Ecos Consulting reports that Hewlett-Packard (HP) has joined the 80 PLUS Program, committing to offer its customers an 80 PLUS-certified power supply option on its HP Compaq 7000 and 5000 series business PCs starting in January 2007. According to Ecos, HP is the first major computer manufacturer to support this energy efficiency program, which is funded by electric utilities and market transformation organizations throughout North America.
“When Ecos launched 80 PLUS in fall 2004, it had only one sponsor, one certified power supply and little interest from the major computer OEMs in participating,” says Jon Thomsen, program director for Ecos Consulting, which manages the 80 PLUS Program. “We thank the early adopters who helped build the momentum and applaud HP for making this bold step.”
“We are pleased to be the first major computer manufacturer to support the 80 PLUS Program,” said Jeff Groudan, vice president, Business PC Marketing, Personal Systems Group, HP. “It is part of our commitment to offering customers a variety of affordable, energy-efficient desk-based products to help reduce their overall costs and impact on the environment.”
The 80 PLUS Program certifies and pays incentives for computers that utilize a new generation of energy-efficient power supplies that are power factor corrected and at least 80% efficient at converting ac power from the wall outlet into low voltage dc power for use inside the computer. To help cover the incremental cost of power supplies that meet the stringent efficiency requirement, the program’s sponsors are offering more than $5 million in financial incentives and marketing support for qualified desktop computers and desktop-derived servers that use certified power supplies.
80 PLUS-qualified computers use 15% to 25% less electricity than typical computers. Additionally, 80 PLUS addresses power consumption when the computer is actually in use (called active mode). Traditional approaches for energy savings in consumer and office electronics have focused solely on “sleep” or “standby” modes. The 80 PLUS Program was designed and is administered by Ecos Consulting, an energy-efficiency firm that leverages the power of the market to accelerate sales of energy-efficient technologies.