(WEB HOST INDUSTRY REVIEW) — With its first phase of construction due for completion by October, 160,000-square-foot data center and network access point Phoenix NAP (www.phoenixnap.com) has chosen a highly efficient PureWave UPS System to back up all its critical load IT equipment.
According to the Wednesday announcement, the 20-megawatt facility will include two PureWave UPS Systems fed by three power sources. Each unit will also have two redundant feeds from the utility and one backup generator.
Developed by S&C Electric Company (www.sandc.com), the PureWave System is 99 percent efficient thanks to its innovative offline design. Unlike traditional UPS systems, there is no need for PureWave units to continually convert incoming utility power from AC to DC and back again. At full build-out, the facility will save as much as 4 megawatts, a fifth of its total power.
“The Achilles’ heel of data centers has always been the batteries on the UPS,” Phoenix NAP operations director Jordan Jacobs said in a statement. “Whereas a traditional UPS is like an old string of holiday lights (if one bulb goes out, the whole string goes dark), the unique battery design in the PureWave UPS virtually eliminates this possibility and dramatically increases the reliability of the battery. Critical loads remain supplied with power during any utility disturbance.”
In June, data center operator Global Datacenter Trust (www.gdct.com) began the redevelopment of an existing building into Phoenix NAP. It is scheduled to be fully operational by the first quarter of 2010.
Jacobs said that maintaining a consistent flow of power using PureWave is a key feature of the facility, and gives it a significant advantage over others. Available up to 2,500 kVA at low voltage and up to 20,000 kVA at medium voltage, the S&C PureWave UPS can be a key element of a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (www.usgbc.org/leed) certified design with a Tier 4 requirement.
S&C power quality systems director Brad Roberts said S&C pioneered ultra high efficiency UPS designs over the past decade to support the large critical loads used to manufacture computer chips. “The lessons learned in that industry are being put to use in large data centers, ” Roberts said in a statement. “The Phoenix NAP is a great example of the energy savings that can be achieved with an offline, high reliability UPS design.”
