Providence, based in Renton, Wash., is reporting millions in savings after changing how it manages IT assets, extending device lifecycles and using automation to adjust infrastructure usage.
The health system said its information services team saved $2.3 million in 2025 through a program focused on reusing and refurbishing devices. The initiative is expected to generate an additional $1.5 million in savings in the first quarter of 2026, according to a March 20 news release.
At the center of the effort is a shift in how Providence manages endpoint devices. Under the program, laptops and computers are assessed for continued performance, refurbished and redeployed when possible rather than replaced. In some cases, devices have remained in use for up to seven years.
“As long as the software supports the device, we can maintain it,” Wasif Jamal, senior vice president and chief technology officer of infrastructure services at Providence, said in the news release.
When employees leave, devices are collected, refreshed and returned to inventory at a cost of about $50 per unit. Those devices can then be reassigned across the organization, reducing the need for new hardware purchases.
Providence also uses software and automation to power down servers during periods of low demand and to adjust compute and storage resources after deployment. Systems initially provisioned with more capacity are reviewed after 90 to 120 days and adjusted based on actual usage, lowering energy use and costs.
“We use software and automation to put our servers to sleep during low-consumption periods when nobody is using them,” Mr. Jamal said. “We also use software to right-size equipment like servers and other storage devices. If we send out a server with a certain amount of memory and space and realize after 90 to 120 days that the team’s workload doesn’t need all of it, we’ll go back through automation and right-size it, which saves cost and power utilization.”
The organization also purchases devices designed to use less energy and applies power management policies across its environment.
The work is part of Providence’s broader environmental stewardship efforts, which include a goal to become carbon negative by 2030. Since 2022, the health system has reclaimed nearly 1,900 tons of e-waste through its IT hardware reclamation program, diverting materials from landfills.
Providence has packaged these practices into a publicly available toolkit that outlines approaches to reduce energy use, extend equipment life and lower costs.
Mr. Jamal said the effort is intended to show how incremental changes can lead to broader financial impact.
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