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CoolFlex: Next-Generation Data Center Cooling Oct. 16, 2009
Along with power consumption headaches for data centers, cooling issues have resurfaced not just as one of the recurring problems of the past few years, but as one of the central technological battles of the period. In a recent study, Michael Bell, research vice president at Gartner Inc., indicated that power and cooling is a pandemic in the data center space. As data grows at unprecedented rates and as demands for computing power rise to unchartered levels, the data centers are growing hotter and more power-hungry.
The heat problem is pitting energy consumption against space-efficiency. As new technologies allow for denser, smaller, and more efficient servers, heat loads in data centers rise. Sites could either push thermal management equipment to work at full capacity, consuming large amounts of energy, or data centers could install fewer servers per rack and fewer racks per room, incurring additional costs for more data center space. Both options entail costs and structural restrictions, and create an array of complications.
At the heart of the problem lies efficiency. Gains in cooling efficiency directly translate to better energy use and less space consumption, and the race is on to find new cooling solutions that would enable data center operators to maximize investments.
Enter CoolFlex. The system utilizes ‘Cold Aisle Containment,’ a cooling technique designed to ensure that the cold air flowing though raised floors are channeled through cabinets and that installed servers are provided with consistent cold air over the entire height of the cabinet.
The systems protect against known cooling problems. Containment entails that the usual hot and cold air mix near the ceiling do not impact the cold aisle, and that hot air short cuts are no longer possible. That in turn entails that less cold air is required to cool the facility. As the heat loads climb to new heights, CoolFlex systems allow businesses to keep pace with denser servers. The systems epitomize Emerson Network Power’s vision for progress; the company understands that next-generation debacles require next-generation ideas.
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