Cloud drives new revenues with smart energy solutions Bayernwerk AG needed to help the municipalities it serves access electricity consumption data to create smart energy solutions. The utility hoped to introduce new data services to drive revenues and meet green energy goals, but its data was locked away in legacy systems. Bayernwerk turned to DXC Technology to create a platform that provides a barrier-free development and collaboration environment. Launched in just 6 weeks, the new cloud-based EnergyPortal enables co-creation of new data services and has reduced time to market from months to a matter of days. The new platform serves as a single source for analytics for selling add-on services and creating white label products that can be used by other internal business units as well as external companies. — Read the story Meeting expectations for green IT Sustainability is top of mind for organisations, as investors and other stakeholders are placing a higher emphasis on environmental, social and governance (ESG) ratings and performance. Investors perceive that companies with higher ESG ratings have lower risk. The contributions that products and services make to an organisation’s overall carbon footprint are key factors in ESG ratings, and for data-intensive businesses, data centres are key targets for meeting zero-carbon goals. Lighting the path to a green future DXC’s Khaled Popal, a partner and practice leader for Energy and Utilities, shares insights on how the cloud, data analytics, IoT and other emerging technologies are helping energy suppliers light the path to a green future. — Read the Q&A More efficient on-premises data centres and sustainable cloud services can play a key role in meeting carbon reduction goals. The Cloud Right approach Taking the Cloud Right™ approach can help organisations improve their ESG credentials and increase transparency by moving high-demand workloads to a more efficient platform. The major cloud providers recognise this opportunity and are providing ESG reporting tools to help companies understand and track sustainability factors. Organisations considering a migration to cloud can look beyond standard cost analyses and build sustainability metrics into the overall equation. 37% average reduction in carbon emissions with Cloud Right For example, a recent DXC study showed that customers who modernised applications in migrating from on-premises infrastructure to cloud or hybrid IT achieved an average of 37 percent lower carbon emissions and reduced total cost of ownership (TCO) by 34 percent. It’s important to know the carbon impact of both existing and target environments. In terms of the future production of CO2, for example, it might well make sense to invest in a new air handling system for a 20-year-old data centre. Still, because of their massive scale, cloud hyperscalers have major advantages by applying sustainability measures such as server optimisation and accessing renewable energy sources. DXC Technology is actively pursuing decarbonisation for customers. DXC reduced carbon emissions 20.6 percent and lowered energy consumption by 10.7 percent in fiscal year 2020. By actively working with cloud services partners and integrating environmental sustainability criteria into the supply chain selection process, DXC is focusing on ways to support customers’ sustainability goals. In 2021, DXC was recognised by Newsweek magazine as one of America’s Most Responsible Companies and by EcoVadis for “outstanding sustainability performance." Ultimately, actively managing and reducing IT costs, consumption and automation will help organisations become more sustainable.