Q&A: 1301 Fannin/Griffin Partners

• By theWHIR.com , October 24, 2008

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In an email interview with the WHIR, real estate development, management and leasing firm Griffin Partners discusses how its downtown Houston data center survived the third most destructive hurricane to hit the US in recorded history.

By David Hamilton, theWHIR.com

October 24, 2008 -- (WEB HOST INDUSTRY REVIEW) -- While many Houston-area businesses were in the dark for days and weeks following Hurricane Ike, it was business as usual for tenants of the unique downtown Houston building 1301 Fannin, including the many servers housed there.

The power stayed on throughout the storm at the combined office and data center building in downtown Houston owned by Griffin Partners, which sheltered many Fortune 500 corporations from the 100 mph winds, keeping business operations running even during the peak of a hurricane.

With data center space taking up 370,000 square-feet of the building (more than the area of six American football fields), redundancy factored heavily in the company's game plan. "If any one component should fail, the rest of the operating systems functions normally," read a 1301 Fannin statement.

In an email conversation with the WHIR, Griffin Partners discusses exactly how 1301 Fannin weathered the storm and what exactly goes on when a data center is facing such a powerful force of nature.

What is unique to 1301 Fannin's design that made it survive the storm?

There are a number of unique features to the building's design that reflect careful planning for hurricanes and other natural disasters. The key word is redundancy.

The building faces minimal exposure to single points of failure:

How did you staff the data center during Hurricane Ike?

The building was staffed above normal for the duration of the storm. As the building is normally staffed 24-7, moving shift personnel into a 'normal' emergency rotation provides a certain personnel redundancy that is unique to this building.

In addition to building personnel, critical contract staff (including generator and elevator maintenance techs, electricians, security, housekeeping and cafeteria staff) was on site for the duration of the storm as well. The facility can provide housing for extended stays for management staff, as well as the critical staffing needs of our tenants in emergencies.

A full service cafeteria remained open during the entire event, although emergency rations are on-hand in case it becomes necessary to close down the food service facilities. On site showers are also available.

Did you have extra people working during the potentially devastating hurricane or did you have people working remotely?

The facility is generally self sufficient in emergency situations; however, Griffin Partners corporate staff remained in stand by mode to provide or coordinate additional services if needed.

The building was in an emergency response mode. All available building personnel were on site and prepared to ensure the building maintained 'normal' operations, which it did.

Is there competition among data centers for resources such as fuel when news reports start to warn the area about a possible hurricane?

There is competition across the entire region for critical resources such as fuel and water.

Fortunately, 1301 Fannin not only has extensive on-site storage capabilities, but also maintains critical vendor relationships that provide for pre-staged supplies of diesel and water to replenish on-site storage if and when necessary.

Assuming a data center is best-of-class, is there anything an operator is likely to forget when it comes to making their data center hurricane resistant?

1301 Fannin is largely 'plug and play' when it comes to setting up data center operations:

In some cases, tenants' elect to apply a window film or to build a wall between existing building windows and data space.

1301 Fannin is owned by investment management firm Griffin Partners. How have other Griffin Partners facilities dealt with natural disasters?

Each building in the Griffin Partners portfolio has a detailed disaster preparation and recovery plan tailored to the unique features of each asset.

Planning is the key, with hurricanes in particular, each Griffin Partners management team implements storm planning well in advance of the hurricane season each year. These plans progress to more critical levels of action/communication as storms develop or enter into the Gulf.

What is to be learned from Hurricane Ike?

We continue to focus on preparation, planning, and emergency drills.

What did your tenants say about the data center's performance?

Tenant feedback is overwhelming positive. On Monday morning following hurricane Ike, it was business as usual at 1301 Fannin, unlike much of the city, which was without power for days and weeks.

How did you feel the building and data center performed?

Outstanding, it performed as designed.

Will you make any changes to the building prior to the next hurricane season?

No changes are needed to the physical structure. But, we do plan to enhance communications during an actual emergency.

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