efficiently run (Green) business. This asks for a lot of research and domain expertise in the particular area; whether it is in designing of buildings or products, manufacturing or disposing or efficiently managing the flow of energy. IT companies can come out with solutions that will help their customers measure the carbon footprint of their assets, control and maintain the low carbon emissions.

In India and world over IT industry is thought to the one of the big polluters both directly and indirectly. While In US ICT equipments are responsible for more than 40% of the total energy consumption; in India IT industry accounts for indirectly polluting the country, as they account for more than 40% of travel. This analysis brings us to the set of solutions required in such different situations. While to address the situation like the one in US and most of the developed countries, there is a need to develop more energy efficient infrastructure and products; for the other type of situation like India and most developing nations it is important to have smart IT solutions.

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These Smart solutions will range from smart logistics, smart infra to smart meetings. As the Smart 2020 report of the Climate group mentions the opportunities for the developing nations/economies like India the lie in IT solutions. While India can address her own problem of rising carbon footprint by developing and employing Smart IT solutions, India can also emerge as a leading provider of Green solutions to the world. May be this is an Indian answer to the recessionary world economy. Few of the Indian IT companies like WIPRO and Infosys has taken a lead in “Green IT Consulting”; this is the larvae of the beautiful butterflies, which is capable of bringing in the required surge in the IT industry.   

Environmentally conscious companies view themselves as part of the greater community. They view stakeholders- Institutional Investors, environment groups, and NGOs, not as adversaries, but as partners critical for fulfilling Green Goals. Green companies also make a point of staying attuned to what future Business requirements and regulatory compliance issues are likely to be.

The greenest companies also know what green strategies other players in their value network are planning to employ. They aim to become an instrument of change and a role model in their industry. Regardless of whether a company is a small business or a fortune 500 giant, there are a number of ways to grow greener while improving revenues and profits. It’s clear that the greenest companies yield an important source of competitive advantage and given the growing number of consumers who are putting their money, where there is environmental conscience; it is not long before Green becomes critical to staying in the game.

There is a need for all round involvement by the agencies like NASSCOM, TERI, CII besides government and focus on all the important facets of the Green print of Success i.e. look inward and become Green, Look outward and make everyone else Green and imbibe the Green culture in the society.

NASSCOM’s Green IT initiative takes care of involving all the stake holders and move around the following three vectors:

Make IT industry Green
Make Green happen through IT
Make Green warriors

• Develop protocols to enable smart systems to interact

• Make energy and carbon missions visible

• Link monitoring to accountability and organisational decision making

• Optimise for energy efficiency and find alternatives to high carbon growth

• Implement low carbon infrastructure solutions across all sectors at scale.

 

 

Ensure that the standards organisations working in the ICT industry bring climate change

considerations into their existing work. Energy consumption should be an important component of all ICT technical standards. Ensure standardisation of measurement methods across the whole life of products and services to understand emissions from raw material extraction, through manufacturing, in use and from final disposal.

Use ICT technologies to monitor energy consumption of ICT products and networks and

feed the information back into technology optimisation. Ensure that the monitoring is

consistent throughout companies. Monitoring devices and tools for power management should be required as standard. Remote monitoring and control of systems should be applied wherever appropriate.

 

Make energy and emissions transparent all along the supply chain by reporting and labelling. Use this information to optimise products and services in each innovation cycle. Incorporate the cost of carbon into current decision making processes to future proof the cost of manufacturing and operating new products and services, in preparation for having an enforced cost of carbon in the future.

 

The sector needs to continue to rethink and research radical innovation across high emission devices and services. The information above will enable the sector to optimise its own operations and product development for energy reductions.

 

Systematically follow best practice for rollout of new products. Transform the ICT sector to an exemplar of low carbon technology. Source low carbon power wherever possible and in particular support the use of renewable energy. ICT companies can also use their own products to demonstrate where dematerialization is possible. As the internet becomes more integrated within developed and emerging economies, substitution of activities such as transport will become easier.

