Assessment Services using the Performance IndicatorData center cooling assessments to quantify cooling performance and enable your business service delivery

© 2016 Future Facilities www.6sigmadcx.com

Performance-Based Operational Planning PI Assessment ServicesMaintaining a data center that is reliable and cost efficient - all the while with the agility to accommodate shifting business demands and technological innovation - is a must. But these requirements can pull in opposing directions. A focus on efficiency will affect resilience, and flexibility can be inefficient; potentially with adverse effects on data center performance.

The industry is now recognizing the need to better quantify performance, and assess the effects of changes in operation.

Quantifying PerformanceAdoption of the power usage effectiveness (PUE™) metric as a measure of energy efficiency has positively impacted the industry from both an environmental and cost effectiveness standpoint. However, PUE is often extrapolated to be an overview of a data center’s performance, and the lack of other metrics means that vital aspects of true performance have long been overlooked.

To develop a more complete view of performance, we can look towards some key data center objectives in conjunction with energy efficiency: adequate cooling throughout the facility’s lifetime, and resilience in those unlikely but possible cases of cooling failure. These can be quantified by The Green Grid’s (TGG) calculations for IT Thermal Conformance and IT Thermal Resilience.

The generation of new metrics alone is not enough. Using isolated metrics to quantify data center performance can be misleading, so we need to consider their interaction with one another. Striving for improvement in one area is likely to impact the others – possibly to their detriment, and at a cost to the business.

Facility performance targets are set during design and commissioning. Since few things perform exactly as intended, be it down to assumptions in

Future Facilities uses a combination of measurement and simulation techniques to calculate the PI metrics. These can then be used to evaluate your current data center performance and visualize the effects of future operational plans. Carrying out a PI assessment during the design phase can validate intended performance, helping you to define the PI target range and compare design configurations.

There are four levels of PI assessment, as defined by The Green Grid in the Performance Indicator whitepaper. The infographics show the information needed and deliverables available for each level.

design or gradual changes over time, we can gauge a lot by acknowledging this loss in performance.

The Green Grid’s Performance IndicatorThe Green Grid has brought together industry experts to create the Performance Indicator (PI) - a novel approach to assessing data center cooling performance.

The spider diagram displays the uniquely defined metrics:

• PUE ratio (PUEr) – expressing PUE in relation to intended operation in the form of energy efficiency ratings (A-G).

• IT Thermal Conformance – ensuring the IT operates at suitable air inlet temperatures.

• IT Thermal Resilience – minimizing the risk of equipment overheat in the cases of cooling failure and planned maintenance.

Using the PI, we can:

• Visualize the balance between the metrics and show how they interact in your facility.

• Set target ranges for each metric based on business needs, IT criticality and facility design.

• Track performance over the facility’s lifetime in relation to your predetermined targets.

• Test and compare your operational plans before real-life implementation.

Uses basic on-site measurements (sensors and thermal imaging) to quickly determine current state. Good simple starting point for rack level assessment.

TGG Level 1

Deliverables

3D Model Current PI ReportMeasurement Site Survey

Requirements

TGG Level 2Uses refined measured data to calculate current state. Good starting point if equipment level monitoring is in place.

DCIMMonitoring Site Survey

Requirements Deliverables

3D Model Current PI Report

TGG Level 3Uses engineering simulation and client data to assess current and future states.Good starting point for assessing operational plans at a rack level.

DWGCAD Drawings Simulation

Requirements

Model & Results Current PI

DeliverablesJanuary

Predicted PI Report

TGG Level 4Uses a calibrated 3D simulation model - verified against measured data - to calculate current and future states. Good starting point for a complete and accurate view of performance at an equipment level.

Calibration Simulation

Requirements

Site Survey

January

Current PI

Deliverables

Predicted PI ReportAudit Model & Results

An example PI (above) displays the three calculated performance metrics compared with the target range.

IT Thermal Resilience

PUEr(A)IT Thermal

Conformance

70%

80%

100%

90%

Target Range

© 2016 Future Facilities www.6sigmadcx.com

Future Facilities KKs2 bldg. 5F, 2-15-22 shinjuKushinjuKu-Ku, toKyo 160-0022japan

tel: +81 (0) 3 5312 8070Fax: +81 (0) 3 5312 8071

jp-inFo@FutureFacilities.com

Future Facilities inc.2055 gateway place, suite 110 san jose, ca 95110 usa

tel: +1 408 436 7701Fax: +1 408 436 7705

email: inFo@FutureFacilities.com

Future Facilities ltd.1 salamanca streetlondon, se1 7hxunited Kingdom

tel: +44 (0) 20 7840 9540Fax: +44 (0) 20 7091 7171

email: inFo@FutureFacilities.com

Since 2004, Future Facilities has provided computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software and consultancy services to the world’s largest data center owner-operators and to the industry’s leading consultancies. With global offices, our managed engineering services and modeling software are relied on to deliver unique insight into the current and future performance of our clients’ mission critical data centers. We call our approach ‘engineering simulation’.

About Future Facilities

For more information about the Performance Indicator and our service levels, contact your local Future Facilities representative.

Learn More

Assess. Improve. Maintain.