BSEE
DATA CENTRES
Data Centre MEP Design
The opmum design and installaon of mechanical, electrical and public health (MEP) infrastructures are essenal to the smooth operaon of any building, from incepon to compleon, as they impact energy eciency and operang costs.
Stephen Phimister – Director at TÜV SÜD, an ISO19650 verified international building services design
consultancy, specialising in sustainable MEP (mechanical, electrical and public health) design, BIM (Building Information Modelling), lighting design, façade access and vertical transportation.
n the 24/7, year-round data centre environment, it is even more vital that the MEP design incorporates robust and reliable solutions that fulfil business objectives, whilst finding every opportunity to be energy efficient and considerate of the environment. Resilience of every service within a data centre is fundamental. Over the last few months, this need has been brought into sharp focus as the Covid-19 pandemic saw organisations move rapidly from centralised to decentralised working. Many which had previously resisted cloud services found themselves deploying them very quickly to enable remote working. This was observed by many data centre operators which saw increased demand in the initial few weeks of lockdown as services were modified to cope with the changing environment.
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The impact of Covid-19 on working practices is likely to have ongoing effects and many businesses are now reviewing their operating model, with a view to decentralised or blended working becoming a more common arrangement. There is an irony that data centre design focuses so much on energy efficiency, resilience and security, yet the Working from Home (WFH) model loses out on so many of these benefits.
A priority to meet this new WFH demand will be to consider how it is delivered from an IT perspective, particularly where organisations require staff to have expensive hardware to deliver high computing processing applications. Taking into account the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO), a data centre solution may well be the preferred solution. As businesses become more cost conscious and plan for solutions that future- ensure business continuity there will be increased global demand for data centre space.
Data centre demands
The demands of a data centre MEP design are way in excess of those required for a standard building and normal pressures on designers are intensified. For example, physical space is always a key factor to take into consideration. This is because marginal savings in plant space can potentially free up room to increase hall space, thereby providing additional server racks. With each rack having a rental value attached to it, this can make a considerable difference to revenue levels over the lifetime of a data centre. However, it is important to safeguard sufficient plant space as quick maintenance delivery is of particular importance in a critical environment.
26 BUILDING SERVICES & ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEER SEPTEMBER 2020
While compromise is inevitable, intelligent MEP and architectural design solutions can alleviate any spatial concerns. In an ideal world this would start as early as site selection. However, in reality the designers are often faced with restrictions in relation to the site or the building, be this environment, shape, orientation, planning restrictions etc. Relative to the footprint of the building, a data centre has a high energy density. Consequently, the sheer amount of power and critical nature of the loads being served require significant expertise in the design and delivery of the solution. This is not just to support the immediate power needs of the IT systems. Uninterruptable power supplies (UPS), large standby generators, transformers, multiple voltages levels, metering and power usage effectiveness are just a few of the multidimensional MEP design considerations. Even the required air conditioning is significantly more complex than traditional HVAC systems as designers strive to reduce energy demand. As energy efficiency of the electrical and mechanical systems is critical, from both an environmental and commercial perspective, innovative design can minimise the power required to run a data centre. For example, an improved efficiency of just a few per cent on a UPS can reduce electrical demand by a surprising amount. Likewise, an improvement in transformer efficiency can be highly effective as these units operate constantly. Therefore, data centre design frequently focuses on improved efficiency including compressor free cooling, hot or cold aisle containment solutions and increased server operating temperatures. No stone should be left unturned when it comes to reducing energy consumption.
However, all these good design measures can be ineffective if the operator cannot monitor, and therefore control, the energy use in operation. Metering is therefore vitally important and this is delivered through a comprehensive metering solution or often one combined into the Data Centre Infrastructure Management (DCIM) system, which integrates the MEP and IT operating conditions of the facility.
Site selection is a topic in its own right, but from an engineering perspective power and communications are key. For example, some clients may try to manage risk with geographical remoteness, however without network capacity what seemed like an ideal site may render it impracticable as a data centre site. It is therefore vital that early feasibility and investigations are commissioned prior to a data centre build project commencing, to mitigate or minimise the risk associated with these potentially expensive fixes.
Setting the standard
There are many different standards that clients may choose to follow. For example, the Uptime Institute is one that is recognised globally for the creation and administration of data centre design, construction and operational sustainability standards. Its Tier rating, which defines the standards required for different resilience levels, is probably the most quoted, and often misquoted, reference in data centre design. Beyond the Uptime Institute’s Tiered rating system, there are also a plethora of other standards which must also be taken into account by the MEP design team. Local and National legislation can occasionally be a stuttering point for a data centre build, so project managers must be skilled at juggling the sometimes diverging business, build and standards’ requirements. In terms of meeting client expectations, it is vital to identify early on any gaps between their aspirations and regulatory or design restrictions. Of course, every client has unique requirements for their data centre facility. So, to deliver a successful project, the MEP design team must be skilled in extracting this information and harnessing a client’s knowledge about their business operations.
It is also essential for a MEP framework to be constructed according to best practice so that every commercial, environmental and regulatory aspect is fully taken into account. A quality management system, such as ISO 9001, provides a structured approach to the MEP design process and ensures that due care is taken to maintain high service standards that meet and exceed client expectations. ISO 9001 certification signifies that a business has attained significant levels of organisational efficiency and service quality by minimising waste and errors and increasing productivity, which is of course ultimately passed on as a benefit to the client.
For any building services project, effective communication is the key element as this will highlight potential issues early on in a project, saving costly changes further down the line. Due to the levels of resilience demanded by a data centre, effective project communication is even more vital. Given the importance of MEP services within the operation of a data centre, it is therefore imperative that building services engineers are involved from the earliest stages of design to help inform a successful final building layout and configuration.
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