Dell Technologies Helps UCC Increase Energy Efficiency & Reduce Emissions on Campus

Dell Technologies and University College Cork (UCC) have joined forces to harness the power of technology to bolster UCC’s position as a green university.

UCC is the world’s first Green Flag Campus and has a strong commitment to sustainable practices. Its recent five-year strategic plan puts people and the future of the planet at its centre with UCC committed to becoming a carbon-neutral campus by 2040.

However, outdated IT infrastructure and minimal data storage capacity hindered the university’s ability to not only reduce its impact on the environment but also to provide a high-quality and flexible digital experience for its 25,000 students and 3,500 staff. This became clear at the onset of the pandemic and the pivot to hybrid ways of learning and teaching.

UCC turned to Dell to help put its technology at the heart of its student experience and ensure that IT transformation contributed towards its overall sustainability goals on campus. With the help of the Dell team locally and using Dell PowerEdge servers and modern storage and backup solutions, UCC has been able to retire legacy systems and look at new ways in which technology can reduce carbon emissions and energy usage on campus.

Crucially, the new servers help UCC reduce energy consumption and Co2 emissions. Updating to Dell PowerEdge servers has reduced annual greenhouse gas emissions by nearly 70% year-on-year while reducing power usage by over 50% and requiring close to 40% less cooling.

Commenting on the collaboration, Gerard Culley, Director of Information Technology at UCC, said: “When we looked for a partner for our infrastructure needs, we wanted to work with an organisation that shared our values and strategic goals. UCC is committed to working towards a more sustainable future and with that comes an obligation to partner with an organisation that shares this commitment. That’s why we chose to partner with Dell Technologies.

“With the help of Dell’s PowerEdge servers, we were able to put in place modern, resilient storage and compute solutions and achieve incredible results when it came to our energy and carbon footprints. With Dell’s solutions, we’ve completely modernised our IT infrastructure so that we can deliver more flexible, sustainable, secure and resilient digital services and solutions to our staff and students for years to come.”

Jason Ward, Vice President & Managing Director, Dell Technologies Ireland, said: “With remote and hybrid learning now the reality for most third-level institutions, UCC reached out to us to deploy a modern digital infrastructure and help UCC staff and students avail of a central and functional IT system.

At Dell Technologies, we are determined to meet the needs of today without compromising the ability to meet the needs of future generations. Since 2013, we have reduced the energy intensity in Dell PowerEdge servers powered by Intel processors by 83%. By harnessing the power of modern storage solutions, we are able to support the university as it continues to thrive as an innovative, competitive and sustainable research-led hub.”