SAS® Analytics boost green momentum

Sustainability going strong; metrics inform belt-tightening decision makers

LONDON  (May 06, 2009)  –  Even in the downturn, organizations benefit from green initiatives thanks to SAS’ powerful sustainability solutions. SAS for Sustainability Management helps organizations proactively identify innovative strategies that address complex environmental, social and economic situations. SAS, the leader in business analytics, continues to develop additional reporting frameworks to enable quick-start implementations. SAS is also extending its capabilities to evaluate Scope 3 emissions related to an organization’s value chain, along with business-focused analytics such as the cost curve for greenhouse gas abatement. These advances can make a big difference when resources are scarce. 

“With increased pressure from the new US administration, organizations need enterprise software that provides quick implementation, quantifiable results, and the flexibility to accommodate regulatory and transparency demands,” said Alyssa Farrell, SAS’ Global Product Marketing Manager for Sustainability Solutions. “SAS can meet these needs and help organizations succeed in long-term, strategic management of environmental resources.” 

The SAS® Difference

Organizations use SAS for Sustainability Management to measure their baseline performance on emissions, energy, water and waste to determine the fiscally responsible path to improvement. Regardless of the approach, organizations must base decisions on accurate and timely data. Other vendors provide historical reports that give hindsight, but limited insight. SAS’ industry-leading sustainability suite varies dramatically from niche offerings: 

• Only SAS’ analytics-led, integrated platform provides an enterprisewide framework for all sustainability dimensions – flexible and robust enough for the G2000.

• SAS bases pre-defined sustainability performance management frameworks on generally accepted metrics.

• SAS Analytics deliver insight about cost implications of current or proposed projects. Scenario modeling helps organizations weigh alternatives by evaluating required resources and forecasted outcomes.

Stephen Stokes, PhD, Vice President of Sustainability and Green Technologies at AMR, added: “Our research reveals that the landscape of software and service vendors within the carbon management ecosystem is evolving rapidly with offerings that range in sophistication from simple auditing and reporting tools to platforms offering detailed risk and forecasting analyses to deliver environmental and emission business intelligence.”

Achieving High Performance

Only SAS combines data integration, reporting and analytics – enabling clients to navigate current environmental, social and economic challenges and also capitalize on future opportunities.

Among the new SAS customers boosting the bottom line through sustainability management: 

• Poste Italiane Group has decreased consumption 1 percent per year and reduced carbon dioxide emissions 7 percent. It uses SAS to analyze energy efficiency in 250 facilities, some with high energy consumption (data processing centers, executive centers and large branches). Plans include correcting operation and maintenance behaviors.
• The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill uses JMP^® statistical discovery software from SAS to assess the university’s carbon footprint. Focusing on building energy efficiency, the greenhouse gas emissions manager can recommend improvements that save money, electricity and emissions – with the goal to become climate neutral. 
• Duke University is implementing SAS for Sustainability Management to contribute to classroom learning and campus emissions reduction initiatives. Through its employee/student engagement program, “Bleed BLUE, Live GREEN,” Duke seeks to eliminate or offset all campus greenhouse gas emissions and lead the transition to a sustainable economy.

SAS uses its own software to measure and forecast emissions, water and waste for global offices. This helps identify best practices and problems for further evaluation, and it provides data for the annual SAS Corporate Social Responsibility Report which conforms to the GRI Sustainability Reporting Guidelines. SAS internal practices include incorporating LEED principles into future and existing buildings, solar hot water systems, composting to include landscaping and café vegetable waste, regenerative drive elevators and energy management systems in its Cary, NC, headquarters buildings.

SAS for Sustainability Management, based on the SAS Business Analytics Framework, uses the Global Reporting Initiative framework to report on triple bottom line indicators. These address three spheres of sustainability – environmental, social and economic – using SAS software's predictive abilities to validate strategies, identify causal relationships, forecast improvement scenarios and drive innovation. 

This announcement was made at The Premier Business Leadership Series in London. Presented by SAS, The Series brings together hundreds of public and private sector attendees to share ideas and knowledge on critical business management issues.

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