EDITOR ’ S QUESTION
AS GLOBAL TEMPERATURES RISE , HOW WILL THE UAE DATA CENTRE INDUSTRY SUCCEED IN MANAGING COOLING REQUIREMENTS ?
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R waves are making headlines and straining economies around the globe , with no signs of cooling down in the immediate future . Beyond the impact on human lives , extreme heat is taking a major toll on data centre operations and infrastructure , from outages and disruptions at data centres in the UK , to reduced production at power plants in France , to concerns over water usage in drought-affected areas across the world . Vertiv , a global provider of critical digital infrastructure and continuity solutions , recently issued recommendations to data centre operators and associated businesses to help them navigate these challenges .
“ If one thing is clear , it is that we need to be prepared for these extreme weather conditions to become more commonplace , so adapting to this inevitability is crucial ,” said Karsten Winther , President for Vertiv in Europe , Middle East and Africa ( EMEA ). “ Customers are becoming more aware of the challenges that extreme heat , for example , brings and are rightly looking at how they can mitigate the resulting risks when it comes to their data centre operations . Our service teams have proved invaluable in providing the guidance and support required to not only manage the immediate impact , but to discuss with customers how they can plan ahead to build in resiliency moving forward .”
To keep systems cool and help ensure data centre availability , Vertiv experts recommend these immediate actions :
• Depending on the data hall load , run as many units as possible to reduce the load on each cooling unit . Typically , an organisation would run all redundant units , but if the IT load is not 100 %, one should run enough units to get the per-cooling unit as close as possible . This keeps the refrigerant pressures lower so there is not a risk of trips on high pressure with the high ambient temperature . It also provides a more efficient operating point .
• Schedule a regular maintenance plan . Vertiv recommends its customers schedule preventive maintenance quarterly . For compressor-based ( DX ) units , Vertiv recommends quarterly or more frequent cleaning of the condenser coils . The lack of proper and regular cleaning of the condenser coil can cause more of a reduction in the overall thermal unit capacity than the ambient temperature itself . Additionally , properly maintaining the refrigerant charge level helps to enable the design capacity and operating efficiency to function smoothly . A refrigerant charge that is too low or too high , can cause operational inefficiencies .
“ The unprecedented temperatures we ’ re seeing across the globe are putting increased pressure on data centre operators and infrastructure providers , challenging them to maintain reliability and connectivity ,” said Steve Madara , Vice President for Thermal Sales at Vertiv . “ Extreme weather events underscore the importance of a robust preventive maintenance and cleaning plan , tailored to the specific conditions of an operator ’ s region . Data centre operators may need to be prepared for operating expense trade-offs to compensate for oversizing capacity . Partnering with a qualified data centre services provider is important in order to create a maintenance and services plan that will meet the demands of today ’ s heat waves and tomorrow ’ s uncertain climate .”
As the planet continues to warm and the climate crisis intensifies , extreme heat events will become even more commonplace . Short-term actions will need to be accompanied by more longterm , systemic changes in the industry .
THE UNPRECEDENTED TEMPERATURES WE ’ RE SEEING ACROSS THE GLOBE ARE PUTTING INCREASED PRESSURE ON DATA CENTRE OPERATORS AND INFRASTRUCTURE PROVIDERS . www . intelligentdatacentres . com
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