 

The year ahead also promises greater focus from CIOs in making sure that their IT is more green complaint. According to experts, CIOs in 2010 will focus on creating green solutions and concepts for IT systems. For instance, in the realm of PC management alone companies can save a good deal of electricity by activating the sleep settings on idle monitors and in PCs. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that this action can save up to per computer in annual power costs. From one management console, IT staff can use commercial software to control the power management features in networked computers. Emphasis will be placed on replacing power-hungry cathode ray tube (CRT) monitors with more efficient LED monitors.

Yet another key trend is telecommuting, which is expected to become more practical in 2010, with more affordable remote collaboration solutions with workflow as well as videoconferencing capabilities. Organizations in the coming year are expected to encourage secure telecommuting by implementing VPN based solutions. This will facilitate companies to perform training, sales presentations, project collaboration, and other group activities by using videoconferencing, which obviously reduces travel time and expenses as well as greenhouse gas emissions. Experts say that by presenting a sales pitch with a customer as an online conference, one executive not flying from New York to London can save 2,690 pounds of carbon dioxide from jet fuel, according to one estimate.

IT procurement will also go eco-friendly as green actually starts at the time of purchases. CIOs would increasingly choose Electronic Products Environmental Assessment (EPEAT) registered products. In 2010, multi-functionality would also become dominant, as a result companies would purchase IT products that perform several functions instead of one. They are easier to manage costs less, and use less power than multiple single-purpose devices.

As we look at the above trends which experts believe will find mainstream adoption, they appear to be just a few among the many innovative concepts that keep emerging. Be it in terms of softwares that man your power consumption or innovative air conditioning solutions; green is something that is fast becoming a much seen reality in terms of technologies available. What many foresee will happen in the year ahead is the emergence of a green ecosystem which is more usable, practical and far easier to deploy. Moreover, with green passing the hype curve, it is now a default part of electronics and not a feature with an added cost. In many ways 2010 is expected to act as a spring board to many green technologies that will pave the way in creating a more sustainable planet.

The lifetime energy cost of a new server is about to overtake the cost of the hardware itself. Whether it’s Equipment Recycling, Server Consolidation or Advanced Data Center Cooling Options, most companies are now engaging in some sort of green practices.

 

A survey conducted by BT- AC Nielsen ORG-MARG, ranked Oil and Natural Gas Company (ONGC) the greenest company followed by Reliance Industries. Overall, the oil and petroleum sector was considered the greenest sector in India. BPCL, Castrol India and HPCL are other companies in this sector that were rated green companies in the survey. The private sector companies were in a majority (13 out of 20) in the list of Top 20 greenest companies in India.

 

India’s software companies are also considered green companies. IT companies are allowed to set up their offices within the city limits. This is because they do not harm the environment. Johnson and Johnson Ltd., Chillibreeze, IBM, LG Electronics, PNB, Tata Motors and Hero Honda Motors are some of the other green companies in India.

Green IT is not simply about being “environmentally friendly”, it is about creating sustainable IT infrastructure and reducing IT costs through smarter investment and careful management. The business benefits of Green IT extend beyond good citizenship to saving real dollars. Use the Green IT Research listed below to help you achieve green goals, such as:

Reduce Data Center Cooling Requirements
Reduce IT-driven Energy Consumption
Select Environmentally Friendly Equipment with Lower Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)
Discover Energy Efficiency Metrics for IT
Develop a Green IT Action Plan

1)      The Future is Green-DataQuest-Shrikanth, G-Friday, March 26, 2010

2)      The climate convention  meeting in Copenhagen in 2009-smart 2020 Report

3)      Green IT initiatives- catalyzing sustainable environment-NASSACOM article-8th April, 2010.

