May 8, 2008 - Miercom, an independent network product tester and consultancy, has unveiled a green certification program for IT equipment to help datacenter managers make smarter purchasing choices.

Miercom's new Certified Green program, based on lab test results and qualitative product assessments, will focus on certifying products based on power efficiency, including power usage and management, heat dissipation, cooling requirements, energy efficiency, and overall product efficiency.

"This program is designed to provide meaningful, independent guidance to IT organizations looking to improve their own green IT and business practices," Miercom said in a statement. "In addition, the program will serve to challenge networking equipment suppliers to design, develop, and deploy products that lower energy costs and consumption, comply with increasingly stringent environmental directives, reduce e-waste, and heighten the 'green effect' of the network infrastructure."

Cisco's Catalyst 3750-E, 3560-E, 3750, 3560, and 2960 Series Switches are the first products to receive the new certification.

More information on Miercom's product testing services is available here.