Mission Critical Power by The Energyst

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ISSUE 18: December 2018

The Uptime Institute highlights the top 10 disruptive technologies with the most potential to change the data centre sector forever

John Booth warns that many data centres are still unaware of important energy-saving best practice

Container ports are increasingly experiencing issues with â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;regenerative powerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, so how can the risks be mitigated?

Power transformers that are digital natives See page 12

IN THIS ISSUE

14 Energy efficiency John Booth highlights the need to raise awareness of best practice

Innovation

Optimisation

The Uptime Institute highlights the top 10 techologies that will change the data centre sector

Could data centres learn from the aviation sector to avert disasters?

22 Demand-side response How can mission critical sites unlock hidden value in their UPS?

missioncriticalpower.uk

ISSUE 18: December 2018

The Uptime Institute highlights the top 10 disruptive technologies with the most potential to change the data centre sector forever

John Booth warns that many data centres are still unaware of important energy-saving best practice

Container ports are increasingly experiencing issues with ‘regenerative power’, so how can the risks be mitigated?

Renewable energy Load sharing hybrid power systems: how to remove the barriers Power transformers that are digital natives See page 12

Loadbanks Container ports are experiencing issues with ‘regenerative power’, so how can the risks be mitigated?

Front cover How ABB is making its transformers inherently smarter

Comment

Standby Power

Data Centre Infrastructure 42

News

Thermal Optimisation

Energy Procurement

Innovation

Power Management

Products

UPS

Q&A

Energy Storage

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December 2018 MCP

COMMENT

Forward thinking... In terms of disruptive technology, these are exciting times for the data centre industry. The Uptime Institute has looked at the top 10 technologies that could change the data centre industry. As Rhonda Ascierto, vicepresident research at Uptime Institute, points out: “If you knew an earthquake was coming, you would want to know how big the impact is going to be, how fast it will happen and how likely it is to happen.” The Uptime Institue has surveyed experts and identified key innovations with disruptive potential – from distributed resiliency, chiller-free data centres and micro modular embedded data centres, to silicon photonics and storage class memory. We hear of data centres being located under the sea, launched into space and, more recently, in windmills. Exciting developments in machine learning, artificial intelligence, virtual reality and robotics are on the horizon, promising a brave new world in the data centre space. Physicist Stephen Hawking famously said the emergence of artificial intelligence could be the “worst event in the history of our civilisation”. In the context of the data centre, however, AI is likely to eliminate the avoidable human errors that are all too often at the root of high profile outages. Innovation also promises to bring new levels of energy efficiency and sustainability. Microsoft has been experimenting with hydrogen or

Editor Louise Frampton louise@energystmedia.com t: 020 34092043 m: 07824317819 Managing Editor Tim McManan-Smith tim@energystmedia.com Design and production Paul Lindsell production@energystmedia.com m: 07790 434813

MCP December 2018

Sales director Steve Swaine steve@energystmedia.com t: 020 3714 4451 m: 07818 574300

methane gas-powered fuel cells at the rack level and Hewlett Packard Enterprise has teamed up with the National Renewable Energy Lab with the goal of creating a hydrogen-powered data centre. However, perhaps the biggest change will be the mindset of the data centre business. A comment, made by the Open Compute Project's John Laban really struck a chord with me. For the new, incoming generation, being successful in business is not about being “aggressive”; it is all about being “collaborative”. He castigated today’s data centre professionals for a lack of knowledge of the innovation taking place in the hyperscale space; how can they not know what Facebook is doing in its data centres, when even youngsters outside the industry have this knowledge? Laban warned delegates at Data Centres Ireland that youngsters are coming into the market and “eating them alive” because they collaborate. The Open Compute Project is all about sharing innovation. In an industry that is used to secrecy, this will be the biggest transformation of all. Robert Bunger, director of Data Centre Industry Alliances at Schneider Electric, describes it as “an opportunity to be part of a new eco system”. Perhaps the old cut-throat business approaches are becoming obsolete. With OCP data centres costing half the amount to build and requiring significantly less energy to run, perhaps there is something in this Millennial “sharing and caring” approach. Collaboration appears to make financial sense, so is this the “earthquake” that we have all been waiting for? Louise Frampton, editor

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Commercial manager Daniel Coyne T: 02037517863 M: 07557109476 E: daniel@energystmedia.com

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NEWS & COMMENT

UK government suspends Capacity Market following EU court ruling The General Court of the Court of Justice of the European Union has ruled in favour of Tempus Energy in its case against the European Commission, annulling the commission’s decision not to raise objections to the aid scheme when establishing a capacity market in the UK. The court ruled that the commission failed to carry out a full investigation and failed to properly assess the role of demand-side response (DSR) within the Capacity Market. Tempus Energy argued that the Capacity Market favoured generation over DSR as the former could apply for 15-year contracts, while the latter could only apply for a one-year contract. As a result of this ruling, the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has suspended the Capacity Market until further notice. It is working closely

BEIS believes the current Capacity Market auction system is the most appropriate method for securing electricity supplies at minimal cost

with the commission to aid its investigation and seek timely state aid approval for the Capacity Market. In a statement, BEIS explained the ruling does not change the UK government’s commitment to delivering secure electricity supplies at minimal cost, or its belief that the current Capacity Market auction system is the most appropriate method to supply this.

The Association for Decentralised Energy (ADE) is urging government to address the ruling as a priority “if it is serious about ensuring secure energy supply” through low carbon flexibility. ADE director Tim Rotheray said: “Industry raised concerns about the need for a level playing field for DSR when competing for Capacity Market contracts and today’s

announcement is therefore not a surprise. “It is industry that will suffer the most from today’s ruling, which leaves the market in limbo, without access to revenue streams it had been guaranteed by government.” Tempus Energy chief executive Sarah Bell described the ruling as “a victory” for consumers. “Now we are going to have a much greater opportunity to help customers reduce their bills while reducing carbon intensity of the grid,” she said. Wayne Muncaster, managing director at energy services provider GridBeyond, commented: “Ultimately, market forces will take over, and clients with the technology in place to create greater flexibility and stack multiple programmes, both on and off-grid, will benefit the most significantly from the grid balancing market.”

Penalties mooted for Ireland's power ‘hoarders’ Data centres in Ireland are being warned that they may be penalised for ‘capacity hoarding’ in the future. Speaking at Data Centres Ireland, Rosemary Steen from EirGrid commented: “The Irish power system is around one-tenth the size of the UK power system and onehundredth the size of the European power system. “Therefore, a large data centre connection has a far greater impact on the Irish power system than in Continental Europe. This means our efforts to futureproof the grid must be meticulous.” Steen added that the scale of large data centres seeking to connect presents challenges, with electricity demand set to increase by about 38% between 2017 and 2025. “To put this into context, this is the equivalent of the growth seen over a period of 50 years, between

MCP December 2018

1930 and 1980. This is going to have a phenomenal impact,” she commented. Steen said there is a need to work closely with data centres on how to manage system events in the future. “Data centres are risk averse and self-supply from backup generation, when data centres disconnect their load from the grid in response to events, is understandable. In 2018, this isn’t a major concern. “However, as data centres become a more significant proportion of the total demand in Ireland, this kind of behaviour could make the power system very volatile. We will need to work closely with the sector… it is not in anybody’s interests for this to happen.” “It is important that your control systems are not configured in an overly sensitive manner as this will jeopardise the security of the

power system,” Steen warned delegates attending the conference. While flexible demand has the potential to address some of the power challenges in the Dublin region, according to Steen, Maximum Import Capacity ramping is also being looked at – customers are currently allowed 18 months to ramp up, but this may be extended to a longer period in the future, with the aim of facilitating more realistic load growth. The possibility of penalties for underutilisation, in order to avoid capacity hoarding, is also being considered. Steen added there was a lack of support and investment from the data centre sector when building large transmission infrastructure. “In the future, this is going to have to change. Data centres need to be part of the story,” she concluded.

