To know if a company or entity needs a Micro Data Center (MDC), the first thing to be clear about is what it is and what infrastructures it is made of.
A Micro Data Center is a modular solution that contains all those necessary facilities for the operation of the equipment with maximum reliability and efficiency. In summary or in other words, it is a mini Data Processing Center (DPC) which can be provided with the highest levels of security and redundancy in a smaller space. Inside it contains all the necessary elements in a CPD: UPS, precision air conditioning with inverter equipment, early detection and extinction systems using NOVEC agent, intelligent PDUs for remote management of consumption and switch-off-switch-ons, alarm monitoring and temperature control -humidity, among others.
Note that the level of security is important as an enclosure with IP-55 and IE-30, anti-vandalism, as well as the control access on both the front and rear doors.
Although there are numerous reasons why GESAB recommends that a corporation implement a Micro Data Center, the following are the ten points most consulted by customers and which are important to highlight:
1. “I don’t have the necesary investment to develop a work installation for a conventional Data Center.”
In the implementation of a conventional data center there are factors that increase the investment, such as the fireproof enclosure and seals or the volume of gas to be used in the event of an automatic extinction, in addition to the fact that it is necessary to have a large floor space. These costs are minimized by implementing a compact MDC that does not have the need to allocate a room for it, so the footprint is minimal.
2. “My company doesn’t have an own facility, I am renting one and I will be moving shortly.”
Nowadays companies usually move ffrom one place to another, searching for cheaper rentals or offices with other needs. The advantage of a Micro Data Center is that the equipment can be collected and, due to its ease of transport, move to the new facility taking advantage of the investment made.
3. “I must install my Data Center in a hostile environment.”
The Micro Data Center is a very adecuate solution for very hostile environments, how can it be the interior of an industrilized warehouse, due to its tightness and level of fire resistance, since it can be located at any point in the same warehouse without being affected by the environment or dust generated.
4. “The installation must be made in a remote and hard-to-reach location.”
This easily transportable, small-volumen and easy-to-installa solution is very practical to implement Darta Centers in remote or hard-to-reach places where generating conventional rooms would be much more complicated and expensive.
5. “The installation of my Data Center must be fast and delays must avoided in the completion of the project.”
The Micro Data Centers are solutions that are factory tested, so the execution time on site is greatly reduced, as well as all the inconveniences generated by it. This translates into cost reductions, both for project management and for project management, and an extra operational advantage.
On the other hand, the increase in costs and delays during the execution process due to possible modifications or aspects not taken into account are avoided, being able to have a fully operational Data Center in a few days without the problems generated by a conventional work.
Similarly, any expansion of the project generated later will have a much lower impact on the infrastructure already installed, avoiding incurring costs associated with downtime.
6. “I don’t know how much will my company grow or which needs it will have in the future.”
Sometimes corporations are not clear about how far they will grow due to the dependence on various variables, such as the increase in their own business or new needs of the company given its evolution. The Micro Data Center enables a modular investment, keeping pace with demand, meeting power needs as needed.
Growth can be done by assembling equipment, which also helps to achieve system redundancies, including conditioning machines or UPS.
7. “I need my CPD to be more efficient and have a close thermal load to evacuate and without losses.”
A Micro Data Center is an isolated and watertight system, so heat generation is treated at the point of origin, managing the separation of hot and cold air, which improves efficiency by raising the return temperature to the air conditioning equipment. This, together with the use of equipment with EC fans and inverter, completes a perfect solution. In addition, creating a front cold aisle ensures optimal cold air intake conditions to servers or equipment.
8. “I need a fast data management with close processing capacity.”
Today, the amount of information that must be controlled and analyzed has increased exponentially. Technology has put on the table the possibility of obtaining information instantly that facilitates decision-making about the business or about its own more automated operation.
In sectors such as industry, a large amount of information will need to be collected through sensorization, which must then be processed quickly to make automatic decisions. Latency, for example, will become more important, so it will be necessary to install small Data Centers close to the point of generation (Edge Computing), being the Micro Data Center an ideal solution for this casuistry.
Other sectors -public services, health, transport of the retail sector- are inmersed in a great growth of the IoT and are already having demand for Edge Computing solutions in MDC format, being this growth unstoppable.
9. “I don’t have technical staff on site.”
The MDC, being a compact solution, allows remote control and monitoring of everything that is happening in the installation of the company to act directly on it or request an emergency action from the contracted expert maintenance service. The equipment is autonomous and with a high level of physical security, so human error due to mishandling is greatly reduced, and the remote control allows its management, for example, on the parameters of the air conditioning equipment.
10. “I only need a back-up center.”
More and more information can be managed and processed in less rack usage through virtualization and other technologies. This means that Micro Data Centers can be used as back-up centers because they offer very good performance, reliability and security for the equipment, as well as the possibility of making a very contained investment.