subject: What Is A Green Data Center? [print this page] Could your business benefit from outsourcing your data center services to a green data center? Are you interested in a more environmental approach to data center services that will also save your business' resources? This article will explain what a green data center is as well as how your business and the environment both benefit from one of these data centers. It will discuss how one of these data centers reduces costs, energy use and labor expenses while supporting your mission critical applications.
Each and every day enterprises around the world create exponentially more information that needs to be stored and maintained. It is estimated that before the year 2010 more data will be produced in one year than all the data created in the prior history of mankind. Critical systems for storing data have continued to get smaller with more horsepower, while at the same time requiring more and more power to operate. Mission-critical business applications also are requiring more processing power to meet the demand of their end-users. This explosion is causing enterprises to find suitable colocation and enterprise hosting solutions to house this critical data and applications with facilities that can meet these high-density needs. A green data center is innovative way to store and maintain this information.
What is a green data center?
A green data center is a repository for the storage, management, and dissemination of data in which the mechanical, lighting, electrical and computer systems are designed for maximum energy efficiency and minimum environmental impact.
A high quality provider's data centers are highly reliable and energy-efficient. Their green data centers incorporate a number of high-efficiency systems and techniques to minimize energy consumption including air handling, thermal storage, ultrasonic humidification and lighting.
Green Data Center Provides Cost Savings
By reducing the amount of energy consumed throughout data centers, especially during peak demand hours, data center service providers are able to provide their clients with significant cost savings and more affordable data center solutions.
High quality data center services also provide the following benefits:
- Improved uptime for mission critical applications
- Ability to scale without infrastructure concerns
- Reduced capital costs for facility infrastructure
- Reduce labor expenses associated with facility management
- State of the art facility to support their customers sales process
Advanced technologies and strategies are included in the operation and construction of a green data center. The following are examples of these technologies and strategies:
- Waste recycling
- Minimizing the building's footprints
- Implementing low-emission materials
- Sustainable landscaping
- Use of catalytic converters with backup generators
- Implementation of new alternative energy technologies for example heat pumps, photovoltaics and evaporative cooling
The construction and certification of a green data center can be relatively expensive initially but in the long run savings can be realized on maintenance and operation. These data centers also benefits employees by providing them with a healthy and comfortable work environment. These data centers also enhance community relations locally.
Their government has recently received growing pressure from numerous environmentalist groups as well as the general public to offer these green data centers benefits such as monetary support or redemptions for the maintenance or creation of ecologically and environmentally responsible technologies.