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Roll-out of battery storage to the NHS Smart energy solutions provider Powerstar has been selected as one of only six companies to be a trusted supplier for Essentia’s battery energy storage framework. As part of the agreement, the company will supply Powerstar Virtue battery energy storage solutions to the NHS as well as other public sector clients. Essentia, a subsidiary of Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, is currently the only free-to-access framework allowing organisations to procure battery energy storage solutions to reduce fixed charges and improve site resilience. The six preferred suppliers will assist in generating savings by

reducing Triad, DUoS and Capacity Market charges, alongside utilising grid contracts to generate revenue. Across the entire Essentia framework, energy storage contracts could total as much as £300m, providing significant opportunities for Powerstar to manufacture a growing number of Virtue energy storage solutions from its facility in Sheffield. Powerstar Virtue’s capabilities will deliver a host of benefits including reducing energy consumption and costs, minimising CO2 emissions, while delivering energy resilience through its full uninterruptible power supply (UPS) capabilities, which can fully support the load during loss of power.

Green Mountain contract win Green Mountain has awarded Schneider Electric a significant order to deliver data centre infrastructure to support increased capacity at its two Norwegian sites in Telemark and Stavanger. The modular solution being provided incorporates the latest innovations in air economised cooling, as well as high efficiency UPS with Li-ion battery backup. “Green Mountain is growing quickly, so we are making two major investments in Rennesøy and Rjukan,” said company CSO Svein Atle Hagaseth. “To meet the specific needs of our

customers, we need to bring new data centre capacity online rapidly. Our experience of working with Schneider Electric makes them a natural partner for us to turn to in order to expedite this project.”

The first element of the staged project and the larger prefabricated data centre investment, is scheduled to go live at the Rjukan site by 1 April 2019. In addition to the Schneider Electric Data Centre Power and Cooling modules, Schneider Electric will also be providing technical – or ‘white’ – space, plus electrical distribution equipment and MV and LV switchgear. The infrastructure to provision the upgraded capacity will require up to 15 state-of-the-art Schneider Electric Data Centre Power and Cooling modules.

Equinix expands London campus Equinix has announced a new International Business Exchange (IBX) site at its London Slough campus. UK prime minister Theresa May has welcomed the £90m project, which contributes to a total new investment in the UK’s digital infrastructure of £295m. The new data centre, named LD7, is part of a fleet of new and expanded facilities at the London Slough campus, and is due to open in early 2019. missioncriticalpower.uk

This new infrastructure will bring the company’s UK portfolio to 12 IBXs and supports increasing demand for capacity to handle growing volumes of data, including increasing traffic coming out of the City of London. “Equinix’s investment reflects the growing demand for digital financial services in the City of London, and is a vote of confidence in its future as the world’s premier financial hub,” said Mrs May.

Equinix UK managing director Russell Poole commented: “London is one of the most important connection points in the world and this is expected to continue post-Brexit as the city continues to play a crucial role in powering the global digital economy. Our decision to invest again in the UK’s digital infrastructure reflects our confidence that London will remain a leader in the global digital economy.”

News in brief Connection for new Dublin data centre Kirby Group Engineering has delivered a grid connection for the 18MW Gemini Data Centre, a new addition to Dublin’s data centre landscape. Kirby delivered the full civil and electrical turnkey scope for this transmission connection; a contestable 110kV substation complete with gas insulated switchgear (GIS), 110kV underground grid line circuits, 110kV/10kV customer transformers and 10kV customer substation. AWS expands in Italy Amazon Web Services is to open an infrastructure region in Italy in early 2020. The AWS Europe (Milan) Region will comprise of three Availability Zones and will be AWS’s sixth region in Europe, joining existing regions in France, Germany, Ireland, the UK and Sweden (launching in late 2018). Currently, AWS provides 57 Availability Zones across 19 geographic regions globally, with another 12 Availability Zones across four regions coming online between the end of 2018 and the first half of 2020 in Bahrain, Hong Kong SAR, South Africa and Sweden. Protection for Total's supercomputer Saft and Socomec have delivered a highperformance UPS featuring lithium-ion data batteries for Total’s HPC data centre. The facility hosts one of the world’s largest industrial supercomputers, which is used as a decision-support tool for oil & gas exploration and field management. Saft and Socomec worked together to integrate a Flex’ion battery system into a Delphys Xtend GP UPS, which will help to protect critical information and calculations.

December 2018 MCP

INNOVATION

The technologies that may change data centres forever A survey of experts by the Uptime Institute has highlighted the latest technologies with the most disruptive potential, and the sector is being urged to keep a close eye on these promising innovations. Louise Frampton reports

f you knew an earthquake was coming, you would want to know “how big the impact is going to be, how fast it will happen and how likely it is to happen”, according to Uptime Institute vicepresident research Rhonda Ascierto. Speaking at a conference hosted by Data Centre Dynamics, she highlighted the top 10 technologies believed to have the most potential to change the data centre world. The Uptime Institute conducted research to identify disruptive technologies, asking leading experts to rate them on potential impact and speed of change. So what are the top technologies to watch? MCP December 2018

Distributed resiliency Distributed resiliency involves spreading workloads across sites using networks, data replication, load balancing and traffic switching. Effectively, resiliency migrates up to the IT level. The ‘pros’ for this approach include higher availability of business services and less need for gensets, while the ‘cons’ are that the costs are unclear (including networking). Ascierto pointed out that “not all workloads like to be moved – particularly legacy applications”. She explained that the disruptive driver behind this technology is the potential to improve business survivability without expensive single-site facility infrastructure. Experts gave this a disruptive

rating of 3.91 out of a possible 5, the highest of all the scores received for the technologies (a score of 5 was defined as: ‘prepare for competitive, disruptive change now’; 4) ‘assess how it will affect your business – some impact likely soon; 3) ‘watch closely but impact not immediate’; 2) ‘background development – no need to watch closely; and 1) ‘impact remote, unlikely or unrealistic’). Chiller-free data centres The trend is for lower mechanical refrigeration but most retain it for backup. The next step is complete elimination. This would offer lower capex and simpler maintenance, while ensuring more power is available for

the IT load. Ascierto pointed out that IT managers are still against wide temperature bands and there is some trepidation. However, fears over IT failure rates are likely to diminish over time and pressures to reduce excess capex and opex on cooling will continue to grow. This approach achieved a high disruptive rating of 3.89. Micro modular embedded data centres Micro modular embedded data centres were also scored as having high potential for disruption. The benefits, according to the Uptime Institute, include ‘plug and play’ installation and rapid delivery. “We are hearing of 12-week missioncriticalpower.uk

9 storage class memory this year. “If the power goes out, you can still access the data,” Ascierto explained. The ‘pros’ include instant hibernation/ recovery and faster data access, but the ‘cons’ include marginal gains in storage arrays and the fact that it is unproven. “By bringing the data closer to the processors, it could radically change the white space layout and IT architectures. You may not need, for example, 2N UPS coverage for non-critical workloads,” said Ascierto. This technology area scored a disruptive rating of 3.64. “If this technology hadn’t been in development for so long, I think people would have shown more confidence and it would have scored much higher. I think this could be really impactful and disruptive, but there has been a long wait for it to come to market.” Data centre management as a service (DMaaS) This is where real-time data

well as latency issues. “Personally, I am very bullish about DMaaS, but I don’t think it will replace on-prem monitoring and DCIM. It isn’t going to be an ‘either, or’ scenario. I think this will be used to augment on-prem approaches today,” Ascierto said. DMaaS achieved a disruptive rating of 3.63. Silicon photonics Silicon photonics were also highlighted. These are fibre optic links directly integrated into semiconductor chips, without the need for discrete electrical-optical conversion. They are cheaper and faster than copper, but there is limited availability, there is a risk of vendor lock-in and it only makes financial sense at scale. “Even the hyperscalers aren’t doing this in the white space just yet, but they probably will in the next couple of years,” said Ascierto. The disruptor driver behind this technology is the ability

for widespread adoption is the fact that there needs to be a more mature supply chain. A lot more work needs to be done to get enterprise grade support and service,” said Ascierto. The driver for this approach is the potential to cut costs and improve efficiency. It scored a disruptive rating of 3.54. Software defined power This is where power is a pooled resource and matched dynamically to IT load needs. It involves approaches such as automated power capping, re-routing, storing and discharging energy. “The benefits include much higher utilisation rates and dynamic capacity management, but it is not necessarily straightforward – particularly if you are going to be shifting loads, because you need to integrate data about the equipment, the power source, the power quality and the IT apps that are running on the equipment. Some see this as increasing risk; you

