Equinix has announced its commitment to reducing its overall power use by increasing operating temperature ranges within its data centers – the first such commitment by an operator of colocation data centers.
Equinix will start developing a multi-year global roadmap for thermal operations within its data centers right away with the goal of delivering much more efficient cooling and reducing carbon emissions, all the while maintaining the high-end operating environment for which Equinix is renowned.
As supply chain sustainability becomes a more significant component of the overall environmental initiatives of today’s businesses, it is anticipated that this initiative will eventually enable thousands of Equinix customers to reduce the Scope 3 carbon emissions linked to their data center operations.
Data centers must be equipped with powerful cooling systems to remove the heat produced by the IT equipment, such as routers, servers, and storage arrays, which produce high levels of heat. The majority of data centers operate within narrow temperature and humidity zones, creating settings that are unnecessarily cooler than necessary, according to Rob Brothers, Program Vice President, Datacenter Services, IDC.
Consequently, Equinix will collaborate with enterprises to alter how people perceive operating temperatures in data center environments and how the sector can guarantee appropriate service levels for mission-critical digital infrastructure while boosting data center productivity.
With this initiative, Equinix will play a significant part in shaping the overarching sustainability narrative that everyone needs to be a part of and pushing change in the industry.
For Sue Preston, vice president and general manager, Advisory and Professional Services, Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), they are happy to see that Equinix is promoting effective data center operations through smart, sustainable operating methods as a long-time partner.
Data center temperature optimization leads to more productive operations that are good for the environment and for business. Both HPE and Equinix provide a comprehensive, cloud-smart, and sustainable customer solution through the HPE GreenLake collaboration.
The operating limits across Equinix’s global data center portfolio will be aligned with the internationally recognized bounds of the A1A standards from the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) as part of this new efficiency drive
This new initiative will enhance efficiency as measured by Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) and when paired with current Equinix initiatives, such as maximizing the utilization of outdoor air temperatures to cool its data centers, will add to the overall sustainability of those facilities. PUE serves as an industry benchmark for data center energy efficiency by dividing the total power consumed by a data center by the power required to run the IT equipment housed within.
Moreover, according to Raouf Abdel, Executive Vice President, Global Operations for Equinix, approximately 25% of the energy they use globally is for cooling systems. With the help of this new initiative, they will be able to intelligently modify the thermostat in their data centers in a manner similar to what customers do in their homes. They expect energy efficiency improvements of as much as 10% in different places once they have implemented it across their current global data center infrastructure.
For Jon Lin, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Data Center Services for Equinix, data centers are essential to our daily lives because they house the technology and connect the organizations that power our digital lives, including online shopping, emailing, streaming movies, and making video chats.
The digital infrastructure of Equinix is used by more than 10,000 enterprises worldwide, and it is essential to their supply chains. Once implemented, this initiative might considerably help these companies as they work to cut Scope 3 carbon emissions throughout their supply chains and achieve their overall climate goals. It is a significant development in their all-encompassing sustainability program and commitment to a climate-neutral future.
