By: David Knapp Product Marketing Manager

Rack-mount power distribution units (PDUs) and power strips are a well-established solution for distributing power into Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) equipment racks. If you are responsible for selecting or advising selection of these critical components, be sure to review the impact of phase, level of redundancy, functionality on monitoring and reporting capabilities and the ability to integrate other rack-level monitoring hardware through the PDU in your overall consideration.

By: David Knapp Product Marketing Manager

Almost every Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) equipment rack used to store compute, storage or network equipment requires a rack-mount Power Distribution Unit (PDU) or power strip  to distribute power to equipment. But, if you are unfamiliar with electrical power distribution systems or even the differences in industry jargon, selecting a PDU or power strip can be challenging.

This white paper, by Chatsworth Products (CPI), presents an overview of the basics of selecting PDUs and power strips. It covers the key questions to ask about the site, rack and equipment to help simplify the selection process and quickly identify the right PDU or power strip. It concludes with additional resources that will help you select the right PDU or power strip for your application.

By: David Knapp Product Marketing Manager; Ashish Moondra Senior Product Manager - Power, Electronics & Software; Raissa Carey Public Relations Specialist and Technical Writer

The importance of physical security for protecting data is generally well understood, but how often does your organization assess the level of physical security for protecting data? And, are you compliant with regulations that address data security?
This white paper, by Chatsworth Products (CPI), presents an overview of data security regulations and compliance requirements, makes an argument for extending physical security to the rack level, recommends the use of electronic locking and access control systems at the rack level, and explains how CPI’s cabinet ecosystem provides a solution that is more cost effective and easier to deploy and operate than others in the market.

By David Knapp Product Marketing Manager; Ashish Moondra Sr. Product Manager, Power Electronics & Software

With the shift of enterprise-owned Information and Communications Technology (ICT) equipment into multitenant data center (MTDC)/colocation sites and the anticipated growth of remote/edge sites1,7, basic control of power for remotely located ICT equipment is becoming an important consideration in overall power management strategy. Laboratory environments face a similar challenge with the need to reboot equipment regularly during testing.

Those responsible for remotely located ICT equipment or a laboratory environment stand to benefit from remote power control. Intelligent rack power distribution units (PDUs) with remote power control (Figure 1) offer a simple, cost-effective solution, with a generally short return on investment.

This paper, then, provides key considerations to help drive meaningful IT/OT collaboration for those actively engaged in the design, deployment and continuous maintenance of the data capture network in the manufacturing environment.

By Ashish Moondra Sr. Product Manager Power, Electronics & Software

As data centers deploy virtualization and consolidate equipment for more efficient computing, the average rack power density is constantly rising. While an average cabinet supported 3 - 4 kW a few years ago, today that power load is considered in low-density environments. It is certainly not uncommon to have cabinets drawing 9 - 15 kW and in several cases, even higher than that.

This paper discusses the electrical, physical and management considerations for effective cabinet-level power management within such high-density scenarios. It presents six key considerations when deploying intelligent power distribution units into high-density cabinets and also covers the management of cost and security associated with the deployment of intelligent PDUs.

By: Travis North Thermal Design Manager

When choosing a cabinet door for your data center it is essential to ask yourself what level of perforation will be needed. Opinions on this subject are extensive, and some experts will tell you that for high-density heat loads of 30 kW and above, you need 80% perforation, while others will say only 64% perforation is needed. Data center technology develops at a rapid pace and every day new discoveries are uncovered, which is why there is more to this question than just a single number. 

This study will give you the tools to identify what level of cabinet perforation best suits your specific application and will show that for a large cross sectional area, using a perforation of 64% does not impact airflow and there is no loss in performance even at extreme density loads of 30 kW and above.

By Bill Kleyman Cloud, Virtualization and Data Center Architect Contributing Editor Raissa Carey

The modern data center has changed. There are new demands around cloud computing, big data and infrastructure efficiency. With private cloud technologies and the rapid growth in data leading the way within many technological categories (the Internet of Things), working with the right data center optimization technologies has never been more important.

IT administrators must understand how to control their resources, align with the business and create greater levels of efficiency.

In this white paper, we explore new concepts around emerging data center demand, where energy efficiency and cooling optimization fit in and modern best practices around your data center.

Edited by David Knapp Product Marketing Manager

Based on data extrapolated in the June 2016 United States Data Center Energy Usage Report1, average individual rack density for a rack full of servers will range between 4 kW and 11 kW by 2020. It is important to recognize that as rack densities exceed 4 kW, traditional hot aisle/cold aisle configurations become less effective. Hot air recirculates over and through the cabinet, causing hot spots, which is typically met with the costly oversupply of cold air.

You can reliably dissipate the heat in these racks by utilizing a containment system that effectively isolates hot air from cold air and directs hot exhaust airflow away from equipment and back to air handlers. More importantly, careful airflow management through the use of containment systems allows several cooling system adjustments that can reduce overall cooling energy costs at any rack density.

This white paper by Chatsworth Products (CPI) examines how implementing a complete containment system contributes to overall reduced cooling system energy costs in the data center and prepares your site for an anticipated increase in rack density.

Edited by David Knapp Product Marketing Manager

In the past decade, many companies have become aware of the advantages of data center airflow management practices that include containment systems. It is also now well understood that as the average heat load per cabinet rises, simply arranging cabinets in a traditional open hot aisle/cold aisle configuration is not an effective approach. Industry associations have considered indirect and direct liquid cooling as possible solutions for high density applications, but using a containment system with perimeter cooling is still a very capable solution for today’s average rack densities and the anticipated densities over the next decade. Furthermore, containment systems support retrofit from hot aisle/cold aisle, economizer applications and free air cooling.

This white paper, by Chatsworth Products (CPI), examines and compares three data center containment systems and demonstrates that there are important differences to consider that distinguish one system over the others. It will help you to determine the best containment option for your data center requirements and your business goals.

By David Knapp Product Marketing Manager Chatsworth Products and Sam Rodriguez Sr. Product Manager, Enclosure and Thermal Solutions Chatsworth Products

As an IT systems administrator, you will need to extend the network to connect IoT and business systems. This means placing equipment in nontraditional spaces such as warehouses, manufacturing floors and outdoors. To specify equipment for nontraditional spaces, you will need to learn about special industrial enclosures, cooling systems and cable entry methods that protect equipment from exposure to dust and liquid.

This white paper, by Chatsworth Products (CPI), will help you understand the basics of specifying equipment enclosures for nontraditional spaces such as warehouses, manufacturing floors and outdoors.