Sustainable IT covers the lifecycle of a system – from manufacture, to operation, to its disposal. Within this, there’s so many parts to consider that it can often feel overwhelming, and businesses don’t know where to start when it comes to minimising the impact on the environment through IT provision.

In fact, IT has hardly come into the conversation around eco-friendly practices until very recently. This could be due to the fact the technology actually enhances a firm’s sustainability credentials – allowing for process optimisation such as heating and cooling, virtual meetings to reduce fossil fuel consumption, and other green benefits that tech provides us with.

In terms of relativity, according to The Climate Group, IT hardware and systems produce 2% of the world’s greenhouse gases¹ — that’s about 40% more than the UK’s annual consumption — compared to 21% for agriculture.

But there are still ways that businesses can work towards reducing their carbon footprint in terms of IT, and here’s how:

Check your hardware

According to a study in Environmental Science and Technology², 81% of a device’s lifelong energy consumption is used up during the manufacturing stage. It’s crucial to choose brands that have good green credentials and ethical supply chains. This goes for all IT infrastructure – from laptops and tablets to telephony and servers. There are also several energy efficient accreditations to look out for when choosing hardware, such as TCO.

Additionally, it’s equally important to make sure that when an item’s shelf life comes to an end, it’s responsibly disposed of. Most hardware is filled with harmful, hazardous materials so if the device or item can’t be recycled or repurposed, using an accredited technology waste disposal service is advised.

Cloud computing

Legacy systems such as on-premise servers can be extremely inefficient when it comes to energy consumption. Updating these, and migrating to off-site hosted cloud services where possible, will serve to reduce this. And, data centres can provide economies of scale when it comes to energy usage – with state-of-the-art cooling and automated lighting systems.

According to Nature³, data centres use about 1% of the world’s electricity (as of 2018), so when choosing one to partner with, opt for those that have sustainable accreditations and which are committed to reducing their carbon footprint. Some are making great strides in being powered partially – or fully – by renewable energy, and all will be working hard to employ the latest technology to reduce heat and waste. You should try and check if they’re following data centre best practice, too.

Action on the ground

At a business and individual level, we can all make a difference.

Having processes in place that are actively incentivised — or enforced — serve to cement in employee’s minds what they should do to help sustainability efforts. This could include things as easy as putting a computer to sleep when not using it, sharing printers, using smart power strips, and harnessing other technologies that can help bring about change. In short, doing the things we all do automatically at home to save our own cash, that might not cross our minds at work.

Effective leadership is key. That’s why it’s important that IT has a seat at the boardroom table when discussing long-term sustainability practices. CIOs and information managers — or your external IT provider — have the knowledge, know-how, and expertise to be able to drive forward a holistic green agenda, and be incredibly effective in doing so.

These changes won’t happen overnight though, and should be built into your long-term digital transformation plan so that they can be continually reviewed, tweaked, and improved. Identifying best practice and putting it into place will help to reduce your organisation’s environmental impact while also accelerating technological progress.

Green business matters. Clients and customers are increasingly looking to suppliers that put sustainability at the fore and as such, it’s good commercial sense to evidence that your firm values this. It’s also the right thing to do, for present and upcoming generations. The buck stops with us all to create a bright future for all.

That’s why, on 24th April, the team took part in a virtual fun run to raise vital funds for local charity, Springhill Hospice. We aimed to cover 30 miles in one day on foot between us, to celebrate our milestone 30 years of trading in 2021.

The hospice — which provides palliative care and support to families going through the end-of-life process — had vital donation avenues closed during the pandemic, as the traditional activities that usually evoked sponsorship were cancelled.

On the day, a team of Central colleagues and their family members — and in some cases their pets — took to the roads, trails, and paths to reach our mileage aims, smashing our £500 fundraising target in the process.

In total, we raised £711, and a further £138 was donated in gift aid.

So, we’d like to say well done team Central! And give special thanks to those that took part. And, we’re not stopping there – keep an eye out on our social media channels and blog for more of our upcoming CSR activities!

So, why have we managed three decades of business, and what makes Central… Central?

To find out, we spoke to the Chris Mycock and Jo Berry, the dynamic partnership that owns Central – Chris founded the business in 1991, and Jo joined in 1998 — delving into our history to discover what the key to our longevity is.

Starting out
If you’re old enough, cast your mind back to the early nineties. The UK had just experienced Margaret Thatcher as prime minister, Nirvana’s Nevermind had just been released and people were flocking to the cinema to watch Thelma & Louise. And, if all that information doesn’t put you in a nostalgic frame of mind, then imagine this – Tim Berners-Lee had just introduced us to the web ‘browser’.

So, in 1991 the main forms of communication were via telephone and the post, with email still in its infancy. Computers cost £2,000 and came in four gigantic boxes, and there were – shockingly – no mobile phones in wide circulation.