Personally, I am very bullish about DMaaS, but I don’t think it will replace on-prem monitoring and DCIM. It isn’t going to be an ‘either, or’ scenario. I think this will be used to augment on-prem approaches today deliveries,” commented Ascierto. “These modular data centres cost more than low spec server closets and require different operational practices. However, we think the next wave of edge computing, with IOT, is going to drive the demand for these pre-fabricated, modular data centres.” Experts gave the modular data centres a disruptive rating of 3.75. Storage class memory Storage class memory was also investigated by the researchers. Uptime Institute described this as the ‘holy grail’ of computing – combining the persistence of storage with the speed of operational memory. Intel is reported to have been sampling missioncriticalpower.uk

is encrypted and transported from the data centre to the supplier’s cloud, where it is pooled with many other customers’ data for machine/ deep learning. “Having this vast amount of data enables the prediction of events and outcomes with much higher accuracy – perhaps, even predicting things that you wouldn’t be able to forecast without this vast amount of data. The pro is that, ideally, you can lower your risk via additional scrutiny and it could lead to new best practices,” said Ascierto. “However, some people are jittery about their monitored data going over a wide area network to a cloud, whether or not this is justified. There is a reliance on third-parties, as

to provide IT subsystem disaggregation and pooling without the loss of performance. In addition, there is potential for much higher resource utilisation. The technology received a disruptor score of 3.59. Open source infrastructure This includes the Open Compute Project and Open19. Uptime Institute describes this as ‘the next stage of IT commoditisation’. It means more rack-integration of power and relaxed climatic specification. “The big promise of open source is that it can reduce costs for IT and infrastructure capex and opex by a significant amount. However, the big con

are effectively shifting the risk to the software. But one of the drivers for software defined power is it will enable leaner power capacity, lower redundancy and higher utilisation, which means lower capex,” Ascierto commented. Software defined power scored a disruptive rating of 3.42. “This surprised me; I thought it would be higher,” said Ascierto. Direct liquid cooling This involves delivering liquid, directly or indirectly, to chips. There are two major types: cold plates (liquid in a heat sink) on chips or full immersion. The pros are that this technology requires lower power, due to the elimination of fans, and » December 2018 MCP

INNOVATION

has the potential for higher reliability. The cons include added complexity and the need for operational changes. “People are not used to having servers in vats of liquid and how to maintain that; it is foreign. We also tend to see direct liquid cooling in facilities that were built for air cooling, so it is an added cost on top of infrastructure that has already been built,” Ascierto commented. The driver for this technology is that it supports higher sustained processing speeds and more IT capacity in a power envelope. Direct liquid cooling achieved a disruptive rating of 3.33. “This is lower than I would have expected… As we see more artificial intelligence workloads, I think direct liquid cooling is going to enjoy a real renaissance,” added Ascierto. “Personally, I would put that score higher.”

Ultimately, capacity planning is – and always will be – critical. The data centre is already being disrupted, and will become more efficient if we had a major, extended utility outage, the focus on longer-term energy generation on or near site would shift entirely,” she added. Some 600 data centre end users were also canvassed for their views, which showed some marked differences with

the expert panel. In summary, the experts were more bullish on chiller-free data centres, direct liquid cooling, silicon photonics and micro-modular data centres, compared with end users, while the end users were more bullish on storageclass memory and open-source infrastructure. “Ultimately, capacity planning is – and always will be – critical. The data centre is already being disrupted, and will become more efficient. I would encourage you to assess the top technologies now,” Ascierto concluded. l

Data centre microgrids These provide localised energy sources for increased energy security. They are often tied to the utility but can disconnect (island mode). The advantages of microgrids include energy assurance and security, but there are added capex costs

involved and, in areas such as the US, utility costs are still fairly low. “Building and operating microgrids is also a whole other area of expertise,” said Ascierto. “Microgrids achieved a disruptive score of 3.20, which was the lowest score. However,

IT winds of opportunity

erman wind turbine operator WestfalenWind IT Group is pushing forward with plans to put data centres inside turbines, aided by Fujitsu server and storage technology. Part of the WindCORES initiative, the new hosting solution will enable provider Green IT to offer to sustainable and cost-effective cloud services to its customers. The near zero-emissions Tier III data centre, based in Paderborn in Germany, uses Fujitsu’s Primergy servers and Eternus storage systems. The technology is playing a key role in minimising power consumption – with enhanced power management to keep overall draw to a minimum, MCP December 2018

Wind turbine hosting solution promises to deliver data centre energy and cost savings plus the use of highly efficient components such as AC-DC converters and the latest generation of cooling technology. The low energy requirements, coupled with the low-cost electricity produced by the wind turbine itself, means that Green IT is able to pass on substantial cost savings to customers. As a result, Green IT’s cloud-based services are competitively priced, as well as being ecofriendly, with a near-zero carbon footprint.

Green IT chief information officer Christian Hoffmeister comments: “We are focused on delivering sustainable, energy-efficient and costeffective IT solutions for our customers. Unfortunately, most data centres use a considerable amount of energy derived from fossil fuels or nuclear power, backed up by diesel-powered generators in case of an interruption in electricity supply. “The WindCORES solution offered by Westfalen Wind IT is the logical way for us to

deliver near carbon neutral services.” Gunnar Schomaker, co-founder of WestfalenWind IT Group, added: “There is plenty of space inside many wind turbine towers for IT and infrastructure equipment – enabling the low-emissions distributed data centres of the future. “With WindCORES, providers like Green IT are able to offer a new differentiated portfolio of cloud services to their customers, who also benefit from low power costs and sustainability, plus a reduction in their overall carbon footprint.” l missioncriticalpower.uk

Sponsored Cover Story

Power transformers that are digital natives

Electricity is the spark at the heart of modern life. ABB’s Richard Holliday, Market Manager in the UK, answers some questions about how it is making its transformers inherently smarter with digital technology to meet the challenges posed by the ongoing energy revolution

How and why is the role of transformers changing in the UK? With the UK’s grid operators facing the challenge of rapid changes to the pattern of supply and demand, it is more important than ever for them to keep a watching eye on transformers. They are one of the most important components in the power value chain as they play the essential role of stepping voltage up or down at grid substations. Traditional power grids worked on a top-down approach, with power flowing from large, centralised power stations through the transmission and distribution networks. However, the transition towards renewable energy at every voltage level on the grid means

that transformers are now experiencing conditions that were never anticipated by the grid’s original designers. Looking to the future, today’s brand new transformers will still be operating decades from now. They will need to operate reliably through changes such as the mass integration of electric vehicles, rail electrification, integration of more renewable energy and energy storage. In addition, there will be growth in microgrids and participation of more prosumers in demandside management schemes, as well as growth in demand, installation of new nuclear baseline generation and interconnectors. As a result, when specifying new and replacement assets, transmission and distribution network operators (TNOs and

DNOs) are looking for reliability, efficiency and future-proofing. In practice, this means that transformers will need to respond to fluctuating and bi-directional power flows that assets were never expected to experience in the past. Recognising this, transformer operators want tools to monitor the health of transformers and optimise maintenance schedules in a way they can scale up to meet future challenges. Why has ABB launched a digitally enabled power transformer? We have already been supporting the market over several years by retrofitting digital sensors and diagnostics into existing transformers during inspection and remanufacture services.

