Science & Technology
Wed, November 25, 2009Tue, November 24, 2009Mon, November 23, 2009Sun, November 22, 2009Fri, November 20, 2009Thu, November 19, 2009Wed, November 18, 2009Tue, November 17, 2009Mon, November 16, 2009Sun, November 15, 2009Fri, November 13, 2009Thu, November 12, 2009Epicor(R) Launches Groundbreaking Green IT Initiative to Help Retailers Reduce Power and Paper Consumption
//science-technology.news-articles.net/content/2 .. etailers-reduce-power-and-paper-consumption.html
Published in Science and Technology on Wednesday, November 18th 2009 at 6:18 GMT by Market Wire🞛 This publication is a summary or evaluation of another publication
IRVINE, CA--(Marketwire - November 18, 2009) - Epicor Software Corporation (
Epicor's program involves onsite analysis conducted by a team of Epicor consultants and business analysts specializing in green IT initiatives. This analysis includes an energy consumption evaluation, a review of current hardware and system configurations, specific recommended actions and areas of focus, and a detailed return on investment analysis that demonstrates resulting bottom line benefits that retailers can achieve. The team then supports the retail organization's execution of the recommendations to their locations in the field.
Through a series of small operational adjustments such as tuning POS system parameters to lower power consumption and conserving paper, Epicor Retail's Green IT Initiative affords retailers the opportunity to expand their sustainability efforts while saving tens of thousands of dollars per year. For example, a 10 percent reduction in energy costs for the average full-line discount retailer can boost net profit margins by as much as 1.55 percent, or the equivalent of $25 in extra sales per square foot of retail space.(1)
Epicor designed the software which drives "smart hardware" platforms from NCR and IBM, leveraging IBM's Remote Management Agent (RMA) technology to achieve green benefits.
"IBM is committed to supporting green initiatives that conserve resources, lower power consumption and improve retailers' bottom line profitability," said Leo Suarez, vice president of marketing & strategy, IBM Retail Store Solutions. "Our remote optimization support enables retailers to be more agile and achieve management efficiencies, and now -- more environmentally friendly -- via the Epicor Retail Green IT initiative."
According to an independent report from Forrester Research covering green IT, "The top motivation for pursuing green IT is to reduce energy-related operating expenses. This is not surprising, since energy conservation and efficiency initiatives offer tangible, and in many cases immediate, financial and environmental savings. As such, reducing energy consumption should be foundational to any green IT strategy."(2)
Lynne Davidson, vice president, Services and Support for Epicor Retail, says that small changes can have a big effect. "Based on calculations from the U.S. Department of Energy, retailers can achieve 500-600 kWh or an average of $70 of power savings per register/device per year. If applied to 500 registers, in three years this could translate to roughly $101,000 in savings, a reduction in CO2 emissions by 60 tons and, from an environmental standpoint, is equivalent to planting 125 acres of trees."(3)
Trans World Entertainment Transforms Its Environmental Impact
One of the first customers to sign on to the Epicor Retail Green IT Initiative is Trans World Entertainment Corporation, one of the largest specialty music and video retailers in the United States. With more than 800 stores and an online retail presence at [ www.fye.com ], Trans World brands include F.Y.E., Coconuts Music & Movies, Spec's and Wherehouse Music.
With 2,800 store systems across its retail enterprise, Trans World's IT division realized the tremendous opportunity to achieve significant dollar savings, reduce power consumption and conserve paper. In September, Trans World turned to Epicor's experts to improve efficiencies and better conserve natural resources.
At the onset of the engagement, Epicor Retail Green IT consultants gathered data from the registers and servers at Trans World's baseline store to prepare a report on anticipated ROI savings. Across the enterprise, system settings were monitored and reconfigured to increase efficiencies, and an energy consumption analysis was conducted to document improvements. "The overall annual energy savings Trans World expects to achieve once Epicor's recommended system and resource optimizations are applied throughout all store locations is -- at a minimum -- 30% reduction in power," said Roy Simmons, Director of IT for Trans World Entertainment. Calculating the actual dollars a 30% reduction in power would save when using the national average price per kWh of $.10, equates to a $77,000 savings chain wide.
"Being 'green' is becoming a key business driver as eco-savvy consumers are drawn to environment friendly companies when making purchasing decisions and demand 'green' conscientiousness from the brands they trust," said David Henning, executive vice president and general manager for Epicor Retail. "In today's economic climate, spending is tight on both the consumer and retailer sides, so initiatives that produce both financial and environmental benefits, particularly without increased capital investment such as Epicor's Retail Green IT Initiative, are a win-win.
"In addition to arming our customers with industry-leading retail solutions, we're pleased to also now be a partner for the planet, helping organizations eliminate unnecessary waste associated with their POS systems, while in return uncovering incremental savings that really add up."
Today, many of the world's leading retailers utilize Epicor Retail solutions and services to become more profitable, productive, competitive and eco-friendly. Epicor's solutions leverage proven Microsoft .NET technology to improve business operations and meet the evolving merchandise and service expectations of today's cross-channel shoppers. Epicor delivers comprehensive retail management solutions to enterprises in all tiers -- from regional chains to multichannel global brands. Retail customers include hundreds of marquee names, from Aéropostale, American Eagle Outfitters, and Ann Taylor to Zales and Zumiez.
About Epicor Software Corporation
Epicor Software is a global leader delivering business software solutions to the manufacturing, distribution, retail, hospitality and services industries. With 20,000 customers in over 150 countries, Epicor provides integrated enterprise resource planning (ERP), customer relationship management (CRM), supply chain management (SCM) and enterprise retail software solutions that enable companies to drive increased efficiency and improve profitability. Founded in 1984, Epicor celebrates 25 years of technology innovation delivering business solutions that provide the scalability and flexibility businesses need to build competitive advantage. Epicor provides a comprehensive range of services with a single point of accountability that promotes rapid return on investment and low total cost of ownership, whether operating business on a local, regional or global scale. The Company's worldwide headquarters are located in Irvine, California with offices and affiliates around the world. For more information, visit [ www.epicor.com ].
Epicor is a registered trademark of Epicor Software Corporation. Other trademarks referenced are the property of their respective owners. The product and service offerings depicted in this document are produced by Epicor Software Corporation.
(1) [ http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=retail.bus_retail ]
(2) Forrester Research, Inc. "Q&A: The Economics of Green IT" by Doug Washburn (February 10, 2009)
(3) Based on U.S. Department of Energy's low carbon IT savings calculator,[ http://www.eecbg.energy.gov/solutioncenter/applicationresources/default.html ]