I have been involved in the telecommunications industry as long as I can remember. One of my best memorys is sitting on a packing crate at age 8, helping my Dad install equipment in a small central office in Okalona, Arkansas. I was strapping blocks (wiring) for a STEP installation.I have worked for several ILECs including Bellsouth
In the mid 80s as the line between IT and Telecom began to blur, I became more involved with IT and networks. During that time I earned several Microsoft and Cisco certifications.
My latest venture is working for Hardy Services and getting something called Site Support Services started.
The Site Support Services Department was created to offer turnkey support for Mission Critical Infrastructure. We instal , reapir and service all types of data center cooling , UPS and power systems, fire suppression systems, acces flooring, data center security access control and video.
Although I am very familiar with Information Technology and the facilities that maintain that infrastructure, the mechanical side is new to me. I am learning as I go with the help of lots of folks here at Hardy and all the online training available to the industry.
I thought I would share my "learning experiences".
In this recent article in "the Register" Intel is floating the concept of data centers being too cool and thus wasting power. See http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/08/31/data_centers_run_too_cool/.
I believe that several things need to be researched before we make a mass exodus to 80 degree F+ server rooms. The article mentions warranties from manufacturuers that specifically become null and void if the equipment reaches certain temperature levels. Although Intel is raising the question , they did not appear to be making any modifications to the terms of their warranties. This will bear some careful study and testing.
Gary,
In fact, it's not at all unusual for data centers to be running cooler than needed and wasting energy. One reason is that there is a "hot spot" in a very small part of the data center.
In fact, ASHRAE revised it's TC9.9 standard for the environmental conditions of data centers in the last year or so. The new standard allows a broader temperature range to be used in the data center. This change was made with ASHRAE working with server manufacturers. Newer servers are being released that are more tolerant of warmer temperatures.
That said, you're quite right, this is not a subject to jump into lightly. But I also think you will start to see the temperatures slowly creep up compared to a few years ago, when data centers were running very cool....