• • • DATA CENTRE MANAGEMENT • • •
Thermal imaging for data centres D
ata centre maintenance teams have a big share in safeguarding the critical resource that customers and businesses depend
upon. Fortunately, they have one secret weapon that enables them to spot issues in an early stage before they turn into big problems: FLIR thermal imaging.
incidents is the 2013 overheating of a Microsoft data centre operating some of its cloud services, including Outlook, which led to services being lost for 16 hours.
Maintenance inspections with FLIR Exx-Series
The data centre market has seen a massive growth in recent years. Spurred by a growing adoption of cloud technologies, AI, IoT, 5G and big data, new data centres are being built across all continents at fast pace. Whether they are in-house data centres for some of the largest and most influential companies, or built by specialised vendors offering infrastructure services, data centres fulfil a critical role in maintaining the continuity of a business. Downtime of a data centre can have an enormous economic impact and needs to be avoided at all costs. In addition to financial loss, reputational damage can be equally impactful, especially when the data centre is supporting customer-facing services. Guaranteeing uptime has become increasingly complex for data centres. With so much mechanical, electrical and electronic infrastructure under one roof, overheating is a major concern, not only because the infrastructure is not using the energy efficiently, but also because overheating can cause a complete shutdown of servers, impacting users around the world, or even data or equipment loss. One of the most reported
thermal imaging cameras The maintenance of a data centre today involves much more than IT operations. Power distribution systems and cooling infrastructure are also essential for keeping the data centre up and running, and for preventing mechanical or electrical failures and resulting outages. Many systems that are critical for the data centre’s operation heat up before they fail. Temperature is an important indicator of energy consumption and equipment operation, which is why infrared thermography (thermal imaging) is an ideal tool to inspect power consumption, electrical installations, cooling equipment and computing hardware. Periodic inspections with a thermal imaging camera have become indispensable in predictive and preventive maintenance programs. Thermal cameras help maintenance staff to detect problems in electrical switchgear, motors, HVAC infrastructure, uninterruptible power supplies (UPS), power distribution units (PDU), batteries and generator equipment and all electrical devices that feed the server systems, before these problems turn into serious failures or downtime. With cloud computing becoming the new normal, and as data centres are growing to great scales, the need for higher computing density and power efficiency is growing as well. Data centre owners are seeking ways to increase their capacity, but they also want to reduce costs and energy. Thermal imaging can give them important information on how to optimise energy and space requirements, without causing overheating. In short, regular inspections with thermal imaging cameras can help maintenance staff to: • Find and fix hidden problems before they turn into unplanned downtime.
• Reduce the chance of component degradation going unnoticed due to overloaded circuits or loose connections.
• Prevent equipment breakdowns • Optimise energy management and space allocation
What is thermal imaging? A thermal camera is a non-contact device that detects infrared energy (heat) and converts it into a visual image. Infrared radiation lies between the visible and microwave portions of the electromagnetic spectrum.
Overheated circuit breaker 14 ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING • APRIL 2025
Any object that has a temperature above absolute zero (-273.15 degrees Celsius or 0 Kelvin) emits radiation in the infrared region. Even objects that we think of as being very cold, such as ice cubes, emit infrared radiation. Thermal cameras turn this invisible energy into something that can be seen on a screen and measured.
The thermal spectrum
The benefits of thermal imaging Why would you choose a FLIR thermal imaging camera? Sure, there are other technologies available to help you measure temperatures – infrared thermometers or thermocouples to name only two. But no other tool is as powerful and efficient as a FLIR thermal imaging camera.
See the whole picture
Unlike IR thermometers or thermocouples, thermal imaging cameras enable you to scan large areas for hot spots or temperature differences. Without a thermal camera, it’s easy to miss critical parts like air leakages, areas with insufficient insulation or water intrusion. A thermal imaging camera can scan entire electrical installations, buildings, heating or HVAC installations. It never misses a potential problem area no matter how small this might be. They also allow you to compare temperatures of components in the same environment more easily.
Save time and costs
Maintenance of data centre installations can be labour intensive. Because they can easily see larger surfaces, thermal imaging cameras can be the solution to reduce maintenance time speed up inspection rounds, and still see all impending failures, before they turn into costly defects.
Inspect without shutting down Thermal imaging is a non-contact technology. This is a safe method, because maintenance personnel can keep a distance without having to touch hot items. But it also means that inspections can easily be carried out while the equipment is still running or under load. There’s no need to foresee costly downtime. Some inspections, for example rotary UPS systems, can only be done during operation, which makes the thermal imaging camera an ideal tool for online inspections.
Report like a pro
Thermal imaging cameras allow users to make professional, more insightful reports of their inspections that also look great for management and customers. Users can compare current inspections with historical data and discover trends. Features like templates, batch processing, image editing and route planning further enhance the use-friendliness of today’s reporting solutions.
electricalengineeringmagazine.co.uk
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