The wrong & right way to do InRow Cooling

One of the biggest concerns within the Data Center when it comes to operational costs is cooling. As electricity prices and IT power consumption continue to rise, IT-related energy costs are getting increased scrutiny.

With the adoption of virtualization many businesses are experiencing the shrinking Data Center Syndrome. Put simply they are now cooling rooms that are too large for the equipment being housed in them. These older, larger room CRAC units are not able to scale down and keep up with the changing whitespace. Since cooling accounts for approximately 37 percent or more of electricity usage having a remedy represents a significant opportunity to reduce IT energy costs.

InRow scalable cooling that can grow with your Data Center is a way to combat these issues while maintaining control over operational costs.

Emerson; a pioneer in the field of Precision Cooling, is who we recommend as they have supported the Data Center market around the world for more than 40 years. The Liebert CRV is a precision air conditioner designed for data centers and IT equipment that require advanced temperature and humidity control.

Here is a list of advantages for the CRV product line outlining their superior and innovative features.  

• The Liebert CRV has an adjustable supply Air Baffle System that allows the supply air to be directed left, right, or both directions and target hotspots with focused cooling unlike just blindly blows air out the front of the unit.

• Air volume control. The Liebert CRV distributes air up to 6-7 racks down an aisle unlike wider air conditioners which struggle to cool the same number of racks. Some other units achieve this type of performance by using twice the amount of airflow wasting an enormous amount of energy in the process.

• Liebert units have a lower supply opening where the air leaves the front of the Liebert CRV through an opening on the lower two-thirds of the unit providing a user friendly work environment by not having thousands of CFM blown into your eyes.

• Using a Digital Scroll Compressor allows the Liebert CRV to run at a lower minimum heat load than. Capacity modulation is achieved without an inverter, eliminating the chance of imposing electromagnetic interference (EMI harmonics) on the UPS system which can prevent a transfer switch from functioning. The EMI created by the Liebert CRV’s small EC plug fans is insignificant for most sites.

• The Liebert CRV has a low noise level thanks to the supply air baffle system. The unit is able to slow down its fans further than comparable InRow products and also use less energy and operate quieter while still providing the same performance.

• The Liebert CRV is by far more energy efficient than most units; the numbers vary, but it can be as high as 60% less energy usage.

• Rack sensors used with the CRV eliminate assumptions on cooling requirements and wasteful operations further increasing energy savings.

• Liebert’s iCOM control is what ties together and leverages all of the individual component benefits. Varying the speed of the fans, educes operating noise, prevents over and under cooling, reduces the need to add humidification, and reduces reheat runtime. The large graphical screens with custom help menus make interacting with the unit an easy and enjoyable.

• Excellent filtration. The Liebert CRV has been designed to meet and exceed ASHRAE’s filtration standards. MERV 8 or MERV 11 filters are available as standard with no reduction in unit performance.

• Containment Friendly. Liebert OptimzedAisle provides enhanced levels of performance and greater protection from containment failure modes and has control algorithms specifically designed for cold aisle containment.

• The Liebert CRV has been designed so that all service and maintenance can be performed through the front and rear of the unit while installed between server racks in a live data center.

• Compressor Access. RotoLock fittings are attached to the compressor allowing the compressor to be removed from the unit without having to evacuate the refrigerant charge. They also allow the compressor to be disconnected without having to use a torch and the Vibasorber allows the refrigerant piping to be swung away from the compressor during compressor removal – eliminating the need to cut and then re-braze piping.

• Easy fan accessibility. Liebert’s CRV variable speed EC plug fans are mounted on the rear door that swings out into the aisle for all side access.

• Liebert CRV’s system components are located on the bottom half of the unit, isolated from the airstream, allowing a technician to performance minor maintenance on the unit while it is fully operational.

• The electric panel on the Liebert CRV is mounted at shoulder height, facing the cold aisle, making it easy to work on.

As you can see the Liebert InRow precision cooling units have features that not only make operations and upkeep easy but also the installation.

For more information or a consultation email eds@datcominc.com or call 1-800-427-2055.

How to Select the Right UPS System

Selecting UPS systems for your environment can be confusing with the number of manufactures and different levels of protection available today. As UPS failures are the number one reason for downtime within the data center environment, I would say that it is of the utmost importance for any enterprise or critical infrastructure to have the right protection in place.

Also with the increase in the implementation of Edge IT, the local infrastructure used to support offsite applications and hardware are evolving from a, “nice to have”, to a “must have” scenario. In order to lend transparency to the selection of appropriately matched UPS systems and critical components I have listed below the three main UPS systems available today, along with the benefits and advantages of each.

1. Off-Line or (Standby) UPS systems.

These offline un-interruptible power supplies provide cost-effective power protection against outages and basic filtering as well as surge protection and are ideal for Home office, small business work stations and some POS systems.