Communications had to be thorough, rigorous, and considered – you couldn’t just fire a message across to someone or save a file to your computer for a colleague to pick up. Businesses were more focused on the person doing the job, rather than the technology involved.

And that’s where Central comes in – finding tech that works for the users, and not the other way round. This is an ethos that the company still holds dear today, with technology being a secondary conversation to the needs, requirements, and business operations of the user.

Chris commented:
“I wanted to start a company to create something and provide a valued service to prospective customers that was centred on us actually caring about the IT projects – an organisation that our clients could rely on, and know would support them.”

Initially, Central provided services to local government in the education, health, and justice sectors, and was the first company to provide mainframe and TUPE services to the UK’s Magistrates Courts – eventually managing 43% of their IT provision in England and Wales.

This early grounding in the need to get things right first time – as the justice system relied upon the services provided by Central – cemented the value of going the extra mile, and getting the right, fit-for-purpose system in place.

A new millennium
The year 2000 created opportunities as organisations scrambled to ensure they would not be impacted by the infamous ‘Millennium Bug’, as nobody could predict what would happen at the turn of the century.

Clients and customers were keen to make sure that their security, disaster recovery, and back-ups were airtight – just in case.

The move to social housing
Despite operating in a range of sectors – including manufacturing, professional services, education, and more – social housing is an area that Central has specific expertise in.

In 1999, a move by the local authorities to break up council-owned housing stock and create housing associations meant that these new organisations needed their entire IT and comms infrastructure fitting out – as well as migrating data in and out of the council databases where necessary. Central became a specialist in this, and that’s why the social housing sector still plays a big part in our story today.

The ‘digital’ revolution
The late noughties really saw IT, technology, and new systems take off within business. Every year advancements in the products and devices available advanced exponentially, with things becoming obsolete in a matter of months.

That’s where Central has really excelled, as instead of focusing on technology and systems, the team has really doubled down on service excellence – and becoming a trusted partner rather than just another IT reseller.

Chris commented:
“Listening to individual client needs, and offering bespoke and unbiased advice has become key, in a world where IT solution providers are all shouting over each other to get noticed.”

The great reset
Our 29th year in operation was certainly a rollercoaster, with the outbreak of the Covid pandemic accelerating the acceleration of the adoption of digital technologies that would allow staff to work remotely in line with social distancing.

This shone a light on the different areas that needed resetting – such as work/life balances and flexible working practices. Businesses that initially put temporary systems in place are now looking at long-term hybrid working solutions, and Central has been there throughout to listen, engage, and advise.

Client relationships
This level of trust has certainly fostered great relationships with clients – with some having been with us for more than 20 years. All of our client testimonials show that we truly embody our values of caring, support, and passion for the industry.

Jo mentioned: “We recruit heavily on service-led people, so we can make sure that we give only the best advice, and also grow as a team. When a problem does arise for a customer, we don’t just walk away, we deliver on our promise to be a reliable and trusted partner and sort it out for them.”

Our team
How could we be where we our without our wonderful team? John Blackburn, operations director, has been with us since the beginning, and has almost clocked up 30 years at Central himself. Amanda Partington has also been with us for that long – a testament to our team being equally committed to the business, and to our customers.

The majority of the core team has also been part of Central for more than 20 years – a rarity in a modern world of ‘job-hopping’.

“We are the sum of our people, and our exemplary levels of service would not be possible without them. I credit our success to our wonderful and talented team, that stay ahead of innovations and new technologies, so we can always offer the best possible solutions” said Chris.

The next steps
So, as we continue into our fourth decade of trading, we will remain true to our values of listening, caring, communicating, and engaging – proudly providing the glue that holds organisations together.

IT gets a bad reputation – and it’s clear to see why. It changes so quickly, and it can be hard to trust if your supplier is providing the right solutions. 

That’s why here at Central, we’re looking to put the ‘IT’ back into ‘FAITH’ – by striving to provide an exemplary service backed up by care, understanding, and true expertise.

We put your business goals and commercial interests at the centre of everything we do, so you can be confident you’ll receive the best return on investment for your spend.

We’re an independent IT provider, which means we’re never pressured to sell you a certain technology or service – we’ll only advise on the right solutions for your bespoke needs.

And, we’ll be there for you – from small updates to huge projects – we’ve got you covered.

Every single one of our clients, from the smallest jobs to our largest ongoing managed service customers, are at the heart of what we do.

That’s why you’ll never be just a ‘ticket’ for us to resolve – we treat every piece of work we do with the utmost importance.

Our main priority is to ensure that you know we’re here to help, and that we’re always on hand to support you with your IT needs.

And, as an independent provider, you can be confident we’ll give unbiased and measured advice to find the best fit for you – whatever that might look like.

