Industry is undoubtedly a major contributor to climate change. But while technology has contributed to accelerating carbon emissions, it also presents solutions to reduce it. Some analysts suggest that global energy consumption will double in the next 30-40 years - India and China’s rapid development is resulting in huge demand for electricity, while the surge of data centres in developed countries is the leading growth area in electricity consumption. So how can we curb energy consumption without impeding development?

Solar energy has the potential to become the leading source of ‘green’ energy in Australia, however, with so many means of delivering it and the various complexities associated with them, there is a danger that we may choose the wrong path and impede the effectiveness of solar energy in curbing greenhouse gas emissions. These choices not only need to be made by governments, but also private enterprises, the community and the electrical industry.

My message to electrical contractors is to make the most of the opportunities that present themselves. There’s never been a better time to be aggressive. There’s no easier sell than an upsell. That’s a lesson we all need to learn and apply in our businesses.

Everywhere you look there is a tagline about ‘going green’. Al Gore brought the climate change issue to the masses in the film An Inconvenient Truth and then many of the world’s leading musicians did their bit to raise awareness in the series of Live Earth concerts.

With residential and commercial buildings responsible for 23% of Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions, buildings have a significant role to play in reducing our carbon footprint. Building green provides the greatest, most cost-effective opportunity to tackle climate change. What’s more, this action, and its positive impact, can be taken quickly.

IT can play a key role in sustainable practices across the business, but CIOs haven’t taken advantage of it yet, says industry analyst.

A water-heating company claims that the Gas Alliance is misleading homeowners about the effectiveness of heat pumps as an energy-efficient means to heat domestic water.

One Shelley Street, the new Sydney premise of the Macquarie Group, was developed by Brookfield Multiplex to set new standards in sustainable office design. The building boasts many environmental initiatives that saw it awarded the Green Building Council of Australia’s 6-Star Green Star - Office Design v2 Certified Rating, representative of ‘world leadership’ in environmentally sustainable design and/or construction.

Researchers at MIT have discovered a new way of producing electricity using carbon nanotubes.

With more house fires occurring, linked to the insulation installation program, NECA has reiterated its call for the government to stipulate licensed electricians pre-inspect roof areas to ascertain the existing electrics are safe.

Maser Communications has supplied a series of specialist steel wire armoured cables to a Queensland oil refinery. After suffering through issues associated with cable degradation, the end user outlined its requirement for a robust cable construction and Maser was quick to identify a steel wire armoured solution that would provide the necessary mechanical protection.

The selection of electrical and electronic connectors should be made with a full knowledge of the application and the suitability of the available materials.

Wide-scale adoption of low-emission distributed energy could reduce the cost of transitioning to a low-carbon future by as much a $130 billion by 2050, according to a new report released by CSIRO.

SA Water’s new head office in Adelaide’s Victoria Square is the largest commercially developed building in Australia (rather than owner occupier) to be awarded a 6 Star Green Star Office Design rating from the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA). Clipsal played an important role in contributing to SA Water achieving the GBCA’s highest possible energy rating with its C-Bus control and management system.

According to technology analyst firm NanoMarkets, the year ahead for OLED lighting is significant.