Philips LCD Monitors Retirement phase, Power consumption, Security to prevent hardware theft

White Paper October 2005 When LCD Monitors can reduce TCO 7

Power consumption:

•The monitor represents up to 35% of the total power costs of desktop equipment, so monitor power con- sumption should be as low as possible

•A centralized power shutdown mode is recommended. PC power management places the monitor in standby mode, further power savings (typically 3 to 8 watts) can be achieved by shutting down monitors individually or collectively from a central location - especially useful during weekends, holiday periods and employee illness

Security (to prevent hardware theft):

•A built-in Kensington lock should be a standard feature, enabling companies to prevent the theft of LCD monitors

•An alarm feature to alert central IT or corporate security in case a monitor is disconnected is highly recom- mended. This is an excellent alternative for companies that do not want to use (space-occupying) Kensington cables, and is also an effective way to ‘catch the thief’ before he or she leaves the building

•The ability to lock a monitor as soon it is disconnected from the PC will further reduce hardware theft. In-house theft is often done repeatedly by a single individual. Someone who steals a monitors and finds that it does not work at home will not steal another one. A prominent sticker stating the presence of anti-theft measures will help to reduce theft further

Asset management:

•Monitoring of operating hours: this is recommended on a centralized basis, preferably automatically by means of a software asset management system. This will eliminate time-consuming manual logging and possible unreli- ability or inconsistency of data entered by end-users

•Remote configuration: centralized control is recommended to facilitate restoration of default or preferred set- tings without the need for constant local intervention by support personnel

4.4Retirement phase

Organizations are increasingly faced with the hard costs of disposing of IT equipment at end-of-life. This also applies to LCD monitors, even though these costs are now only a quarter of those for monitors based on conventional CRT technology.

During this end-of-life phase, time is often lost in tracking the physical location of all deployed monitors. Moreover, companies often decide to retain a couple of monitors for special purposes, and may face difficulties in selecting those that are best suited for this ‘post-life’ use. These poten- tial difficulties should be addressed by a number of measures to reduce the administrative work- load on end-of-life disposal, for example including:

•Asset tracking: through asset management software that allows easy tracking of monitors and identification of their locations

•Operating hours registration: allows determination of which monitors should be disposed of and replaced first, and which can be retained for ‘post-life’ use

•Weight restriction: low-weight monitors provide small savings on disposal costs but big environmental benefits

•RoHS compliance: like all the other parts of the desktop configuration, LCD monitors should comply with the European directive on Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) which takes effect from 1 July 2006. This limits the permissible concentrations of lead and other toxic substances. Customers should assure themselves that the products they purchase are RoHS-compliant in relation to their own substainability programs, as well as possible environmental certification requirements.