Source URL: https://cloud.google.com/blog/topics/sustainability/hardware-harvesting-at-google-reducing-waste-and-emissions/
Source: Cloud Blog
Title: Harvesting hardware: Our approach to carbon-aware fleet deployment
Feedly Summary: When it comes to managing the infrastructure and AI that powers Google’s products and platforms – from Search to YouTube to Google Cloud – every decision we make has an impact. Traditionally, meeting growing demands for machine capacity means deploying new machines and that has an associated embodied carbon impact. That’s why we’re working to reduce the embodied carbon impact at our data centers by optimizing machine placement and promoting the reuse of technical infrastructure hardware.
In this post, we shine a spotlight on our hardware harvesting program, an approach to fleet deployment that prioritizes the reuse of existing hardware.
The hardware harvesting program
The concept is simple: As we deploy new machines or components in our fleet, we repurpose older equipment for alternative and/or additional use cases. The harvesting program prioritizes the reuse of existing hardware, which reduces our carbon emissions compared to exclusively buying brand new machines from the market. This program also helps conserve valuable resources and minimize waste, which contributes to a more circular economy. By scrutinizing the carbon impact of deployment decisions, we’re not just reducing emissions — we’re embedding carbon considerations into the very core of our data center machine operations and business decisions.
Hardware harvesting is not without its challenges. For the program to be successful, we need to ensure the harvested machines meet the specific demands of our workloads and our customers’ requirements, which vary depending on the type of machine and its configuration. However, our heterogeneous fleet, with a wide variety of computational, storage, and accelerator machines, gives us the flexibility to find creative solutions that support both our services and our sustainability goals.
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Hardware harvesting in action
Google’s harvesting program has already yielded strong benefits. By prioritizing the reuse of existing hardware, we’ve been able to optimize the use of new equipment, reduce our carbon footprint, minimize waste and lower costs.
For example, in 2024, we needed more specific models and configurations of certain components (PCBs, CPUs, motherboards, and HDDs). We harvested them from existing machines by migrating configuration-agnostic jobs from existing machines to more efficient ones, then reclaimed the components from these specific machines. In 2024, the harvesting program helped us reuse over 293,000 components to fulfill new demand, save carbon emissions, and reduce costs. Scaling this hardware harvesting approach across Google’s data center infrastructure presents an opportunity for cost, resource, and carbon reduction.
Looking ahead: Leading by example
Harvesting is just one example of how we’re embedding carbon considerations into our data center practices. We believe that these initiatives will play a role in helping us achieve our company-wide net-zero goal and build a more sustainable future for cloud computing and AI. Read our 2024 Environmental Report to learn more about our sustainability practices.
As we continue to refine our strategies, we aim to lead by example and encourage other companies, especially those in the cloud computing industry, to consider similar approaches.
AI Summary and Description: Yes
Summary: The text discusses Google’s hardware harvesting program aimed at optimizing machine placement to reduce carbon impact in data centers. This initiative prioritizes the reuse of existing hardware, aligning with sustainability goals while enhancing operational efficiency in AI and cloud computing environments.
Detailed Description:
The provided text details Google’s hardware harvesting initiative, which focuses on reducing carbon emissions and promoting sustainability within its data center infrastructure. This program is particularly relevant to professionals in the fields of cloud computing and AI, as it directly ties infrastructure management to environmental impact.
Key points from the text include:
– **Impact of Infrastructure Decisions:** Google’s product operations, including Search, YouTube, and Google Cloud, highlight how infrastructure and AI decisions affect carbon emissions.
– **Hardware Harvesting Program:**
– Aimed at repurposing older machines as new deployments occur.
– Prioritizes the reuse of existing hardware, reducing the need for new machines and thereby lowering carbon emissions.
– Contributes to a circular economy by conserving resources and minimizing waste.
– **Challenges of the Program:**
– Requires assurance that harvested machines meet the specific workloads and customer requirements.
– Manages a diverse fleet of computational, storage, and accelerator machines to find adaptable solutions.
– **Results Achieved:**
– In 2024, the program successfully reused over 293,000 components which helped save costs, reduce carbon emissions, and fulfilled increasing demand for specific models and configurations.
– The initiative leads to better optimization of new equipment usage and aligns with broader sustainability goals.
– **Future Outlook:**
– Google aims to lead by example within the industry and encourages other companies in the cloud computing sector to adopt similar sustainable practices.
– The company has set a net-zero goal which these initiatives support and proposes ongoing refinements to their strategies.
The significance of this program lies not only in its environmental benefits but also in how it integrates sustainability into core business operations, offering practical insights into how organizations can address both operational efficiency and compliance with evolving environmental standards.