In addition, we launched our TXpert transformer in early 2017 as the world’s first digital distribution transformer. This has built-in Wi-Fi wired Ethernet or cellular connection options for straightforward access to encrypted data without the need to interrupt the transformer’s operation. However, in April 2018 we launched the ABB Ability Power Transformer at the 2018 Hanover Fair in Germany as the world’s first digitally native power transformer. Much like young people who never knew life before the internet are digital natives, the new transformer will feel the benefits of data connectivity and the Internet of Things throughout its entire lifecycle. State-of-the-art smart sensor devices are integrated during the manufacture of our high-voltage transmission transformers to create a new breed of transformer. These sensors connect through a set of diagnostic tools to deliver real-time performance data and insight into operations that can be updated and enhanced over time to meet new requirements. What are the benefits to grid operators? Monitoring and diagnostics in real time supports reliability as operators can avoid unplanned outages by setting up alarms to give early warnings and prevent failures. Reliability is also supported through condition-based and predictive maintenance. From a safety perspective, remote monitoring minimises the exposure of operators to risk in the substation environment. Digital solutions also support efficiency as operators can optimise the performance and utilisation of assets. In turn, this enables them to reduce the Total Cost of Ownership. Looking at efficiency across an operator’s fleet of transformers, digital monitoring and diagnostics allows for benchmarking. In addition, the operator can use the data

and insights from sensors to intelligently manage the grid under fluctuating load conditions and with shorter response times. The other key benefit of digital technology for transformers is future-proofing. The technology can be used as a building block for digital substations. It is modular and scalable to add new functionality, smart devices, software and service as the operator’s priorities change. In addition state-of-the-art cybersecurity will ensure secure and reliable data transmission, monitoring, remote control and service. What types of sensors are integrated into the transformer? The build-up of heat, dissolved hydrogen, gas and moisture in the insulating mineral oil in transformers can all lead to premature failure or significant damage. These types of contamination reduces the dielectric strength of the oil as well as the cellulose paper insulation wrapped around the windings in some models. Therefore, in the new digitally enabled transformer, sensors can measure not only the temperature of the oil but also of key components inside the transformer, as well as monitoring oil quality and the accumulation of gas. In addition, an oil level sensor would keep tabs on leakage and a self-hydrating breather device will absorb moisture into

silica gel tanks for continuous operation. Additionally, options include a relay to monitor the accumulation of gas inside the transformer. All of these can be set to trigger an alarm at a defined threshold to prompt operator interventions. What sort of local monitoring and diagnostics is included? The new breed of transformers is designed to work inside the ABB Ability ecosystem, which has four levels. At the first level, the sensor technologies integrated into the body of a transformer will measure performance, assess condition, store data and connect with higher-level tools. At the next level, a local monitoring and diagnostics tools has the role of enhancing operations with automation, smart monitoring, control and management, as well as security. In the case of the Power Transformer, the local monitoring platform takes the form of ABB’s CoreTec 4. This is designed to aggregate, manage and analyse data for a single transformer. It detects faults, reduces premature ageing, highlights load capacity where necessary and enables the operator to delay the replacement of time-served assets. Continuous local measurement provides trends and monitoring means that when key health parameters meet maximum thresholds, the system will trigger an alert to

operators to take action and carry out investigations when needed – not when scheduled. In addition, the local diagnostics tool can take temperature and moisture levels of the transformer oil into account when the transformer is in operation. For example, it will activate the cooling system sooner if it considers that the parameters are elevated. Another way that local digital control can help is by enabling informed decisions on whether to overload the transformer. It will track environmental conditions and use international standards to consider the short term overload capacity. This allows the operator to weigh up the potential for transformer ageing versus increased throughput and revenues. A further function of local diagnostics and control is that it can help operators extend the life of a sick transformer by enabling them to run it below recommended critical limits for temperature and gas generation. This can help to implement better plans for maintenance or delay replacement. How does the local monitoring platform integrate with remote control and support? The local monitoring feeds into fleet-wide asset management at the third level of the ABB Ability ecosystem. This delivers better results by optimising the operator’s fleet of assets, predicting performance and ensuring high-level automation functions. At the fourth and highest level in the ecosystem, operators link with ABB’s remote service centre, where experts can lend support in the form of expert knowledge and advice. This helps to diagnose and solve problems on individual transformers, as well as make decisions on the operation and optimisation of entire fleets. Find out more at new.abb.com

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

Data centres must improve awareness of energy-saving code of conduct John Booth, an independent sustainable ICT consultant and the managing director of Carbon3IT, calls for greater awareness of energy efficiency best practice. With the projected growth in hyperscale, cloud, IoT and Edge, the sector needs to tackle its energy usage

decade after the introduction of the EU Code of Conduct for Data Centres (Energy Efficiency), there is still a need to raise awareness of this document. It is shocking that only about 50% of the people working in data centre mission critical environments know about the scheme. Many are failing to implement the 150plus best practices contained within the document and are therefore missing out on potential savings. The EUCOC states: “For the purposes of the Code of Conduct, the term ‘data centres’ includes all buildings, facilities and rooms which contain enterprise servers, server communication equipment, cooling equipment and power equipment, and provide some form of data service (eg large-scale mission critical facilities all the way down to small server rooms MCP December 2018

located in office buildings).” Essentially, this covers all ICT equipment rooms that are cooled, ranging from server rooms to hyperscale data centres and all points in between. The scheme was developed in 2007/8 by a collaboration between Defra, the British Computer Society – Data Centre specialist group (CK), and the EU Joint Research Centre, primarily to address some alarming research that had indicated that data centre energy consumption was increasing. The statement relating to that, and which is included in the EUCOC guidance document, says: “Electricity consumed in data centres, including enterprise servers, ICT equipment, cooling equipment and power equipment, is expected to contribute substantially to the electricity consumed in the European Union (EU) commercial

sector in the near future. Western European electricity consumption of 56TWh per year can be estimated for the year 2007 and is projected to increase to 104TWh per year by 2020.” European energy consumption So, as we near the 2020s, what is the current energy consumption related to data centres across Europe? Well, unfortunately, data is very hard to come by as there is no legal requirement for data centre owners, be they public, private or academic, to report their data

to one pan-European authority. While energy reporting is required under article 7/8 of the EU Energy Efficiency Directive, data centre energy consumption often gets mixed with other energy data, especially in enterprises. A report published by the EU-JRC in 2017 (https://core.ac.uk/download/ pdf/141667150.pdf ) showed that, for those organisations participating in the EUCOC, that is some 289 sites, the total annual electricity consumption was a little over 3.7TWh, a long way from 54TWh, let alone 104TWh.

We know that there is a considerable opportunity to reduce the energy used in a data centre. The EUCOC provides such an opportunity in a measured and structured approach missioncriticalpower.uk

Data centres have a lot of work to do to reduce energy consumption further

But we need to see this in context; the EUCOC has primarily the main commercial facing operators, and very few on-premise enterprise facilities, and while it is only 289 sites, this is still the largest survey or its type in the world. Other research has indicated that, across Europe, there are approximately 10,500 data centres â&#x20AC;&#x201C; a mix of public sector, private sector and commercial. If we divide the total energy consumption (3.7TWh) by the EUCOC participants (289) we get an average energy consumption figure of 12,926MWh. Multiply this by 10,500 and we see that the total energy consumption (estimated) across Europe is 135TWh. This figure is a lot closer to the original forecast of 104TWh. However, this assumes that there are indeed 10,500 data centres in the EU. Estimates vary, and to be honest, does missioncriticalpower.uk

this figure include smaller on premises data centres, carrier/ mobile networks and other computer rooms that may be used for industry, traffic and signalling systems etc? The truth is we simply do not know, and the figures are, as a result, potentially misleading. UK data from the Climate Change Agreement for Data Centres in 2017, which comprises commercial data centre operators only, put the actual energy consumption for 129 sites at 2.573TWh in 2016, which represented 0.76% of the 339TWh generated in the UK that year. The UK is currently the largest DC market in Europe, but recent data suggests that the other areas are catching up. Previously, I have postulated that the total UK plc data centre/server room energy consumption was considerably higher, at about 41.11TWh, but this was based upon 80,000

qualifying server rooms and included private business, all government and carrier/mobile networks. That represents approximately 12% of the electricity generated. In 2016, the total electricity generation across the EU member states was 3.10 million GWh, which converts to 31,000TWh, so total electricity consumption by data centres is approximately 0.45% if we assume that there are only 10,500 data centres in the EU. An article by Jens Malmodin et al, from Ericsson Research, suggests that the global energy use for data centres and ICT networks was in the region of 465TWh, of which 200TWh was data centres. The US accounted for 70TWh, so if EU data centre energy consumption is 135Twh, there appears to be a problem, especially as the APAC and LATAM regions are not included (www.mdpi. com/2071-1050/10/9/3027). So, these are big numbers and we know that there is a considerable opportunity to reduce the energy used in a data centre. The EUCOC provides such an opportunity in a measured and structured approach. It is a roadmap to energy reduction, but also a mechanism to really take control of your ICT assets.

