By Lauren Trost, Product Marketing Manager, Power Supplies 

The topic on everyone's mind is ENERGY EFFICIENCY and rightfully so.  Energy costs have reached the point that power and cooling a data center is almost as costly as the equipment inside.  IT managers can look for guidance from 80 PLUS, the EPA, and other regulatory bodies to direct them to the most efficient products.  The newest 80 PLUS program is a unique forum and regulatory body that unites electric utilities, the computer industry and consumers in an effort to bring energy efficient technology solutions to the marketplace. 

HP took leadership with the 80 PLUS program when it shipped the first 80 PLUS Gold certified, 92% efficient power supply for Blades.  In our latest launch we introduced our high efficiency power supplies for our ProLiant servers, which means that HP ships the broadest portfolio of 80 PLUS gold compatible servers in the market! 

But no other symbol is more recognizable for energy efficiency than Energy Star.  But when can we expect to see ENERGY STAR servers on the market?   The answer is very soon.  The EPA is expected to publish the specifications in mid-2009. The EPA states, "HP has been working with the EPA on developing an ENERGY STAR Computer Server specification and plans on offering models that meet the requirements when the specifications are published." 

Stay tuned to this blog for the announcement of the EPA specifications and for a list of all the HP servers that qualify to be in the elite group of energy efficient servers.  You can also visit www.hp.com/go/proliant-energy-efficient or the ENERGY STAR website at www.energystar.gov for updates on approved platforms.