Thursday, July 17, 2008

Tips for Handling Data Center Moves and Shortages of Space

Look for PTS Data Center Solutions in the July 11th issue of Processor magazine (Vol.30, Issue 28).

Kurt Marko interviewed me for the feature article, “Need More Data Center Space?: IT Managers Are Faced With Options Ranging From Simple Housekeeping To Major Construction”. Adding data center space can be a complex and costly issue. If your data center runs out of room, the basic options are 1) reorganize and consolidate to get the most out of your existing space, 2) upgrade your technology to increase density, 3) call in a contractor to renovate and expand your current facility, 4) add on a data center in a box, or 5) build a bigger-better data center. Marko’s article discusses your options and gives a rundown of the pros/cons of each.

Michael Petrino, vice president at PTS Data Center Solutions, also appears in this issue of Processor. In Bruce Gain’s article, “Data Center Moving Day: There Is No Such Thing As ‘Over Planning’”, Michael shares his thoughts on how to prepare for a data center relocation project. Topics covered include the overall planning process, what to look for when hiring professional movers, the costs of up-time and down-time, transport options, and other complications.

Click on the links above to read the articles, or view the entire issue as a PDF.

Tuesday, July 01, 2008

Data Center Energy Summit 2008

On June 26th, the Silicon Valley Leadership Group (SVLG) held its first Data Center Energy Summit in Santa Clara, CA. The industry event focused on issues involving data center sustainability, energy efficiency and green computing.

In conjunction with Accenture and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), the SVLG also unveiled a report containing real world case studies from its Energy Efficient Data Center Demonstration Project. You can download the report here: http://accenture.com/SVLGreport. Put together in response to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s report to Congress on data center energy efficiency, the report examines a number of innovative energy-saving initiatives.

Ken Oestreich from Cassatt points out in his blog that the bulk of the projects focused on improving infrastructure. He raises the following point:

My take is that the industry is addressing the things it knows and feels comfortable with: wires, pipes, ducts, water, freon, etc. Indeed, these are the ‘low-hanging fruit’ of opportunities to reduce data center power. But why aren't IT equipment vendors addressing the other side of the problem: Compute equipment and how it's operated?


I agree with Oestreich that methods for reducing the energy consumption of IT equipment definitely need to be explored further, but I think this report is a great step forward for the industry in terms of validating the EPA’s research and providing actionable data. I’m sure we’ll see more regarding IT equipment operations in future research.

As a side note, Data Center Knowledge has set up a calendar to help data center professionals keep track of upcoming industry events. Check it out: DataCenterConferences.com.