Opportunities for major financial savings The EUCOC has more than 150 best practices that cover management, IT equipment, cooling, power, new build and, finally, measurement and monitoring. From case studies and other anecdotal conversations, data centre operators can reduce their energy bills by between 25% and 75% depending on how aggressive they are in adopting the best practices. In summary, despite some commentatorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; views, the problem is not as bad as predicted, but that is only because people took heed. The fact remains that, with the projected growth in hyperscale, cloud, IoT and Edge, we have lots more to do. l John Booth is the chair of the BCS Green IT, and chair of the Data Centre Allianceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Energy Efficiency and Sustainability SIG. He is also the principle reviewer of applications to the EUCOC, sits on the best practices committee and is present on the BSI TCT7/3 committee that develops the EN50600 standards. December 2018 MCP

DATA CENTRE OPTIMISATION

Averting distaster: learning from aviation Design errors are still being ‘built in’ to data centres and human error continues to impact the industry. Could the data centre sector avoid catastrophic outages by adopting an incident reporting strategy?

f the data centre sector fails to learn from incidents, we will see fatalities in the future, warns the Data Centre Incident Reporting Network (DCIRN). Data centres will increasingly be relied upon to support safety critical IT applications, from the digitisation of healthcare environments to automated vehicles. Inevitably, this trend will lead to a serious risk of loss of life if outages are not prevented. Not only are the stakes being raised, the Uptime Institute has revealed that outages are increasing in frequency and severity. So how can the data centre sector turn this trend around and learn from its mistakes? The first step toward improvement requires the reporting of incidents, understanding why they have happened, and sharing conclusions on how these issues can be averted in the MCP December 2018

future. For the best outcomes, this needs to be a collaborative effort across the industry. Last year, the DCIRN was established to manage an independent, voluntary reporting programme for data centre operators and personnel working in the sector, to improve the safety and reliability. DCIRN Secretariat chief executive John Lane says: “We have set up processes to ensure that reported incidents are confidential and anonymised, along with an advisory committee to evaluate incidents and the lessons that can be learned.” He explains that the DCIRN approach has been modelled on the aviation industry, where a culture of reporting incidents and shared learning is well established. The UK Confidential Reporting Programme for Aviation and Maritime (CHIRP) already

has a track record of success and DCIRN has been working closely with the organisation. While the aviation industry is required by law to report incidents, this is not the case for data centres, and they are constrained by commercial confidentiality. Ensuring reports are completely anonymised has been extremely important, therefore. “People we have spoken to in the industry have been very supportive. Industry organisations such as the Uptime Institute have given a lot of encouragement and assistance. We are also talking to sponsors from the industry to obtain financial support,” comments Lane. To facilitate shared learning, the DCIRN website now features a number of incident reports. Among the incidents highlighted on the website are scenarios in which: a PDU isolation transformer caused

flash-over in the UPS; a static transfer switch fault tripped critical servers; and a neutral link failure damaged hundreds of PCs. “Overall, we have identified five types of common incidents and hope to build a body of learning around these. These include mechanical and electrical, networking, software applications, cyber security and human factors. “We have focused on mechanical and electrical infrastructure, initially. The first 10 reports highlight failures mainly due to design flaws that arise during an event. Despite the fact that the industry is pretty mature, design errors are still being built in and these become apparent when the data centre is ‘stressed’ in some way,” comments Lane. “You can engineer for resilience, but when incidents do occur, they are often missioncriticalpower.uk

You can engineer for resilience, but when incidents do occur, they are often exacerbated by a lack of knowledge, experience or training exacerbated by a lack of knowledge, experience or training. This seems to be a common theme – something goes wrong and the response makes it worse,” he continues. In the aviation industry, simulation is used to rehearse for incidents, so that remedial actions that can avert disaster become second nature for pilots. Lane believes that this could prove to be a useful missioncriticalpower.uk

approach in the data centre industry. Simulation is one aspect but there also needs to be practical exercising – many IT professionals are reluctant to carry out a ‘black start’. “They build a data centre and secure incoming supplies, but they won’t get their electric supply company to turn off the 11,000 volt incoming supply and see if the generators start. Data centres are willing to run the generator in standby mode to check that it starts but it is rare to actually perform a full-scale test of the standby facility,” says Lane. He adds that this is important as a training exercise: “You need to rehearse and run through various scenarios – whether the generator kicks in and the changeover works, and the UPS and air conditioning come back on, in the way they are supposed to. By going through this, staff become familiar with the process of recovering from an incoming supply fault. “In my opinion, as an engineer, there is no point in having this backup technology if you don’t use it, or let the on-site staff see it in action and become familiar with what happens when an event occurs. There needs to be routine standby testing and it is not being done enough. “Banks and airlines have dual data centres so that, in theory, one can go offline, and transactions will continue unaffected, but they are very reluctant to put this to the test because they don’t have the confidence that it is going to work.” As the number of submitted reports on incidents grows, a quarterly bulletin will be disseminated that will pinpoint trends and areas for learning. The ambition is to roll out the scheme internationally, including the US, Singapore and China. Simon Allen, a DCIRN executive committee member and executive director at Infrastructure Masons, warns: “If the industry doesn’t address this issue, governments will have to step in.” l

Genset providers could ease energy market pressures Diesel and gas-powered generator sets, or ‘gensets’, have a vital role to play in ensuring uptime when an interruption in power cannot be allowed

ccording to the latest data shared by Romain Mocaer of PowerGen Statistics at this year’s annual AMPS conference, the UK, France and Italy now account for 25% of the global trade in gensets. As a block, the EU represented 45% of the trade worldwide in this industry. Discussion of emissions was high on the agenda at the 2018 conference and AGM. Richard Payne, the customer engineering manager for Cummins G-Drive (who serves as the exhaust emissions expert for both the AMPS Technical Committee and Europgen), gave a comprehensive update of legislation and standards. According to AMPS, the genset industry has been at the forefront of developing technology to lower emissions, in recent years, and has been investing heavily in producing cleaner and greener gensets. Although there is a trend toward renewable sources of power, there will always be a demand for gensets to fill gaps in supply. They will also be needed to support renewable generation in the distributed power set-ups which will gradually reinforce or replace large grids. As energy consumption grows and the National Grid struggles to keep pace with it, AMPS believes that genset providers can do much to ease the pressure. Gensets contribute substantially to the flexibility markets set up by government to encourage extra

generating resources, and to the National Grid’s Short Term Operating Reserve (STOR). In addition, they provide emergency cover when power supplies are hit by major flooding events. ‘Once-ina-lifetime’ and ‘once-in-athousand-year’ storms and floods have become almost an annual occurrence in the UK, and that trend seems set to continue. On a global scale, others experience worse conditions with frequent power outages on a regular basis. Looking to the future, the Crown Commercial Service has been in contact with AMPS to discuss the establishment of a public sector-wide commercial framework for genset suppliers. This would cover standby and emergency generators, including uninterruptable power supplies. Discussions are still at an early stage but CCS will, in due course, develop a market engagement plan involving a consultation questionnaire and webinar. The Knowledge Centre on the AMPS website provides mission critical sites with valuable information on genset specification, along with technical white papers available to download. The AMPS Technical Committee also provides answers to frequently asked questions on a wide range of genset-related issues, from specifying a genset, to the latest relevant legislation and standards. For further information visit amps.org.uk December 2018 MCP

ENERGY STORAGE

Lithium-ion batteries: good idea or a risk? There is increasing interest in lithium-ion batteries, but opinion remains divided on the most suitable technology for data centre applications. The pros and cons of various battery solutions continue to be hotly contested. Ian Bitterlin adds to the debate with his own views on the technologies available

here is a huge amount of discussion regarding the use of lithiumion battery cells in the data centre, although it must be said that any suggestion that widespread adoption in large, centralised UPS is taking place, is exaggerated, in my view. There is no doubt that Li-ion cells offer huge technical and performance advantages in some applications. Their low weight and compact size are ideal for cameras, mobile-phones, cars, drones and satellites – imagine the challenges for those with a product that weighs twice as much, such as lead-acid cells. For data centres there are two possible applications: rackmounted in individual ICT cabinets; or for centralised UPS. For rack-mounted batteries fitted in ICT cabinets within the critical space, Li-ion can be supplied in packs at nominal voltages of 14.4V (four cells in series, the nearest to 12V) and 50.4V (14 cells in series, the nearest to 48V) and they offer substantial advantages in weight and volume. In addition the cells do not contain an MCP December 2018

acidic electrolyte that can leak or emit acid molecules when over-charging and, attractively for ICT cabinet-mounted cells, Li-ion does not need to be kept to 25°C. However, batteries that are fitted inside the critical space, especially mounted in the ICT cabinets themselves, are still the preserve of the likes of Google and Facebook, while the alternative (that we shall consider here) is for centralised UPS batteries, where some of the attributes of Li-ion are less useful and one of the downsides cannot be ignored – that of flammability. Knee-jerk reaction? The trend (starting very slowly in 2017) for Li-ion cells to replace lead-acid cells in large centralised UPS systems can be regarded as a knee-jerk reaction to low-cost short-

