Better configuration at two Internal Revenue Service data centers could save the tax agency about $3.2 million over four years, according to a report from the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.

TIGTA auditors looked at IRS data center upkeep and air flow design and found them wanting in places. Auditors found junk--i.e., furniture and old computer equipment--stowed away in some data centers, things that blocked chilled air from circulating properly.

The air temperature in data centers generally must be kept to between 61 and 75 degrees to keep equipment in working order.

Missing floor tiles allowed hot and cold air to mix and some data centers didn't place server racks in correct alignment so that hot air vented in a uniform direction.

The audit also calls attention to the fact that brush grommets in the raised floor to cover floor spaces were not used consistently. Brush grommets are a best practice; they help optimize airflow by minimizing hot and cold air from mixing.

Implementing best practices at the IRS data centers in Martinsburg, W.Va., and Memphis, Tenn. could save the IRS $793,218 a year for the next four years, auditors state. But, that calculation doesn't include implementation costs, TIGTA auditors acknowledge.

In the tax agency's official response to the audit, David Grant, chief of agency-wide shared services, took issue with the savings estimate also on the fact that the savings assume a 50 percent energy savings, the upper limit of potentially achievable savings.

However, in their response to the IRS response, TIGTA auditors stood by their estimate. "The potential savings calculations are based on our observations of the implementation of best practices and the best information available," they wrote.

For more:
- read TIGTA audit 2010-20-044 (.pdf)

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