With over 30 years’ experience in providing customers with fantastic journeys, you can be sure you’ll be treated with respect, empathy, and consideration when working with us.

Nobody knows your business as well as you. From the day-to-day activity to the long-term strategy; you understand the ins and outs like nobody else can.

And that’s why at Central, we listen.

You tell us what’s happening, what your pain points are, where you think things are going wrong, where stuff is actually going well, and what you want to achieve. We’ll then come back to you with sound advice, recommendations, and suggestions for moving forward – considering all the options.

Every single member of our team is trained to listen, and to understand. No matter how small or unimportant you think something is, we want to hear about it so that we can build up a detailed picture of the way you operate.

Regardless of the activity, from a simple server upgrade to a long-term digital transformation project, to strategic IT technology implementation, its important that we hear from you first to understand the minutiae of life within your organization.

Only then can we truly build a solution that works, and that is fit-for-purpose now and in the future.

You can be confident that we’ll always go the extra mile to give you that extra added value you should be getting from your IT partner.

Whether it’s a one-off project, or ongoing managed service provision, we’ve got your best interests at heart and will be here to answer your questions, provide sound advice, and get the job done. 

We know that IT support can be a heated topic for some, but we’re here to make life easy. We aim to become fully part of your team, so relying on us becomes second nature. 

Our team of expert professionals will endeavor to proactively manage your service, and we know we’ve done our job when you don’t even have to think about the technology and systems that you’re using. 

And, should the worst happen, you’ll know you’re in safe hands with Central on your team. 

So it’s a no brainer to work with us, really, and have an IT provider that’s really got your back – whatever that might look like. 

In partnership with Darktrace, Central offers industry-leading artificial intelligence systems that allow for proactive monitoring of organisational activities, quickly identifying, triaging and even neutralising the issue instantly. 

With rollout being available for cloud, network, and email platforms, we are able to offer companies a comprehensive security package that creates efficiencies, saves time, and allows analysts to focus on higher-value tasks.

Features
• Operates under a machine self-learning model that builds a ‘pattern of life’ at a granular level within the organisation
• Acts like the human immune system by understanding what is intrinsically ‘normal’
• Detects deviations that signal threatening activity and issues reports
• Triages and assesses potential attacks, with 92% of time saved, on average
• Offers an advanced-level solution that not only detects and triages an incident, but triggers an autonomous and proportionate response, without disruption to business operations.

Benefits
• Identifies and responds to in-progress threats in real time, both external and insider 
• 100% visibility over the entire digital enterprise
• Scalable and adaptable to any environment
• Does not require knowledge of past threats to understand new ones
• Continually updates its understanding as the environment changes
• Constantly monitors, even when a security team isn’t present
• Requires minimal set-up
• Creates efficiencies of time and resource for security analysts

With complete protection of email, data and cloud infrastructures, our clients have the peace of mind that their business and users are protected from dangerous cyberattacks, natural disasters and simple human error that can cause loss of business-critical data at any time.

Our cloud-to-cloud backup and point-in-time recovery solution enables you to restore lost data quickly and easily, minimising downtime and ensuring business continuity. It provides fast, reliable recovery of Exchange Online, OneDrive and SharePoint Online data in the event of malicious or accidental deletion. It also includes unlimited storage and retention, providing a predictable costing model to meet business requirements as your organisation grows.

Combining three proven cloud-based solutions that enhance Microsoft 365 deployments, we can swiftly and seamlessly add full-spectrum email security, compliance archiving and backup to any Microsoft 365 installation:

Email threat protection
Today’s IT professionals need an easy-to-manage and comprehensive email security solution that protects against phishing, malware, and ransomware. Along with multi-layer email security, our service provides email continuity and data loss prevention.

Advanced threat protection is also included which sandboxes suspicious email attachments and scans them for malware. Link protection redirects suspicious URLs, so malware is never inadvertently downloaded by recipients.

Archiving for Compliance
Our archiving service integrates with Microsoft 365 to create a cloud-based, indexed archive allowing granular retention policies, extensive search, auditing/permissions, legal hold and export helping to facilitate eDiscovery and retention.

Litigation holds preserve email from being tampered with until the litigation hold expires or is removed. Native and mobile apps provide intuitive interfaces that simplify search to ensure messages are found easily, even when email services are unavailable.

Backup and Recovery
While Microsoft 365 is a great option for companies wanting highly scalable and redundant architectures to mitigate natural and mechanical failures, there are inherent risks associated with cloud-hosted data, including human-caused data loss.

Our cloud-to-cloud backup for Microsoft 365 solution protects Exchange Online mailboxes, SharePoint Online, as well as OneDrive files and folders, ensuring recovery in the event of accidental or malicious deletion.