4)      Smart & Young is the Way to Care for our Climate-Tuesday, June 22, 2010-DataQuest

5)      Green IT for Dummies-By David Tebbutt,Martin Atherton, and Tony Lock-Wiley Edition

6)       Various blogs on Green IT

* Faculty,informatics, Alluri Institute of Management Sciences,Hunter Road Hanamkonda-506001.A.P

Warangal,A.P.,India

Source: ArticlesBase.com

Store Garden Produce #6-Storing & Freezing Green Beans Types

20 September, 05:38, by Tags: , , , , , , ,

Store Garden Produce #6-Storing & Freezing Green Beans Types

As the cooler months take hold, you might have an abundance of green beans left over from your summer crops. Did you know that “Green Beans” actually derived its name from the young pods of the bean plants that are picked before the pods ripen or dry? Only then are they tender enough to be called “Green Beans” meaning “green” for the unripe fruit of the bean; many in fact are not green in color at all. The pod colors of “green beans” can be green, golden, purple, red, or streaked. Many people associate “green beans” to the recipes for green bean casserole or 3 beans salads. But Green Beans have many more attributes… This article is not inclusive and should be shared with Parts 1-10 of this series. Part 7 of this series will provide tips and techniques on Storing Cherries & Freezing Apples as well as preserving other orchard fruits. (See Link Below)

List of Legumes: There are over 7 million tons of green beans produced annually worldwide. Green beans are actually considered a legume which describes a pod, such as that of a pea or bean, that splits into two; with the seeds considered a fruit and the pod considered a vegetable. Shapes can range from the thin “filet” beans to the wide “romano” types with the more common types in between. Green, Runner, French, Broad, Yellow Wax, Sting, and Snap Green Beans…whichever you prefer– Green bean types have been bred especially for the bright color, crisp texture, and juicy vegetable flavor of their pods. They all describe one thing in common…all are harvested and preserved in the same fashion. Click the link below for a chart on the different types of green beans.

Green Beans Types: There are basically three commonly known types of green beans: string or runner beans, string less or french beans, and snap beans. Snap green beans are the ones usually grown when green bean gardening at home.  They are named for the sound they make at the perfect ripening stage. They have a thin flat pod that requires less cooking time. Sting less or french beans are generally named due to whether the pod has a tough, fibrous “string” running along its length. And string or runner beans have long, flat pods that have a coarse textured skin. More mature beans display a pronounced fibrous string running down both sides.  All green beans used to be called string beans because older varieties had fibrous side strings.  Just before use, remove the strings and trim the ends. Generally purple beans and yellow wax beans are identical in taste and texture compared to true colored green beans.

Pole Beans Vs Bush Beans: To make matters even more confusing, when green bean gardening, beans are then split into two sub-categories: bush beans and pole or running beans. Bush beans are short plants, growing to approximately two feet in height, without requiring supports. They generally reach maturity and produce all of their fruit in a relatively short period of time, then stop production. Growing pole beans or runners requires a bean trellis in which to climb as they grow. There really is no difference between pole beans and bush beans, other than how they are grown. One may fit into your garden architecture better than the other or you may prefer the look of one to another. Some of the most popular bush beans are Blue Lake 274, Kentucky Wonder, Festiva and Burpee’s Tenderpod. Some popular pole beans are Kentucky Blue, Kentucky Wonder and Blue Lake. Check out the link at the bottom for a better distinction amongst the different green beans types.

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Nutrition Facts on Beans: The calories of green beans are considered low carb beans that do not contain saturated fat. They are a rich source of vitamin K and B, minerals and are high in protein. This makes them an excellent substitute for meats in the diet. Apart from protein, beans also contain iron, fiber, folic acid and starch. Those with colored shells (such as scarlet runners) also contain antioxidants. The protein in legumes is incomplete, but, when combined with grains, they present a perfectly balanced protein, making beans and grains (mostly rice) dishes an ideal meal for vegans or vegetarians.

