CONTENTS


FOCUS on MODULARITY


FOCUS ON


CONTENTS WHAT IS MODULARITY?


See how the experts define modularity THE BIG MODULAR ROLLOUT


How modularity makes the data center scalable CONTAINERS OUT OF THE BOX


The future for containers CONTAINERS IN THE MILITARY


Active Power joins with the military CONTAINERS


A new entrant to the container market APC’S MODULAR APPROACH


How a modular take transforms the data center HOW STANDARDIZATION HELPS MODULARITY


The benefits of standardization in the data center MODULAR COOLING


The maturing market for modular cooling CABLES FOR MODULARITY


Enabling modular design through cabling SPONSORS


A special technology insert to DatacenterDynamicsFOCUS


MODULARITY WELCOME TO A MODULAR WORLD 04 06 08 10 10 11 12 14 15 16


A holistic view is key to any successful data center design, but for years it seems the industry has struggled to view all the dimensions in the data center as a whole.


Modularity, as a term, is an interesting concept. For some it means creating a jigsaw within the data center but how can it do this for technology for plug-and-play purposes, and for scalability within a data center? To be able to work with and alongside other products, modular systems have to be adaptable to ever-changing technologies in the data center.


Modularity is about having a 360-degree view on how your business runs, and confidence in how it will grow. Modularity should allow a business to make decisions dynamically on the run.


I avoid saying data center design in its entirety because I believe a number of companies have already had modularity on the mind, though it may have come under another guise. Equinix, for example, says it doesn’t believe in the term because this was something it did before it was even coined. Cabling providers may also have a modular approach but it is a different pitch to cooling, container and power providers.


Standardization is key to modularity, and APC picks up on this point, while other vendors are going for the much larger approach, removing modularity from within the data center, instead making it THE actual fit-out itself in the form of containers.


This first Modularity insert for FOCUS magazine, which accompanies issue 13, is only the start, and explores the concepts around modularity. Next year, who knows what will be pulled apart and put in a box?


Penny Jones Editor


www.datacenterdynamics.com


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