life valve-regulated lead-acid (VRLA) batteries, very often of automotive design and sourced from low-cost manufacturing regions, failing prematurely and giving VRLA a poor reputation. The UPS OEMs are complicit in the situation that the market finds itself in as, under market price pressure, they have responded by supplying lower-cost batteries rather than reducing the margin on the UPS they manufacture. Until 2010, a 15-minute European manufactured VRLA battery represented 45-50% of the overall UPS market price, so reducing the battery cost by 20% under competitive pressure made a considerable difference. Unfortunately, lowcost batteries – often derived from automotive designs that are not entirely suitable for continuous float duty – rarely

offer a service life of longer than three to four years, and so the perception for short-life reinforced a growing demand for an alternative solution. In reality it is easy to engineer a pasted-plate VRLA system to reach eight-plus years service life at a cost premium of 20-30%, or a pure-lead VRLA reaching 11-plus years (even at 30°C) and a cost premium of 30-35% over a low-cost import, but the marketing hype of Li-ion and the substantial sales price premium to be regained by the UPS vendor seemed more attractive. As UPS OEMs make most, if not all, of their profit out of after-sales-service and only buy/sell batteries, the chance to regain sales volume and margin is very attractive. The same applies to many of the battery OEMs – most do not manufacture Li-ion and the higher sales price and

The trend for Li-ion cells to replace lead-acid cells in large centralised UPS systems can be regarded as a knee-jerk reaction to low-cost short-life valve-regulated lead-acid batteries, very often of automotive design and sourced from low-cost manufacturing regions missioncriticalpower.uk

opportunity to make increased margin (or regain lost margin) is attractive in the short term. When it comes to sales and marketing comparisons that are in favour of Li-ion, they are usually based on arguments that can be challenged: the cost of Li-ion is getting closer to VRLA, but often a battery monitoring system cost is added to the VRLA on the basis that Li-ion battery packs always have one (they must have a battery-monitoring system fitted for safety) despite the fact that VRLA cells do not need to have a battery monitor at all. As a good battery monitor can cost the same as a complete low-cost VRLA battery, the comparison argument needs careful consideration while the high cost of a battery monitoring system explains why most VRLA data centre batteries in Europe are not fitted with them. When that, somewhat biased, cost comparison is combined with a short VRLA service life, where it is often claimed that VRLA only last three years before replacement compared with 10 years for Li-ion, the result is that Li-ion appears to missioncriticalpower.uk

have a lower TCO. Of course, it is in all parties’ interests (including the battery and UPS OEMs, but excluding the end user) that the customer purchases a higher priced solution, but the three-year VRLA ‘problem’ is the choice of the purchaser, not the technology. Also, be aware that many comparisons are made against flooded lead-acid batteries, with very much higher weight and space requirements than VRLA, and we should compare engineered solutions in specific applications, rather than follow marketing claims. There are several Li-ion chemistries but the most popular, and lowest cost, cells are small 18mm x 65mm cylinders, each 3.2Ah, 3.6V/cell and only weigh 48g. This means that there has to be numerous cells fitted into a single rackmounted ‘pack’ with wiring and numerous solder-joints. For example, the Tesla-S 85kWh battery (which can be judged to be equivalent to a 500kW 10-minute lead-acid UPS battery) has a total of 7,104 individual Li-ion cells spread between 16 packs. This multicell complexity explains why Li-ion solutions are always packed into rack-mounted cases, as they contain several hundred individual cells wired in series and parallel groups to achieve the desired terminal voltage and Ah capacity. Li-ion chemistry produces 3.6V/cell, but this is irrelevant as they are always sold in modular packs. To achieve 360V-720V in a 3ph UPS, several packs are connected in series, eg 7x 50.4V for 352V or 14x 50.4V for 705V. Several UPS OEMs now describe their products as ‘Li-ion ready’, which means that they have assigned a Li-ion battery option in their software and have adjusted all the data points to cope with the difference between 2V/cell of lead-acid and 3.6V/cell of Li-ion (or N packs of XV/pack). The power system designer should establish if »

Li-ion batteries gaining traction Giovanni Zanei (pictured), global large power offering director at Vertiv, believes that there are significant advantages to utilising Lithium-ion, and claims there are potential savings to be achieved: “Lithium-ion batteries are gaining traction in today’s data centre market, proving a viable replacement for VRLA batteries. They have a longer lifespan, in some cases three times longer, a higher energy density allowing more space for servers, can operate at higher temperatures and can be up to 60% lighter. “Importantly, lithium-ion batteries are far more costeffective – a key consideration particularly for large colocation providers and hyperscale data centres. While the initial capex is higher than standard solutions, the running and maintenance costs are substantially reduced over time, making the total cost of ownership (TCO) far lower. “At Vertiv, we’ve seen a growing interest and a number of requests from our customers – so far we have supported projects for a total of over 150 MW of UPS with lithium-ion batteries. High efficiency UPS with lithium-ion batteries were a key requirement for our colocation customer IXcellerate, the largest data hall in Russia which recently achieved Tier III design certification from the Uptime Institute. “In addition to the TCO savings, lithium-ion allows IXcellerate to maximise white space for customer equipment and to operate in a wider temperature range, providing significant savings on cooling. While the benefits alone make lithium-ion batteries a valuable option, it’s the innovation that they enable within data centres that makes them even more compelling. “Our partnership with Upside Energy is an example of this, whereby the energy stored in the lithiumion batteries within customers’ UPS systems can be directed back into the electricity grid, thus allowing it to run more efficiently at peak times. Because of the fast recharge rate and slower self-discharge rate, and the fact that they can support a higher number of charge/discharge cycles, the attractiveness of lithiumion batteries as reliable power storage is significantly increasing. “With data centre energy consumption set to increase more than threefold over the next 10 years, lithium-ion batteries enable UPS owners to play an important role in preserving the availability and resilience of the grid, while generating new value streams and making significant savings on their energy bill. “Lastly, lithium-ion batteries can play a crucial role in solving some issues that arise in remote regions, such as parts of Africa, that face an unreliable (or non-existent) power grid. These areas rely heavily on generators, some running 24/7. Not only does this increase running costs, but it also leaves no redundant power supply should the generator fail.”

December 2018 MCP

ENERGY STORAGE

the attributes of Li-ion are useful (or indeed true) for large centralised UPS when compared with VRLA: • The lower weight, 30-50% of flooded lead-acid, is useful in cabinet mounting but largely irrelevant in a data centre plant-room while the higher W/cm3, 60-70% smaller than a flooded lead-acid, is actually similar to VRLA. • The short charging time, 10x faster from a 100% discharge, sounds attractive but most data centre batteries do not discharge for more than 20 seconds and Li-ion offers no real advantage, while

but not for data centre plantrooms. • Claims for longer life or MTBF, which cannot be true in theory due to the component higher count, has yet to be demonstrated, but there is likely to be no discernible difference given the 25-times cell count and the reliance on multiple charging-current/temperature monitoring systems. However, there are drawbacks that have to be considered: • The Li-ion 18 x 65mm cells have a highly flammable gas

• The safety of the battery depends entirely on a single electronic control card. I suggest the reader searches YouTube for examples of Li-ion fire events, particularly from NASA and a satellite in the workshop bursting into uncontrollable flames. There are different Lithiumion cell chemistries that are less flammable, but they are considerably more expensive and so rarely discussed. The Tesla car battery is driving demand and the cost is reducing due to the volume production. Interestingly, in

For high power centralised UPS, the higher cost, the reliance on a single battery monitor and the flammability risk of Li-ion can be avoided by engineering a high-quality VRLA solution the higher discharge cycles, 4000 compared to 500, is not useful as a data centre battery typically discharges less than 15 times per year. • The claims for longer life is clearly true compared to a low-cost automotive VRLA but is certainly not longer than a high-quality VRLA. The extreme temperature tolerance, -10°C to 60°C compared with 18°C to 27°C, may be very useful for cars

electrolyte under pressure and, for safety, a charge/ temperature monitoring system is a critical feature that is always in-built, but never redundant. This makes a gaseous fire suppression system essential and, interestingly, one European battery OEM will only offer a high power Li-ion system if they supply a fire suppression system built into the battery cabinet.

