subject: Chiller Hire For Facilities Management Companies [print this page] Across the UK, many office blocks, big hotels, leisure centres, educational establishments, shopping complexes, hospitals and other large buildings and premises are managed not by an in-house department, but by a Facilities Management (FM) company.
An established FM company will be experienced in the management of air conditioning but their role in also managing the air temperature within an onsite server room is becoming increasingly difficult.
About the FM Sector
The UKs FM sector is worth up to 95bn per annum, reports The British Institute of Facilities Management. Contracts in FM are hard-won: prior to a multi-million pound deal being agreed for a significant period of time, tough and long negotiations often take place.
A CEN Definition
An FM company can have wide-ranging responsibilities for providing, maintaining and developing myriad services, ranging from:
- Property Strategy
- Space Management, and
- Communications infrastructure
To:
- Building Maintenance
- Administration, and
- Contract Management
Managing Server Rooms
In this technology-driven age, the heartbeat of any companys building is undoubtedly the server room; there, the FM company would be responsible for keeping the air temperature at the right level for optimum operation, and to manage any overheating (which can cause systems to fail and equipment to be damaged).
Server rooms can be large or small, depending upon their required capacity. Regardless of their size, what they will all contain are server computers: huge units that serve desktop computer users needs on a network. Several servers can be housed within a server room, where they are secured in racks.
It is the combination of the accumulative heat created by servers and high summer temperatures that usually causes system performance problems, and sometimes complete breakdowns, at server rooms. Breakdowns can happen at any time of year, however.
Not all breakdowns are caused by equipment overheating due to excessive temperatures, but
when a built-in air con system develops a fault, or simply does not have the capacity to cope with extreme heat, this can create chaos that can ultimately erode a companys profits as well as its reputation. In particular, as the company in situ, expands and its server requirements also expand accordingly, the fixed cooling system may struggle to cope. The FM company responsible for managing the server room temperature will be held accountable, and so it is vital for them that an on-site air con crisis is dealt with swiftly or preferably, suitably managed before an issue arises.
The good news for FM companies is that hiring chillers for server rooms is quick and easy to
arrange through a good chiller hire company, and is surprisingly affordable.
Contingency Planning is the key
Regaining temperature control and cooling is quite easy to get right, especially if a Facilities Manager responsible for a server room has wisely forged a link with a chiller specialist that:
- Has a proven track-record of providing emergency cooling solutions at server rooms (where breakdowns have occurred)
- Has fully-stocked equipment depots strategically located around the UK
- Performs free site surveys (as part of contingency planning formulation)
- Offers a full 24-hour, 365-day nationwide service meaning they can respond quickly in an emergency
Hiring chillers may not be a long term solution for FM companies but it can relieve server room heat problems in the short term, enabling a long term fix to be undertaken at a later date with minimum disruption to the business.
