CONNECTIONS_64-e

Trends
Small Draft –
Major Impact
030.7927
Data centers already consume three percent of the electricity generated worldwide.
By 2030, they will account for four percent. Cooling consumes half the energy costs.
And that means when data centers want to save costs, use energy more efficiently, and
quickly improve their carbon footprint, they achieve great leverage in cooling.
One of the most important energy-saving
options for data centers is undoubtedly
cooling management. It includes detailed
sensors embedded in an intelligent DCIM as
well as innovative cooling systems and strict
control of airflow.
Even a small and uncontrolled draft has a
major impact. The countless gaps, holes and
slots in the racks allow a lot of cooling air to
flow away uselessly to the side. According
to Graphical Research*, typical data centers
waste up to 50 percent of the cooling airflow.
This flows unused into the computer room
or back to the CRAC/CRAH fans instead of
flowing through the racks and IT equipment.
Many operators generate a low-temperature
climate of 16 to 18 degrees Celsius in the
computer room in order to achieve a cooling
effect based on outdated models. Some
run fans at high speed. Others allow warm
exhaust air from the rear side of the racks to
circulate into areas that should remain cool.
Indispensable enclosures
Closed enclosures or curtains can strictly
separate the rack corridors into cold aisle
and warm aisle. They ensure that the cold air
flowing from the sub-floor stays in the cold
aisle first. This is indispensable in larger data
centers today. The BladeCube enclosures in
combination with T7 BladeShelter cabinets
from R&M Tecnosteel are sophisticated
solutions.
It comes down to small, simple details to
ensure cold and warm air no longer mix. The
cable guides can be sealed with brushes.
Cleverly constructed brackets, screens,
lamellas, lips and dummy plugs close gaps and
empty slots in the racks. Market researchers
from Gartner* say that seals that are not
technically complex can save ten percent of
the power consumption for cooling.
Every percent more perforation in the front
and rear doors of cabinets helps to avoid
congestion and hotspots. R&M’s T7 cabinets
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