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centres but this could prove to be prohibitively expensive for many businesses. Also, the need for additional capacity is immediate – the IP Act has already become law, and building new facilities takes time. Upgrading and making changes to existing infrastructure may be the only option. But this only increases uncertainty and risk for the resilience of the data centre and the energy required to power it. Businesses are faced with a potentially expensive dilemma – how can they adhere to current legislation, allow for future changes to this legislation and maintain an efficient and resilient facility? Performance indicators This is where computational fluid dynamics and engineering simulation can play an important role. The launch of The Green Grid’s performance indicator last year provided unprecedented insight into the complete workings of the data centre. Building on the success of PUE, the new PI adds two additional dimensions to infrastructure efficiency, measuring how well a data centre’s cooling system does its job under normal circumstances and how well it is designed to withstand failure – key elements that are invaluable when faced with making quick changes to your existing infrastructure to respond to legislation. Future Facilities worked closely with The Green Grid to develop this new metric, which focuses on three main elements. The first, PUE, focuses on energy efficiency, looking at how effectively the facility is operating in relation to defined energy efficiency ratings. PUE remains a key component in the new tool, allowing facilities to demonstrate their green credentials. The second, IT thermal conformance, examines how much of the data centre’s missioncriticalpower.uk
There are four levels of performance indicator, ranging from the basic measured assessment of the current state of the data centre, to the advanced measured assessment of current state and future potential IT equipment is operating at recommended inlet air temperatures during normal operation. The ratio helps understand the percentage of IT equipment that is operating at its optimal temperature. Finally, IT thermal resilience measures the equipment at risk of overheating in the case of a cooling failure or during planned maintenance. It is this final metric that allows facilities managers to understand how their data centre will behave when there is temperature change. This can be done either through measurement, when cooling systems are off or under maintenance, or more effectively and safely through simulation software. Engineering simulation There are four levels of PI, ranging from the basic measured assessment of the current state of the data centre, to the advanced measured
assessment of current state and future potential. Even the most basic deployment of the performance indicator allows for a visualisation of the balance between its three metrics. It empowers organisations with different goals, for those who must prioritise delivering resilience at the expense of efficiency or computing power at the expense of resilience, to quickly identify how they perform against their targets and track performance over time. When simulation is introduced in the third and fourth levels, comparing alternative configurations and predicting how changes will impact each metric becomes a reality. These predictions are only possible thanks to the growing sophistication of computational fluid dynamics pioneered by Future Facilities. At its most advanced, PI provides a framework to assess
PI in conjunction with engineering simulation allows potential changes to be tested in a safe environment
the effects of changes before they are implemented, whether from IT deployments or the installation of containment. This gives the ability to understand how safe any IT expansion will be, how to utilise 100% design capacity or run through ‘what if’ scenarios to develop strategies for managing issues before they arise. Through using PI in conjunction with engineering simulation technology, data centre owner-operators can reclaim unused capacity without increasing risk, and test any potential change to the data centre in a safe, offline environment before it is actioned in a live facility. Doing so means they can generate the extra capacity that legislative changes such as the IP Act (and potentially Brexit) will demand, with the fewest possible negative consequences. Overarching strategy While capacity planning and any practical alterations to infrastructure will fall under the remit of facilities management, it is likely that the IT department will also play a role in formulating the overarching strategy for legislative compliance. To achieve the smoothest transition possible with minimum disruption, clear interdepartmental communication is required. For instance, when identifying and purchasing the relevant hardware to improve capacity, it would be mutually beneficial for IT to discuss this with facilities, so that consultancy can be provided in terms of how operational efficiency (and budget) are likely to be effected. It seems fitting that joinedup thinking, can provide reassurance in the face of an uncertain future. l October 2017 MCP