Digitalisation refers to the use of data to operate, maintain and optimise equipment and processes. It delivers efficiency out of the box, plus a future-proof platform for growth. It is widely acknowledged that data centres play a crucial role in the process of digitalisation as they are responsible for processing, storing, and transmitting vast amounts of data.
However, when it comes to their own operations, it is questionable whether data centres are as adept at embracing digital thinking said Anisur Rahman, who has extensive experience in providing digital solutions to data centres and collaborating with their clients and consultants from the earliest development stages, believes that the industry needs to catch up a bit when it comes to digital solutions available for data centers.
He attributes this mainly to the numerous requirements that data centres must fulfil, such as capacity management, availability assurance, power efficiency, sustainability, reliability, and security, among others. The challenge of meeting all these requirements may result in data centres primarily focusing on immediate operational concerns and missing out on the long-term advantages that digitalisation can offer including scalability and sustainability, and this may delay their adoption of the latest technologies.
According to Rahman, one of the most critical benefits of digitalisation is its ability to provide flexibility and scalability. The equipment can be easily adjusted to changes in power system design, even after installation, any future changes can be implemented through software updates rather than requiring physical hardware alterations or replacements. This enhances the overall adaptability of the equipment and minimises the need for costly and time-consuming physical modifications.
The keynote presentation that Rahman is looking to deliver on September 14th will make the digitalisation process more accessible by looking at it as a four levels which he defines as follows:
- The first level is the supervisory level involving monitoring systems such as EMS for managing non-clinical data,
- The second level deploys remote monitoring and control systems that deal with critical data.
- At the base level digitalisation, the principle of IEC61850 device-to-device communication is implemented – this is the third level.
- The fourth level involves the process level digitalisation by implementing IEC61850-9-2 SV communication.
Many data centres, Rahman observes, have not moved beyond level 1, purely due to the ‘highly risk averse’ nature of the data center industry i:e they always want some other data center to try out any new technology first..
He sees the goal of the keynote as conveying the benefits of digitalisation and how it has achieved or not achieved in addressing key operational concerns and challenges across the management lifecycle. Rahman stresses that while the presentation will be based on tech innovation it will be accessible to a wide data centre and IT audience. The four levels will be illustrated, explained and explored as will the evolution of digitalisation.
Anisur Rahman will be speaking at W.Media’s CDC Sydney on Thursday September 14th at the International Convention Centre. To find out more and register, please visit https://w.media/events/sydney-cloud-datacenter-convention-2023/
