Telehouse, a leading provider of global data centres, and managed ICT services, today announced that its two London sites have been awarded the Carbon Trust Standard. Based on a rigorous, independent assessment, the Carbon Trust Standard certifies that organisations have measured, managed and reduced their carbon emissions across their own operations, and are committed to reducing them year-on-year.  Telehouse UK received the award after improving its carbon efficiency by 12 percent, relative to turnover[1]. The award means that Telehouse has joined the group of nearly 500 certified organisations which have already cut carbon emissions by over 3 million tonnes of CO2e.

Bob Harris, Technical Director, Telehouse, said: “We’re delighted to have achieved the Carbon Trust Standard. It is a great way of showing that we are on the front foot when it comes to carbon management best practices, and gives us an opportunity to communicate our environmental credentials with integrity.”

Some of the energy efficiency initiatives completed to attain the Carbon Trust Standard in Telehouse’s Docklands and Metro sites:

-Replacing air conditioning units in sites, resulting in an estimated annual CO2 reduction of 127 tonnes CO2e, as well as annual savings of nearly £30,000.

-Switching off corridor lighting in technical buildings when not in use, resulting in an estimated annual CO2 reduction of 45 tonnes CO2e, as well as annual savings of over £10,000.
Harry Morrison, general Manager, the Carbon Trust Standard, said:

“We congratulate Telehouse on their certification. There is little doubt that the business leaders who have sound carbon management strategies in place stand to prosper both now and in the future. We are delighted to see Telehouse joining a fast-growing group of forward thinking organisations that have worked with us to calculate their carbon footprint, quantify their exposure to risk, and measure and benchmark progress of their carbon management strategies.”

“Cutting carbon is a priority for us as a business and delivers tangible bottom-line benefits. We have already improved our carbon efficiency by 12 percent as part of the initiative and are committed to making further improvements in the future. Going through the assessment process to achieve the Carbon Trust Standard helped us to not only quantify our footprint, but also benchmark our performance and identify areas for improvement bringing tangible and significant cost savings across our operations. It’s essential that we remain competitive, and the Carbon Trust Standard is another way we can stay ahead of the game,” continued Bob Harris, Technical Director, Telehouse.

Aside from achieving the Carbon Trust Standard, Telehouse in the UK is currently undertaking a number of activities to reduce its carbon emissions which form part of a global environmental accountability strategy put in place by Telehouse’s parent company, Japanese Telecommunications giant KDDI.  These include: a ‘switch it off’ policy for electrical equipment; more efficient and controllable air conditioning units; capping the electrical draw on a monthly basis; PIR or microwave lighting sensors, as well as utilising an electric car between sites.

Last year, Telehouse West, the company’s flagship data centre in the heart of the London Docklands was completed, in which a range of initiatives to reduce energy consumption were incorporated.  Telehouse will be in a position to pass on these green benefits to customers who in turn will be able to offset their own carbon footprint.

“When we designed Telehouse West we did it with the intent that it should have a positive impact on the environment and our local community of Tower Hamlets.  Our Customers can now host their equipment in a facility which is more energy efficient than anything they may currently have and by doing so reduce the amount of carbon allowances that they may be required to purchase under the current CRC legislation. Our neighbours benefit from the investment we made in converting our waste heat into electricity to be provided to power their homes and businesses. It’s an exciting time to be part of Telehouse and to be a Customer at Telehouse.” said William O’Rourke. Compliance Manager at Telehouse.

Future plans include encouraging customers to use more efficient equipment through the Fujitsu project, and considering natural ventilation to maintain Telehouse at the forefront of green co-lo design.