Momentum continues as consortium surpasses 200 membership mark and creates new associate level membership

PORTLAND, Ore., Nov. 11 -- The Green Grid, a global consortium dedicated to advancing energy efficiency in datacenters and business computing ecosystems, today announced several steps that are designed to expand the consortium's community of industry, government and academic collaborators. In order to provide end-user companies with a strong voice within the organization, The Green Grid announced the formation of an end-user focused Advisory Council, which will report directly to the consortium's Board of Directors. The Advisory Council will provide feedback and help influence the consortium's strategy for developing and promoting standards, measurement methods, processes and technologies to improve overall datacenter energy efficiency worldwide.

"As businesses increasingly look for ways to do more with less, a focused effort around datacenter energy consumption has the potential to help companies do business better while minimizing their environmental impact," said Jeannie Diefenderfer, a member of The Green Grid's Advisory Council. "The new Advisory Council will give end-users a unique opportunity to directly influence the research and development of industry standards and metrics designed to increase energy efficiency in datacenters and related cost savings."

The Advisory Council is comprised of nine end-user Contributor Members of The Green Grid, each appointed to a one-year term. Members of the Advisory Council consist of leading brands from around the world including Automatic Data Processing, Inc., AT&T, BT, eBay, Nationwide, STRATO Rechenzentrum AG, Tokyo Electric Power Company, Verizon Business and The Walt Disney Company.

"The Green Grid's Advisory Council will significantly strengthen the consortium's impact on the datacenter industry," said Jim Pappas, a director of The Green Grid. "By helping guide the consortium's strategies and actively participating in the Technical Committee to shape processes and recommendations, the Advisory Council will allow The Green Grid to communicate in one unified voice to end-users and ensure the needs of this community are being addressed."

The Green Grid Announces New Associate Level Membership and Reaches 200 Member Milestone

Responding to a growing demand to participate in the influential work of The Green Grid, the consortium today also announced a new Associate Membership level designed specifically for government and academic organizations.

Government and academic organizations that join The Green Grid as Associate Members may attend and participate in general meetings of The Green Grid, provide feedback to The Green Grid Board of Directors and vote at general meetings on substantive issues, policy matters and official positions. Associate Members also receive technical support, documentation and materials for The Green Grid specifications, test suites and design guidelines.

"Joining The Green Grid as an Associate Member will allow companies to connect with many of the key stakeholders in the datacenter industry," said Tony Pierce, a director of The Green Grid. "Over the past year, The Green Grid has emerged as the industry voice for energy efficient datacenters and is setting the course for defining the strategies and methodologies for the future."

Any qualified academic or government organization interested in joining The Green Grid should contact The Green Grid Administration at admin@lists.thegreengrid.org.

The Green Grid also today confirmed that membership has grown in the past year to more than 200 companies from across the globe. With established programs in North America, Europe and Japan, the formation of an Advisory Council, continued collaboration with industry and government organizations, and a new membership class, The Green Grid looks forward to furthering its mission in 2009. For more information about The Green Grid's upcoming Technical Forum, scheduled for early 2009, visit http://www.thegreengrid.org/events/2009technical_forum/.

About The Green Grid

The Green Grid is a global consortium of companies dedicated to advancing energy efficiency in datacenters and computing ecosystems. The Green Grid does not endorse any vendor-specific products or solutions, and will seek to provide industry-wide recommendations on best practices, metrics and technologies that will improve overall datacenter energy efficiencies. Membership is open to companies interested in datacenter operational efficiency at the Contributing or General Member level. General members attend and participate in general meetings of The Green Grid, review proposals for specifications and have access to specifications for test suites and design guidelines and IP licensing. Additional benefits for contributor members include participation and voting rights in committees and working groups. Additional information is available at www.thegreengrid.org.

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Source: The Green Grid