Agency chief information officer Joe Panora says that green IT is a "key strategic priority" for the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR). By installing a system that remotely controls the power use of 34,000 PCs at preprogramed times when they are not active, Panora’s department will save $750, 000 in annual energy costs. The department’s energy use for these computers has been reduced by 28 percent after hiring Verdiem, an IT energy management firm based out of Seattle, WA.
CDCR Agency CIO Joe Panora - Photo: Bill Foster, Techwire.net
Verdiem, which originally began working with CDCR in 2009, provides the department with a dashboard view of all energy usage throughout its networks across the state. Verdiem’s Surveyor software package found that the department’s annual baseline of energy use is $2.65 million, before the savings. The department’s cost for the software was $60,000, after receiving rebates from utilities through a state program, and an ongoing annual maintenance contract for $44,390, said Panora.
Other public-sector clients of Verdiem include California’s Departments of Transportation, Health Services, Social Services, the California Environmental Protection Agency and the City of Santa Monica, among others, according to its website.
