FEATURE UPS & STANDBY POWER The data centre of 2025
predictions, the good news is that a significant majority (64 per cent) of the ‘Data Centre 2025’ respondents believe that by 2025 less energy will be required to produce the same level of computing performance available today. In fact, this seems a relatively low figure considering the majority of respondents also believe data centre infrastructure and IT equipment will become more efficient over the next decade. Indeed, by 2025 it is expected that
Data centre power has become a hot topic in recent years, with organisations increasingly under pressure to reduce their energy consumption. Rising energy costs, alongside new regulatory pressures and government targets, has driven many of the changes in management approach and priorities. Giovanni Zanei, Vertiv in Europe, explains
owering the data centre of the future is dependent on many factors, such as location, demand for computing and storage, and the evolution of technology. Vertiv’s report, ‘Data Centre 2025: Exploring the Possibilities,’ uncovered the key trends we are likely to see gain further momentum over the next ten years. The report suggested that renewable energy, particularly solar, is set to have a more optimistic future in data centre power over the coming years. In today’s market, the EU’s Renewable Energy Directive sets an ambitious target of 20 per cent final energy consumption from renewable sources by 2020. While member states are on track to meet this goal, to cope with the increased demand, solar technology will need to make some significant advancements in the next decade. Other alternative energy sources are also likely to play a more substantial role.
P 8 MARCH 2017 | ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING
Research from Microsoft’s Global Foundation Services suggests that data centre engineers have started exploring the possibility of powering a data centre entirely by fuel cells built into the server racks. This would mean that the power plant would be brought inside the data centre to minimise power distribution losses – a development that would bring great benefits in minimising downtime. Sourcing power is not the only issue
grabbing the attention of data centre management. Energy efficiency, the other side of the same coin, is also becoming an equally prominent issue for data centre operators. After all, while we are likely to see innovations in power sourcing, this does not factor in how this power is being used. Inefficient legacy technology would counteract any advances in increasing the proportion of renewable energy sourced. While it is difficult to make exact
innovations will lead to efficiencies across a broad range of data centre elements, such as increased server efficiency, data centre thermal management and streamlined power delivery. For instance, Uninterruptable Power Supply (UPS) systems are increasingly important in meeting the needs of end users. Standardisation within the UPS industry is an important trend and manufacturers are striving to offer more consistent applications, leading to greater efficiency and more streamlined solutions. Indeed, UPS systems have made significant advances in efficiency in recent years, with the introduction of new, highly efficient functioning modes and intelligent paralleling, and can now produce efficiencies approaching 99 per cent. Monitoring and diagnostics is a vital
weapon in maximising efficiency in the modern data centre and is set to be increasingly significantly in data centre management. Diagnostic capability, data tracking, measuring and logging, as well as predictive maintenance and event analysis features, enable modern systems to intelligently adapt the power supplied to the load, in order to respond to the environmental conditions of the installation site and dramatically improve site availability, efficiency and power management. Data centre operation will evolve
immensely over the next decade with power and efficiency looking to be a top priority for the industry. In order to keep pace with the ever evolving requirements of modern data centres, significant changes are expected in equipment set up, cooling temperatures and power sources, and to stay ahead of industry competition, data centre infrastructure management (DCIM) solutions are going to become a necessity for managers.
Vertiv T: 023 8061 0311
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