the case of Tesla, the battery is only a fire risk when being recharged or when crushed in an accident, which explains the titanium undertray, but petrol is also a problem if the tank is ruptured. It is unproven if the, often claimed, Li-ion battery service life will be 10 years in UPS float-duty (99.997% in float, 0.003% in discharge/charge), as this is very different from the deep charge/discharge cycle

in all other Li-ion applications such as cars – which have 6% of life in discharge, 22% of life in charge and with a charge/ discharge cycle every trip. In comparison, a pure leadplate VRLA, at a much lower cost than Li-ion, has a proven 11-plus years actual service life at 25°C. From an environmental viewpoint there is, unfortunately, no established recycling path for lithium, unlike lead-acid cells, which are 100% recycled in Europe and battery recycling plants are already having problems in their block crushing machinery. Conclusion My conclusion is that Li-ion is still a high-cost solution compared with a high-quality European VRLA, currently more than three times the cost, and that, for high power centralised UPS, the higher cost, the reliance on a single battery monitor and the flammability risk of Li-ion can be avoided by engineering a high-quality VRLA solution that has a proven track-record. If the attributes of low weight and no acid is attractive, then why not choose nickel cadmium with a proven 25-year service life and which is also reassuringly expensive?l

Li-ion for UPS: safer chemistries Centiel’s Mike Elms (pictured) disputes the claim that Li-ion batteries present a risk to data centres: “In the past, you may have read some troubling stories in the press, predominantly about consumer electronic devices. Perhaps you remember the Samsung Note 7s catching fire and being banned from being taken on aircraft? The amount of energy density stored in these devices batteries does present specific problems. Although the incident rate is low compared with the huge quantity of devices in the field, it is still an area that needs addressing. “However, high-end applications such as UPS systems do not quite present the same challenges. Li-ion batteries for UPS systems offer safer chemistries, bigger operating parameters, more robust materials and less stressed user environments. Li-ion manufacturers use x-rays as part of quality control and there are safety fuses overcharge protection built in,” says Elms. “Chemistry and cell science has improved but so has the electronic management systems which monitor the battery system, obtaining details of each individual cell such as voltage, current, temperature and alarms, and control the charging regime appropriately. “Because nobody likes being a guinea pig and, by its very nature, the critical power protection industry tends to be particularly risk averse, the first moves to Li-ion batteries in the UPS industry will be by innovators. How soon they will be adopted by the mainstream will likely depend on the experience of these first installations. “We believe that over time there will be a move towards Li-ion batteries as cost reductions, driven by developments in the automotive industry, flow through to the standby power sectors,” says Elms. “Incorporating Li-ion batteries will inevitably reduce the size and weight of UPS systems and the longer useful working life of Li-ion will mean fewer costly replacements. All of which will benefit customers with reductions in both capex and opex.” MCP December 2018

missioncriticalpower.uk

21 GS Yuasa battery cells installed on the International Space Station

Batteries boldy go…

S Yuasa lithiumion cells have been delivered and installed on the International Space Station (ISS). The cells were transported into space by the ISS’s H-II Transfer Vehicle, which was launched by Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency on 23 September from the

Tanegashima Space Centre. This is the second of four batches of GS Yuasa Li-ion batteries to be delivered to the ISS – the first being back in December 2016. High energy density The GS Yuasa Li-ion cells are replacing the space station’s older nickel-metal hydride

(NiMH) cells. Just 24 of the new Li-ion cells can deliver the same performance provided by 48 nickel-metal hydride batteries. This means only half the number of GS Yuasa cells are needed to provide the same capacity and high energy density, therefore contributing to a reduction in transportation costs.

GS Yuasa’s Li-ion cells have high energy density and long life plus boast a track record of being installed in numerous spacecraft and rockets, both in Japan and abroad. First adopted on board the ISS in 2012, the cells have a design optimised for space operations, which require highly efficient chargedischarge. All energy on board the space station is produced by solar panels and stored in the craft’s batteries. This stored energy is then used to power onboard systems during nocturnal periods – of which there are 16 every 24 hours due to the ISS’s orbit around the earth. The replacement of the batteries was carried out by astronauts during space walks outside the space station in October. Going forward, GS Yuasa will continue to contribute to space development projects through the development and manufacturing of high performance Li-ion batteries. l

DEMAND-SIDE RESPONSE

Assets you can count on: unlocking hidden value in UPS A new partnership will enable mission critical sites to monetise their power assets. A growing number of mission critical sites are now approaching their UPS providers to develop solutions to facilitate demandside response. Louise Frampton reports

roviders of critical infrastructure are now paving the way for mission critical facilities to enter the market for demandside response, enabling them to capitalise on their backup power assets. Vertiv is the latest to set its sights on the DSR arena, by entering a partnership with energy software specialist Upside Energy. By using Upside Energy’s cloud-based Flexibility Platform, Vertiv will enable customers, with uninterruptible power supplies to provide unused energy to the UK electricity grid. By extending battery storage beyond its typical use, UPS owners will be able to generate value and make savings on their energy bill. Vertiv provides physical MCP December 2018

infrastructure and monitoring for data centres, as well as a range of services for data centres, which are primarily designed to ensure availability and optimisation of energy consumption. However, it has found there is increasing interest in the potential for demand-side response. Emiliano Cevenini, vicepresident of commercial and industrial vertical markets for Vertiv in Europe, Middle East and Africa, comments: “We are

always looking for new ways of offering services for customers. After meeting with Upside, it was apparent that they could offer a way to use assets more effectively – these are sitting idle for the majority of the time, waiting for an event to happen. These assets can be used as flexible devices. This is particularly straightforward for end users with UPS, which already feature battery storage.” Businesses usually invest in UPS solutions as emergency

backup for critical systems, but this new distributed energy model makes UPS more attractive for potential customers as these systems can now be used also to generate value. Upside Energy’s cloud-based platform has the capability to provide demand response and orchestrate more than 100,000 devices or systems running in parallel in real-time. The platform software will continuously and remotely monitor the UPS of Vertiv’s

It is not a case of educating our customers to get on board with DSR; we have been educated by our customers. Now we are ready to educate the rest - Emiliano Cevenini, Vertiv missioncriticalpower.uk

UK customers who opt in, using battery storage to provide flexibility to the grid, while the UPS primary function as emergency backup power remains unaltered. In turn, the UK electricity grid can run more efficiently, particularly at peak times when it is short of capacity. With energy consumption by data centres set to increase significantly during the next 10 years, the partnership with Upside Energy will give Vertiv customers the opportunity to play an important role in preserving the energy availability and resilience of the grid. Analysis by National Grid shows that 600 tonnes of CO2e can be eliminated for every MW of demand-side missioncriticalpower.uk

capacity made available. By 2025, Upside Energy aims to have 515MW of capacity under management in the UK – which would enable the company to eliminate 309,000 tonnes of CO2e per annum. Upside Energy CEO Devrim Celal comments: “The Upside Energy technology connects assets via a highly scalable, extremely fast control platform, using artificial intelligence and

machine learning algorithms. We optimise the capacity of these assets and offer them to energy markets. This may be across the national grid, hotel power markets, or, increasingly, DNOs. The aim is to deliver additional value to Vertiv customers using assets that they already own, without jeopardising their critical mission, while simultaneously giving facilities intelligence about the assets that they own. “We estimate that there are around 500,000 UPS already in the UK, holding several gigawatts of energy. The cloud platform allows us to release that energy and make value out of it. “Various options are available to monetise the assets, including revenue sharing, but what makes this relationship different to the typical set-up with an aggregator is that it is based on services. For the data centre sector, services that ensure business continuity are the number one priority,” adds Cevenini. He points out that the constant monitoring and management provided by Virtual Energy Store, powered by Upside Energy, enables customers to track how their batteries are being used and whether they are functioning properly. The monitoring capability also minimises the risk that the batteries might get depleted while sitting idle and waiting to be called upon in a potential emergency. Cevenini adds that the data centre industry has in the past been quite a conservative sector, but this is now changing and there is increasing interest in DSR. “We are being proactively approached by data centre clients to develop this

solution as part of our offering and enable them to participate in DSR markets. It is not a case of educating our customers to get on board with DSR; we have been educated by our customers. Now we are ready to educate the rest,” he says. Cevenini believes there is a need for further education around DSR to encourage increased adoption – overcoming initial concerns over ‘loss of control’ or ‘adding risk’ will need to be addressed. “We have experience of managing this initial reticence – 20 years ago we faced challenges in persuading people to allow the connection of UPS for the purpose of monitoring and remote diagnosis. Nobody wanted to have an external connection that would allow a third-party to access to their most mission critical device. This is now past history,” he says. “Customers are becoming more educated on how to protect against outside threats, but they also welcome the fact that a manufacturer of a device can keep an eye on the asset 24/7, 365 days per year and proactively tackle any problems even before the customer realises there is an issue. “We can connect to the external system for DSR, but the decision as to whether the DSR function can be fulfilled lies within our device. If our device decides that there is an anomaly in the power supply, it will not fulfil any external command.” Celal says that one of the barriers to adoption has been a lack of operational and rewards information, but those who do come on board often find they want to do more. “If you speak to organisations that participate in DSR, around half will tell you »

