Datacentre cooling and standby power evolve to meet increasing demand

In an increasingly digital world, data centres are becoming the backbone of modern life, supporting everything from cloud computing and online services to critical infrastructure and emerging technologies.

As data centres continue to expand and house more powerful servers, the demand for increased reliability has increased. Meeting these needs is an evolution from traditional building management systems (BMS) to programmable logic controllers (PLC).

Two key areas that have benefited are effective cooling and standby power to keep datacentres always online.

Using a PLC control system for data centre cooling and standby power, offers advantages over traditional building management systems.

PLCs are designed for industrial automation, providing robust and precise control, which is essential for maintaining the stringent cooling requirements of modern data centres and the sequence of operation for standby power.

Enhanced cybersecurity among other benefits

One significant benefit of PLCs is their enhanced cybersecurity features. PLC systems can integrate with advanced cybersecurity hardware and software, providing multiple layers of protection against cyber threats. This is vital for data centres, where security breaches can lead to significant downtime and data loss. PLCs can support secure communication protocols through configuration to help keep your systems secure.

Another important advantage of a PLC solution is their ability to provide true redundancy. Data centres require continuous operation, and any downtime can be costly. PLC systems can be designed with redundancy options, ensuring that there is always a backup system ready to take over in case of a failure. This redundancy minimises the risk of downtime and ensures that the buildings systems always remain operational.

In addition to the operational and financial impacts, a power outage can severely damage a data centre's brand reputation. Clients rely on data centres for uninterrupted service, and any downtime can lead to a loss of trust and credibility. This can result in negative publicity, customer dissatisfaction, and potential loss of business. Ensuring robust power management and redundancy systems is not only crucial for operational efficiency but also for maintaining a strong and reliable brand image.

Routeco is helping existing datacentres to modernise and new sites discover how PLC systems offer superior reliability, enhanced cybersecurity, and robust redundancy making them an excellent choice for managing the increased requirements of data centres compared to traditional BMS.

Darren Spearing - Market Development Manager Routeco Group