Harvesting Green Beans: The best time to harvest green beans is when they are small and tender. Look for beans with nicely shaped pods and small seeds. The beans should also have a velvety feel to them and be pliable. Beans that are over mature will be tough and stringy and should not be used. Light green to white wax beans have a tendency to be tough. The whiter they are, the older they are. To harvest, carefully pull them from the vine right above the bean, detaching a small length of the stem to avoid damaging the beanstalk or pod. Look for slender yellow to pale green beans. Avoid beans with white mold or mushy tips. If you can see the shape of the beans within the pod, the beans are overgrown. If beans are picked just right, the green beans plants will continue to produce for several weeks. Pick regularly once the pods have reached a length of 6-8″ but make sure they are picked before the beans inside begin to swell. By accomplishing this – which may mean picking them every day or two – you will prolong the harvest period for 6-8 weeks. Production will stop if you allow even a few to ripen. If you plan on eating your green beans within the next few days, storing them in the refrigerator is the best option. Place the beans in a plastic bag to lock in the moisture and to prevent wilting. Do not wash or cut the beans before storage, only before eating, as they will begin to lose some of their nutrients.

To Freeze Beans: If you have been spoiled eating fresh green beans straight from your garden throughout the summer, then you may be dreading the end of the growing season where you will have to revert back to the store bought or canned green beans. Just know that freezing green beans is the easiest way to enjoy them year round. Canning requires jars, lids, and a pressure cooker along with having to sterilize the jars prior to use. It does entail tedious work. However, freezing green beans only requires a pot to boil the water, a bowl for blanching and freezer bags, or a good quality foodsaver.

Blanching Green Beans: Green beans must be blanched before any long term storage to destroy the enzymes attached to the pods that otherwise might cause the beans to change color, become pitted or lose their flavor. To blanch beans, first select the best specimens then trim and cut the beans to your desired length and form, about 1-2 inches in length. You may even prefer to leave them whole if they are young and tender. Wash them in salted water to remove any bugs. Next, bring a pot of water to a moderate boil, submerge the beans in the boiled water for about 3-5 minutes (You can re-use this water three to five times – but make sure it’s brought back to a rapid boil. Use the preserved water afterward to freeze as stock for soups or stews or use as additional boiling water for other vegetable stock—it contains nutrients). Next, use a large slotted spoon to remove the green beans from the boiling water and immediately transfer to an ice bath for about 3-5 minutes to stop the cooking process. Drain them well, trying to get as much water off them as possible before freezing.
A Word of Caution: When preparing colored green beans at home, a lot of cooks will boil or blanch them up and are then disappointed when the color bleeds out and they are left with green colored beans. Once heat is applied to colored beans…especially the purple beans, they will loose their color and end up green in color. If you want to blanch colored beans, add a teaspoon of baking soda to the cooking water to help retain the color before freezing. Furthermore, most chef’s will agree that the best way to cook colored “green beans” to retain their original color is to ” butter baste ” them. However, they will still not be as vibrant in color as in their raw form.

Freezing Green Beans: If you have a FoodSaver, now would be a great time to use it. If you don’t, make sure you get as much air out of the ziplock bag as possible to help prevent freezer burn. When packing the freezer bags, allow 1/2 inch of headroom in each bag for expansion. then seal the freezer bag and place in the freezer. Beans can be stored for about 10 months at 32 degree F. Green beans are often steamed, boiled, stir-fried, or baked in casseroles thereafter.

Dehydrated Beans: Excellent Article on Drying Green Beans – Chart on Green Bean Types Here!

Green Bean Casseroles Recipes-Green Bean Bake Recipe-3 Bean Salads- Here!

Follow All 10 Parts of Kali’s Series On Storing Garden Produce Here!

Successful Gardening!

Kali S Winters

 

Kali S Winters is gardening enthusiast and author who spends much of her time teaching others how to setup and maintain beautiful, amazing gardens. Check out Kali’s latest book, “Holistic Herbs~A Beginners Guide to Herbal Gardening”! There you will find 12 free bonus books for your reading enjoyment. Discover more about Herbal Advantages

Source: ArticlesBase.com