Many elements go into effective data center management, not the least of which is making the best use of physical space. Data center consolidation is becoming an integral component of data center infrastructure management, and for good reason: It can save a considerable amount of time, money and management resources.

Maximizing the amount of available space without reducing operational efficacy also creates new opportunities for growth, and can ultimately enhance both total cost of ownership and return on investment. Even state governments and federal agencies such as NASA are now looking for new ways to consolidate data center infrastructure. 

That said, many data centers' cabinets continue to resemble New York City's skyline. The maze of equipment needed to keep everything up and running is simply obliterating any attempts at effective management and consolidation of physical space. This not only creates physical obstacles for data center management, it also makes data center consolidation seem that much more impossible. 

Better cooling containment can help

Some of the biggest occupiers of space in data center infrastructure are cooling components. Storing hardware at a safe temperature is extremely important, as it prevents outages and potential damage to equipment. Improper data center cooling can even result in fires that cripple business and endanger personnel.

Thus, a cooling containment strategy cools the equipment, expels heat from the data center and keeps humidity levels at bay is entirely necessary. The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers mandates that the data center environment be kept between 59 degrees Fahrenheit and 89.6 degrees F, and that relative humidity levels stay somewhere in the range of 20 to 80 percent.

When planning for containment, it is important to identify high-density cabinets that might require a single-rack cooling system. A higher concentration of servers will generate more heat, and will therefore demand a more isolated cooling effort. Conversely, lower-density cabinets that don't necessarily demand as much energy or contain as much hardware will emit less heat, and can therefore be cooled more efficiently with row-based cooling systems.

Handling data center cooling in this manner helps maximize efficiency of space while generating consistency in temperature throughout the physical environment. Thus, it is important to consider a DCIM vendor that provides rack cooling as well row-based cooling to maximize both expenditures and outcomes. 

Enter Geist

Data center cooling and containment, whether row-based or rack-based, must also be monitored and managed intelligently. Consolidating space and meeting ASHRAE standards at the same time is as much about effective climate monitoring as it is about employing the right cooling components. Geist ActiveAir yields both aspects by supplying the equipment and streamlining the process by which it can be automated, scaled and managed as needed in order to keep temperature and humidity levels at the data center sweet spot.

By performing these functions with optimal efficiency, Geist ActiveAir also provides data center managers with an opportunity to scale down that incidental and ever-expanding model of the New York City skyline that might be developing in the expanses of their facilities.