This weblog is a part of our Individuals Behind Goal at Cisco collection that focuses on workers driving Cisco’s function to Energy an Inclusive Future for All. Every weblog highlights a unique Cisco worker whose work positively impacts individuals, communities, or the planet. The collection was previously often called individuals behind Company Social Accountability (CSR) at Cisco.
Cisco’s World Power Administration and Sustainability (GEMS) workforce is liable for power and sustainability initiatives throughout our international actual property portfolio with targets to scale back power use and greenhouse fuel (GHG) emissions. Learn extra about our sustainability efforts in our actual property operations on Cisco’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) Reporting Hub.
Ned Bagno is on the GEMS workforce and manages the EnergyOps program, which focuses on figuring out and implementing power effectivity and onsite photo voltaic initiatives throughout our buildings worldwide. He shares extra about his background and expertise, and what he seems to be ahead to sooner or later.
Are you able to inform me a bit about your path to working at Cisco?
Ned: Following my electronics trainer’s recommendation in highschool, I joined the US Navy as a result of he advised me they’d a superb electronics program. Engaged on shipboard electrical, digital, and safety techniques ready me for my future within the job market, the place I specialised in constructing course of management techniques, primarily for manufacturing amenities. That developed into specializing in troubleshooting and designing giant company bodily safety techniques.
Later, I joined Cisco as a contractor in company safety, and, after a short while, I turned a full-time worker. I labored on high-visibility initiatives, like our Bangalore, India, campus safety, earthquake early warning techniques in San Jose, California, and the company safety command heart in certainly one of our San Jose campus buildings, to call just a few.
I joined Cisco’s GEMS workforce ten years in the past. On the time, we had been setting our earlier Scope 1 and a pair of GHG emissions discount objectives. Over the subsequent 5 years, I managed two tracks of our EnergyOps program, and, in 2017, I started managing your entire program.
Are you able to clarify what the EnergyOps program does?
Ned: EnergyOps is our program to scale back the environmental impression of our amenities. Our strategy to lowering GHG emissions related to our actual property is to extend the power effectivity of our buildings, whereas investing in renewable power. This mixed strategy has allowed us to keep away from will increase in total constructing power consumption, regardless of will increase in lab hundreds and gear power consumption, whereas lowering carbon emissions related to our actual property.
By the EnergyOps program and our investments in renewable power, we had been capable of obtain (one 12 months early) our earlier aim to scale back Cisco’s complete Scope 1 and a pair of GHG emissions worldwide by 60% absolute by fiscal 12 months (FY) 2022 (in comparison with a FY 2007 base 12 months). These successes additionally supplied a basis on which to set our present broader net-zero aim and near-term targets[1].
What sort of initiatives do you do?
We’ve accomplished a whole lot of initiatives, from easy retrofits to intensive gear replacements. We usually buy or lease current buildings relatively than construct new ones, so, there are sometimes power effectivity alternatives in our constructing portfolio. We additionally advise our broader actual property workforce on energy-efficient choices once we replace our buildings or when gear is changed.
We start the undertaking improvement course of by performing detailed analyses to know how the constructing system is working, and to establish alternatives to enhance effectivity. By our analyses, we discover areas the place we will make modifications, reminiscent of adjusting constructing setpoints for optimum effectivity, or including variable frequency drives that alter to the present gear load and devour much less power. Different kinds of initiatives we pursue are energy-efficient upgrades to lighting techniques and enormous mechanical gear, reminiscent of chillers and boilers. We’ve put in economizers that use exterior air to assist cool our buildings when outside temperatures allow. Moreover, we’ve put in chilly/scorching air containment techniques that assist handle warmth and scale back scorching spots in our energy-intensive labs and knowledge facilities.
Our initiatives additionally assist us pursue inexperienced constructing certifications at our websites, reminiscent of U.S. Inexperienced Constructing Council’s Management in Power and Environmental Design (LEED) and the WELL Constructing Normal.
Favourite initiatives you labored on over the past 12 months?
I’m engaged on an Synthetic Intelligence (AI) undertaking at our Allen, Texas, knowledge heart. The target of the undertaking is to make use of AI to higher perceive how the prevailing constructing automation system operates and to optimize its sequence of operations. This undertaking is estimated to scale back power consumption within the chiller plant by greater than 30%. There’s positively a studying curve for the people utilizing the AI as nicely!
One other attention-grabbing set up was a chiller and ice storage undertaking we accomplished at our campus in Ottawa, Canada. In the course of the undertaking, we changed your entire cooling plant and added quite a few ice-storage tanks. The system makes ice at evening when power is each decrease price and fewer carbon intensive. In the course of the day, we use the ice, as a substitute of the chillers, to chill the constructing and our knowledge heart for six+ hours a day. This undertaking helps us lower your expenses, reduces our carbon footprint and reduces pressure on the native electrical grid. We’re now replicating this progressive undertaking and design at just a few of our different areas.
What’s subsequent for the GEMS workforce and the EnergyOps program?
We’re very targeted on making progress in the direction of our FY 2025 Scope 1 and a pair of GHG emissions discount aim. We plan to take a position roughly US$39 million from FY 2023 to FY 2025 in three areas: power effectivity, renewable power, and electrification. Over the subsequent few years, we hope to transform a lot of our pure fuel heating techniques to electrical and set up new onsite photo voltaic photovoltaic (PV) techniques at a number of campuses. We additionally plan to develop our funding in offsite renewable power by executing over 500 megawatts (MW) of latest, long-term renewable power contracts by the tip of FY 2025.
We’re excited to proceed our work, figuring out that our efforts contribute in the direction of Cisco’s function to Energy an Inclusive Future for All.
[1] Cisco has set a aim to achieve internet zero throughout its worth chain (Scopes 1, 2, and three) by 2040. Our net-zero aim consists of two near-term targets:
- To cut back absolute Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions 90% and neutralizing any remaining emissions by eradicating an equal quantity from the ambiance by FY 2025 in comparison with our 2019 FY;
- To cut back absolute Scope 3 emissions from bought items and companies, upstream transportation and distribution, and use of offered merchandise 30% by FY 2030 in comparison with our 2019 FY.
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