Installations are being made every day here at our Bournemouth data centre, and the facility is really starting to take shape.

The latest addition to the facility is the installation of our switch gear.

Switch gear is a vital part of a data centre environment, as it connects all of the electrical systems together and distributes electricity from the mains or generators to the PDUs on the floor. Another benefit is that the switch gear allows us to monitor our power usage, meaning that we can keep one eye on energy efficiency whilst also ensuring that the usage of each piece of equipment is kept within its operating parameters.

The photo below shows what the switch gear looks like…

The next step in our Bournemouth data centre build is the installation of our Very Early Smoke Detection Apparatus – or VESDA.

VESDA is a laser based smoke detector, which works by taking in air samples within the data centre and sampling the quality of that air. VESDA is far more advanced and efficient than any other kind of smoke detector, and is used extensively in situations where high smoke sensitivity is required – such as a data centre.

The picture below shows what the VESDA equipment looks like…

Previously we talked about the installation of our new Uninterruptable Power Supply (UPS) units within the Bournemouth data centre. Following the installation of these units, today has seen the arrival our batteries.

These batteries are extremely important within a data centre environment , as they store electricity so that the UPS units can still provide power to the  facility in the event of a power failure.

In total there are over 160 batteries, and collectively they could power nearly 1000 regular household light bulbs!

Keep visiting throughout the week to stay up to date with our progress!

We’re making great progress here at our Bournemouth data centre, and the next step in our phase 2 build is the installation of our Uninterruptable Power Supply (or UPS) units.

These power supply units ensure that power to our data centre is maintained in all circumstances. As with many of our Bournemouth data centre features, there is the provisioning of N+1 on our UPS, meaning that with one unit inactive, the others could fully support the entire data centre for 10 minutes should the unlikely event of an outage occur. Within these 10 minutes, the generators will start to take the site’s electrical load, meaning that power remains uninterrupted within the data centre.

The picture you see below is one of UPS units…

Today has seen the arrival of our new air conditioning units here at the Bournemouth data centre. These units will ensure that the data centre remains at a perfect temperature for the kit held within racks to operate at optimum levels.

The air conditioning units also have N+1 redundancy, meaning that with one unit inactive the data centre will still be supported  should any unfortunate (and unlikely) events occur, or if we are performing our maintenance operations.

The units are particularly big and bulky, and to enable us to manoeuvre them in successfully, a very strange trick is used…

Whilst it seems an unusual method, washing up liquid helps to lubricate the surfaces surrounding the units so that we can successfully position them within the data centre!

Below you can see a picture of the air conditioning units being installed.