The world is progressing at a very fast pace with implications in all sectors and fields. Advancement in technology has enabled the masses to achieve things that were thought to be impossible in the past. However, the progress has also implemented the carbon-emission rates, increasing them by many folds than in the past. Therefore the green initiative is being promoted to retain our natural environment and avoid any disastrous environmental situations. The information technology sector is no exception to the go-green initiative and is being implored to make their systems and networks more environment-friendly.
Through in-depth research, it has concurred that the global IT sector is responsible for almost 2 percent of the total carbon emissions. To reduce these numbers is a matter needing immediate action.
Fibre optic-based networks contribute greatly to reducing the negative climate impacts because of their inherent characteristics that reduce energy consumption. Lower energy consumption in line helps reduce production waste and prolongs product lifecycles.
Fiber optics help deploy an optical network that consumes less energy than copper-based systems. This is not a detail that is only relevant in the beginning. The energy-consuming is reduced for the complete lifecycle of the network. For comparison purposes, the recent copper chipsets have been developed to reduce power consumption by 1 or 2 watts over smaller distances and close to 4 W over the full meter range. Fiber optic networks, on the other hand, use less than 1 watt of energy to transfer signals over the range of 300 or 400 meters, depending on the type of fiber used. This difference in consumption might seem minuscule, but when considered on a longer scale in large environments such as data centers, it can be substantial. A single data center shelters hundreds and thousands of connections and networks and even more ports being used. If implemented, a fiber infrastructure can save thousands of kWh every year. This number is much greater when compared to what a copper-based network infrastructure can deliver. Therefore the adoption of a fiber optics network is the best option that benefits both the company and the environment.
Another advantage of a fiber optics infrastructure is that it generates less heat due to smaller power consumption. Less heat means a lesser requirement of keeping the equipment cooler. This is a factor that helps the company and environment by two folds. For every kWh that is saved through the utilization of fiber optics, you save another kWh in the means of energy used by cooling equipment. This results in a double decrease in power consumption and waste production. This helps not only the environment but also the company that has to bear the expense of the energy consumption and equipment use. This also benefits any company by reducing its maintenance expense. A decrease in coolings needs also means a decrease in HVAC structure needs in certain areas. This saves a company substantial expense and frees up space that is used for other activities.