First of all, its nickname is Merlin. Second, it’s supposed to be the greenest data center extant. These factors place CapGemini’s newest venture high on the list of coolest data centers as well as greenest.
So, say the industry average PUE is about 2.5 - Merlin’s is just 1.08. The Reuters news article doesn’t go into as much detail as one could wish about how exactly this exemplary PUE is sustained, but it does discuss the cooling technique which is a part of it all, and more information is available at ZDNet.
The data center was built in a recycled facility, a warehouse in Swindon in the Southwest of England, and is very adjustable in size. CapGemini is using a self-contained modular system which is scalable to their changing needs.
Their cooling is quite innovative and uses five stages to cool air in an extremely energy-efficient process. A combination of filters, water, fans, and outside air work together to keep the data center at a reasonable temperature while maintaining high standards of environmental friendliness.
Merlin is the face of the modern data center - in a recycled space, with cutting-edge environmentally-conscious technology, high flexibility, and a cool name. Cementing its position as the greenest data center out there, the UK’s Environment Agency is the first customer Merlin is hosting.
Apparently simply slowing down IT equipment in the data center solves the problem of the equipment overheating in all this summer heat.
Outages at universities can be especially catastrophic since some research projects that their facilities are working on may require continuous processing, and an outage can completely reset the whole affair.
Cooling in these facilities is pretty reliable, but in the intensive summer heat many data centers are at risk, especially as global warming heats things up.
The technique Purdue specialists have developed to take care of the extra strain on their systems means the equipment will operate at a less than perfect rate, but won’t completely crash. It involves using normal power saving features but also limiting the energy and cooling everything requires to function. It’s an adjustable system so as soon as the threat to cooling continuity is resolved, everything can go back to normal. See the article at Campus Technology to learn more about why Patrick Finnegan, a campus sys-admin, is being hailed as a data center hero.
Elizabeth English
photo by agius under flickr creative commons license
Interestingly, Viridity Software, based in Massachusetts, reckons it can provide a more affordable solution to data center energy management than the typical use of sensors. The startup has raised $8 million in funding to market this software-based management system they’ve developed.
The software would cost just $500 per rack to implement, and would provide important information about server performance and power usage, so data center operators can sort out which servers are using more energy than they ought to be and which are being under-used. This information can then, of course, be used to adjust settings to maximize power efficiency. The software, called EnergyCenter, also provides direction on how best to lay out equipment in the physical space of the data center.
The software is more affordable than the more typical strategy of using wireless sensors and although it may not provide every detail that those wireless sensors would it has its strong points.
APC by Schneider Electric has come out with an interesting new cooling system. It’s an overhead system which uses a somewhat environmentally-sound refrigerant instead of water for cooling, so that equipment isn’t in danger from water leaks and is effectively cooled in an energy-efficient format.
The InRow® OA and Refrigerant Distribution Unit (RDU) pumped refrigerant cooling system is very adaptable to different data center environments because of its modular nature and adjustable fans. After being mounted on a rack or installed over a hot aisle, the equipment works by taking in hot air and then cooling it with the refrigerant and re-releasing it into the wild of the data center.
The Green Gorilla objects slightly to the use of R134a as a refrigerant, however. The site for APC products notes that it has no ozone depletion potential, but according to the article about the chemical on Wikipedia, it does have other negative impacts on the environment like global warming potential. In fact it’s being banned in all new cars in the European Union starting in 2011. It may be safer for equipment but we still have to consider its impact on the environment.
A key focus of the report, since Grubb & Ellis is a firm specializing in advisory on commercial real estate, is factors involved in site-selection for data centers.
An important and complicated factor to consider is the trend of states offering tax-incentives to attract data center construction. These incentives are pretty competitive, since sales-tax and property-tax end up costing quite a lot of money, and the report breaks down what’s going on in this respect with various states.
The report also covers other typical factors like details of power availability and affordability, and potential trouble from natural disasters.
A point of particular interest to companies looking to build should be the report’s discussion of areas like Chicago and Northern Virginia which are comparatively low on data centers and are trying to attract more facilities.
Download the full report here for more detailed information on all these topics and others. For companies looking to build or move, the information about tax incentives and power should be especially helpful.
The report gives a good summary of what’s going on in data centers around the US so far this year.
Data Center Blog - Data Center Migration Experts
So, say the industry average PUE is about 2.5 - Merlin’s is just 1.08. 
Apparently simply slowing down IT equipment in the data center solves the problem of the equipment overheating in all this summer heat.
affordable solution to data center energy management than the typical use of sensors. The startup has raised $8 million in funding to market this software-based management system they’ve developed.
APC by Schneider Electric has come out with an interesting new cooling system. It’s an overhead system which uses a somewhat environmentally-sound refrigerant instead of water for cooling, so that equipment isn’t in danger from water leaks and is effectively cooled in an energy-efficient format.
A key focus of the report, since Grubb & Ellis is a firm specializing in advisory on commercial real estate, is factors involved in site-selection for data centers.
