CASE STUDY Power Generation

Emergency backup solution for the largest data center in South Australia

Posted on May 04, 2017

Located between the Indian Ocean and the green hills of Mount Lofty Range, Adelaide is home to about 1.3 million Australians. Every single one of them uses online services or telecommunication technologies which produce an enormous amount of data traffic every day. YourDC is an Adelaide-based data center provider that makes it possible for the people of Adelaide to access this high amount of data every day. YourDC owns two data centers in Adelaide, including their flagship center, the DC1 Edinburgh Parks data center.
Details

Who

YourDC

What

mtu Emergency Backup System

Why

Where

Adelaide, Australia

In mission critical applications, you need a partner who you can rely on. mtu products provide us with this peace of mind

Scott Hicks - CEO YourDC
DC1 Edinburgh Parks is a state-of-the-art data centre with 800 server racks, making it the largest data centre in South Australia. Officially opened in May 2016, the centre has a capacity of 8 MW, floor space of 6,000 square metres and is YourDC’s second facility. Furthermore, it is Australia’s first TIA-942 rated 3 certified data centre, a globally accepted standard for building and operating data centres accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).

mtu is proud to have supplied two 16V2000DS1250 generator sets as an emergency backup power solution in the DC1 Edinburgh Parks data centre. These generator sets are now serviced by long-standing local mtu partner, Penske Power Systems.
Power for the facility is supplied by four 2MW full-load capacity transformers through two separate substations. However, natural disasters or system failures can cause power outages. In the case of an outage, the uninterrupted power supply will go online initially, prior to the mtu generator sets starting up. The time delay between a loss of mains power and the generators resuming power supply to the centre could be as little as 10 seconds, which means that the uninterrupted power supply can be designed with less capacity. The generator sets consume diesel which is supplied by a tank directly on-site. The tank holds enough fuel for five days of emergency operation.
As the DC1 Edinburgh Parks data centre is TIA-942 rated 3 certified, power supply is subject to the highest standards. In addition to server protection against physical events, redundant capacity components are also required as well as multiple independent distribution paths serving computer equipment.
As YourDC takes serious consideration ons the security of their data centres, it is evident why our mtu generator sets are their first choice. mtu is well-known for its reliable, high-end quality products. The 16V2000DS1250 generator set combines exceptional high load factor capabilities with low maintenance requirements yielding low lifecycle costs. Furthermore, the generator sets are designed to run in the Australian climate which means that they are capable of running in ambient air temperatures up to 50⁰C.
There are several reasons why YourDC selected mtu generator sets as their emergency power backup solution. Firstly, there are the unique technical features such as a reliable engine which is able to serve 100% of the load requirement in less than 10 seconds and a compact packaging design allowing more space for server racks. Also, mtu has a very strong local partnership with Penske Power Systems which has an excellent service network around Australia. As Penske Power Systems houses its own stock levels of mtu generator sets, it is able to deliver generator sets within a very short time. This was a critical success factor in this project as YourDC required a delivery time of only 12 weeks. Additionally, Penske Power Systems stocks spare parts and employs qualified service personnel to ensure fast and high quality customer support.
Through innovative companies like YourDC, Adelaide has become the technological hub of South Australia, connecting its 1.3 million people all around the globe. mtu generator sets ensure that the 1.3 million people in Adelaide are connected at all times, 365 days a year, and even when the public electricity grid supply fails.
Sources
https://www.itnews.com.au/news/yourdc-opens-30m-tier-three-adelaide-data-centre-420056
http://www.yourdc.com.au/services/
http://www.tia-942.org/content/162/289/About_Data_Centers