Disadvantages:

• Does not protect against most power anomalies, including voltage fluctuations.
• Battery cycles are increased.
• Transfer to battery when utility power is lost results in a load interruption.
• Not suited for generator applications.
• NON-MISSION CRITICAL in business.

1. Line Interactive UPS systems.

Interactive UPS systems provide a medium level of power protection against outages with some voltage conditioning as well as basic filtering and surge protection. They are generally ideal for small business work stations and some networking devices.

Disadvantages:

• Offers limited power conditioning.
• Battery cycles are increased.
• No isolation from input source.
• Not suited for generator applications.
• NON-MISSION CRITICAL.
• No Internal Bypass.

1. Online or (Double Conversion) UPS Systems

Double conversation systems offer the most comprehensive power protection against all types of power anomalies and have a Zero-transfer time to battery. That means your power is always online and is never interrupted. Some manufacturers have an optional internal bypass available and this unit is ideal for Mission Critical IT applications and generator applications.

 Disadvantages:

• Efficiency (dual conversion process consumes power)

The bottom line is; that it does not matter how expensive or powerful a piece of hardware or server is, if the foundational power and UPS system is not sufficient, than your IT network is put needlessly at risk. The same can be said for the batteries used within the UPS system which are just as important. Don’t just look at the price; look at the longevity of the batteries themselves, like you would when you are buying a cell phone. Enterprise and Data Center systems need and call for Enterprise batteries and UPS solutions.

The last piece of the puzzle when considering what UPS systems to install and purchase is the warranty and service levels which are available. More and more companies are reducing their IT staff and being asked to increase their responsibilities and systems like UPSs which are only really noticed when a catastrophic event happens are apt to be overlooked or ignored.  Finding a partner you can rely on to monitor, install and proactively manage these systems can save businesses hours of downtime and thousands of dollars.

If you are experiencing any of the following pain points, we have a solution for you.  

Give us a call (1-800-427-2055)

1. Short battery lifespan
2. Unexplainable equipment lock ups or freezes
3. Limited resources to remove and install UPSs?
4. Worried about environmentally safe UPS disposal?
5. Concerned about downtime and time to repair?
6. Dealing with difficult to staff and manage business-critical closets or rooms?
7. Concerned about MTTR?
8. Trouble managing multi-site rollouts?

           

Datcom is a proud partner of Liebert and Emerson Network Power UPS Systems. Not only do they have a great breadth of products to support everything from Desktops to full blown Data Center power distribution. Emerson also has the smallest online double conversion UPS 500VA, and also the largest capacity single phase UPS which is 20kVA, 18kW APS.

Emerson also has hundreds of professionals that support their robust products which are backed by the best warranty in the business., this is a two-year, no-hassle warranty.

If anything happens to your unit, including a battery failure, Liebert will replace your complete UPS and pay overnight shipping out to you and paid return shipping from you. Liebert also offers optional one-year and three-year extended warranties.

Their product diversity is only eclipsed by their Power Assurance Package and Life Services offerings, which make Liebert a front runner in the Enterprise UPS Solution landscape.

Too learn more about Picking the right UPS for your Data Center or request an onsite consultation email eds@datcominc.com or call 1-800-427-2055

 UPS selector and cross reference tool

Learn why Critical Systems deserve more than a battery back-up.

Download the free Trellis Insight UPS Monitoring Software here.

How to Maintain Visibility & Control at the IT edge.

 

 

More companies than ever before are looking to save on IT operational costs by outsourcing their IT Infrastructure and focus on their core businesses. Colocation, cloud and hybrid systems are becoming the norm and being leveraged for their scalability, availability and redundancy. As the adoption of this technology grows and applications and hardware are pushed out to the cloud, the IT Edge is becoming the most critical point of many business models.

Maintaining visibility and control is no longer a luxury, but a necessity to ensure the competitive nature of the business in the market place. With the growth of the IoT (Internet of Things) it will soon become impossible for businesses to deal with or absorb the impact of network and data center downtime.

These demands placed on companies due to the digital transformation of the world, call for a solid and dependable IT Edge solution. These solutions will have to bring to the forefront of IT planning, and IT commissioning, both accessibility and security.

Here are the top considerations for keeping pace with the transformation:

1.    Security and Accessibility

2.    Server and Serial device management

3.    IT Edge availability

4.    Out of Band management

5.    Cellular fail over and redundancy

6.    Onsite expertise and IT services

7.    Consolidated IT rollouts and ease of purchase

8.    Single pane software for asset management

9.    Software monitoring and alarms

10. Data center capacity and power planning

11. Consistency across branches

12. A low MTTR (Mean time to Repair)

The driving factors of cloud computing, mobile computing and IoT are changing the landscape of the digital information age and must be matched with solutions that address these concerns.

Ask us about our Smart Solutions offerings which address these concerns and will enable you to make this transition easy.