4 ms·
> Separately the HVAC systems for the DCs will have been designed for a specific climate, with margins. Exactly right. For a Tier IV data centre that margin is
by tjmc 4y ago
> Separately the HVAC systems for the DCs will have been designed for a specific climate, with margins.
Exactly right. For a Tier IV data centre that margin is ASHRAE N=20. For London City until recently that was only 34.5C (dry bulb).
- bschne 4y agoInteresting rabbit hole! Does that mean the margin is defined to contain once-in-twenty-years extremes?
- tjmc 4y agoThat’s right. However these estimates are now being regularly exceeded. Going forward, it would probably be wiser to do what the mining industry does here in Australia - still design to a reasonable extreme temp, but also specify that the equipment must run at a much higher temperature at a derated capacity. Here that’s 50C ambient.
- fulafel 4y agoEven disregarding climate change, a 5% chance each year that your equipment will fail to handle the weather seems lacking for a high-availability facility. (You'll factor in many other this type of figures together, so your total risk budget would be higher still).