Data
centres themselves are a sign of the future of ICT and technology. As data
becomes an increasingly valuable commodity, so does its safe and secure
storage. Like with any new technology, the initial improvements are great and
often, with innovation in data centres developing, often, faster than the
industry overall can keep up. As data centres continue to try to find new ways
of increasing storage, cooling and staying sustainable, the industry is constantly
seeking out more extreme lengths to stay ahead of the competition.
Sustainability:
As structures that use an incredible amount of power,
renewable energy is extremely important to the everyday running of a data
centre. Citigroup has developed arguably the most sustainable data centre in
the world at its site
in Frankfurt. As part of Citigroup’s 2008 pledge of $50 billion to combat
climate change, the data centre has been built to use 25% less electrical
energy than a conventional centre. It will also release 11,000 tonnes less of
CO2 into the atmosphere annually than the sites run by their competitors.
Furthermore, the structure has an entirely “green” roof and outer wall, covered
in plant life which directly benefits the centre, using reverse osmosis to
dramatically reduce the amount of sediment in the centre’s cooling tanks.
Safety:
As far as safe places to build something goes, a former NATO
bunker is pretty tough to beat. This is exactly what both Green Mountain has
done, as their DC1-Stavenger centre is based in a former NATO ammunitions
bunker, providing numerous benefits. Firstly, the subterranean nature of the
facility means they use gravity to harness nearby water from fjords and streams
to cool the entire facility using only free, natural resources. Secondly, the
air-tight facility is so low on oxygen that it would be nearly impossible for a
fire to break out without the proper levels of O2. It was also built to withstand
nuclear attacks, so is structural integrity won’t be an issue!
Smart:
eBay is recognised as one of the largest digital brands in
the world, and as such require a huge amount of personal data to be stored for
its customers. Keeping these server racks cool enough to work 24/7 would
necessitate full-time data
centre jobs dedicated to cooling, at great continued expense to both
companies. However, the online brand is pioneering the use of Artificial
Intelligence (AI) to monitor and maintain the cooling process. eBay’s centre in
South Jordan, a country where constant cooling is of great importance due to
the incessant heat, uses AI apparatus to monitor the temperature as it rises
and falls in each server. It then alerts the cooling system automatically and
distributes cool air only to where and when it is needed. This smart
temperature regulation system has saved eBay up to 50% on its costs associated
with cooling since its inception.
Sub-zero:
Antarctica is probably the last place you’d think about
setting up a company HQ. However, when the location is necessary for scientific
research, such as at the Ice Cube Neutrino
Observatory, then data storage in sub-zero temperatures is a problem that
requires facing. The location is unreachable for months on end, and therefore
needs to be essentially self-sustaining as far as its 1,200 computing cores are
concerned. With even the warmest summer temperatures as low as -20 degrees
Celsius, challenges include staggering staff contracts so that the workforce is
weighted more towards the summer months, where the team try and get as much of
the physical maintenance work done as possible. This means that during the
proceeding colder months, where temperatures can drop as low as -60 degrees
Celsius, there is a far reduced need to physically venture to the centre to
carry out repairs.
Submerged:
Microsoft’s “Project
Natick”, undertaken over several years, is their continued research effort
vying to create data centres which are sustainable and built for the future. In
2015, as part of the project, Microsoft attempted to, and succeeded in, fully submerging
a small data centre in the ocean off the coast of Scotland. The 40-foot long,
864 server data centre can be left lights out and unmanned on the seabed for
years and benefit from the free cooling provided by the sea itself, reducing
running costs massively. It also potentially places data centres closer to
areas than before, leading to faster connectivity for more remote islands, for
example.
Data centre jobs at QCS Staffing
At QCS Staffing, our ICT and Data centres team are always on the
lookout for innovative people for their roles. Find your next data centre or ICT jobs here
through our job
search facility, or find out more about how we can help you.