If you speak to organisations that participate in DSR, around half will tell you that they have further capacity. As they become familiar with DSR, they almost always want to do more with the assets they have - Devrim Celal, Upside Energy December 2018 MCP

DEMAND-SIDE RESPONSE

UPS owners will be able to generate value and make savings on their energy bill through DSR that they have further capacity. As they become familiar with DSR, they almost always want to do more with the assets they have. In the data centre world, the picture is going to be similar,” he says. “We are now developing case studies for them to look at, so they feel comfortable, but we can also provide realtime information on what is

happening with their assets, with absolute control over when and how these assets can be used. They have the ability to withdraw the assets from service if their situation changes. In addition, we ensure the UPS battery is never below 80% charge. Once a DSR event is over, the site will have 80% of the original charge in the battery if they need it for a critical event.”

Celal adds that combining value from a variety of assets will deliver the maximum value – including diesel or gas back-up systems, or thermal inertia on their cooling. “It is a win-win scenario,” he says. “If you are focusing on static frequency response you are looking at around £100,000plus (gross) for a 10MW data centre. Last year, there

were just 12 static frequency events, each lasting around 30 minutes. This is within a typical testing cycle and need not add any stress. Some data centres are already avoiding Triad charges – this would add another £450,000 for a 10MW data centre. Dynamic frequency response may also be an option, which would allow them to extract more value.” The partnership is already working with a major telco infrastructure provider; the client’s UPSs have now been enabled and backup generation will further add to the company’s value streams, after the necessary modifications are carried out. This is expected to deliver 2-3MW of DSR to National Grid. There will also be some Triad activity over the winter period, and the partnership is working with the electricity supplier to start using capacity for power market arbitrage. l

EDF signs deal with Upside Energy Partnership will enable supplier to enhance offering to its business customers

DF Energy has paved the way for its business customers to access additional revenue streams traditionally associated with generators and large suppliers, after signing a deal with Upside Energy. Through the partnership, Upside Energy’s cloud-based platform will be used alongside EDF Energy’s PowerShift flexibility platform, to give customers access to markets in which to sell their excess energy. Providing real-time data and advanced forecasting, the Upside platform will enable EDF Energy, the largest supplier to UK business, to enhance its offering to its business customers MCP December 2018

and dispatch demand-side flexibility in real time, in the same way that it dispatches generation. Commenting on the partnership, Jean-Benoit Ritz, director of innovation and blue lab at EDF Energy, says: “Balancing our energy use is increasingly critical as the UK transitions to a low carbon future. This is why demandside response schemes have a growing role in ensuring that electricity is there when we need it, while reducing our reliance on less efficient forms of generation to meet shortterm peaks of demand. “PowerShift gives our business customers better access to DSR schemes, allowing them to pool their own sources of energy generation and adjust their energy use in response to demand, providing them with new revenue streams, while at the same time supporting grid flexibility.” Many large businesses

PowerShift gives our business customers better access to DSR schemes, allowing them to pool their own sources of energy generation and adjust their energy use

currently shift their use of energy to avoid peak network charges, but without any visibility for predictive price fluctuations on wholesale markets. Using Upside Energy’s platform, companies can capitalise on energy trading opportunities as they arise. Through the partnership, EDF Energy customers will have access to the complete range of flexibility opportunities and the company is now rolling out the technology to selected customer sites. Devrim Celal, CEO of Upside Energy, comments: “By using our platform, EDF Energy will not only be able to optimise its position within wholesale markets but assist its customers to ensure they receive the greatest return on investment – while supporting the UK electricity grid to run more efficiently, integrate more renewables and cope with times of peak demand.” l missioncriticalpower.uk

STANDBY POWER

o date, the UK has had a reasonably robust national grid for power distribution, backed up by access to continental European power. However, power cuts are not unknown; in November 2016, for example, London’s West End was blacked out for several hours. Then, in March 2018, the Harbour Exchange data centre in London experienced a long-duration power cut that impacted connected cloud service providers and communications companies. Services remained unavailable or degraded throughout the day. Incidents such as these, coupled with concerns about loss of ageing nuclear and coalfired power station capacity, motivate data centre operators to protect themselves against longer-term blackouts as well as mains power aberrations and failures lasting milliseconds or seconds. Such protection must come from a UPS/generator pair, rather than just a UPS. The generator and UPS as a pair Correct set-up of a UPS/ generator pair starts with understanding the two components’ complementary roles. During normal operation, the generator is powered down, although maintained and ready to start immediately on demand; it is described as a standby generator. Meanwhile, the utility mains supply flows through the UPS to the critical load. The UPS handles any short-term power aberrations or dropouts. However, there is always the possibility of a power blackout that lasts longer than the battery autonomy, irrespective of how much energy storage capacity is provided. Accordingly, the generator is connected to an automatic mains failure (AMF) detection panel, which initiates a generator start-up if a power cut becomes critically extended. Once the generator output has stabilised, it is switched on to the essential parts of the facility’s load, including the UPS. While the

MCP December 2018

How to choose a UPS standby generator Critical loads need protection from longer-duration blackouts as well as short-term power aberrations and cuts. UPSL’s Alex Emms looks at how to integrate a generator and UPS, and explores the key issues associated with installion of standby power into mission critical sites AMF should start the generator early enough to allow for this stabilisation, it should not signal a start during every minor supply disturbance. To avoid this, the AMF signal is typically delayed for 2-10 seconds after mains failure detection. It is equally important to avoid switching the load back to the mains prematurely. If mains power reappears, it may be part of the utility company’s fault location procedure or because of an automatic breaker operation. The fault

may still exist, causing the supply to disconnect again almost immediately. To prevent these false starts, most AMFcontrolled generators will continue to deliver power for at least two minutes after the mains supply is restored. Figure 1 shows a typical protected power installation with AMF panel. AMF support is essential, but generators need two further features to fulfil their UPS standby function. The first concerns their ability to start reliably and quickly on demand,

and the second is about supplying the UPS with an AC waveform that is stable in both amplitude and frequency. Generators in standby applications use diesel engines similar to those found in large lorries. To ensure reliable start up, they should be well maintained, with an adequate fuel supply and a healthy battery for starting. Sufficient coolant and oil is also essential. The generators can be kept warm by mains-powered engine water heaters (or jacket heaters); a mains-powered missioncriticalpower.uk

27 but they are less responsive and provide less stable engine speed – and therefore voltage frequency – regulation. Electronic governors regulate by counting the teeth on the alternator flywheel as it rotates. This approach is highly responsive and provides very stable engine speed regulation; accordingly, it is nearly always used by UPS standby generators. Without this stability, the generator’s frequency range or slew rate may be wider than the UPS can accept. In the worst case, the UPS will set an alarm signal to warn that it will not transfer the load from the UPS to the raw generator output in the event of a fault. Such situations can be avoided by the use of electronic governors, and by ensuring that the generator is designed specifically for UPS support, and thoroughly tested during commissioning. battery charger is used to trickle-charge the starter battery. The diesel engine drives an alternator that converts its mechanical power into electricity. In the UK, this is usually single-phase 230V or three-phase 400V. The voltage amplitude is set by how the alternator is wound, while its stability is controlled by an automatic voltage regulator (AVR). The alternator’s output voltage frequency – usually 50Hz in the UK – is determined by the engine speed. Typically, generators have an engine speed of 1,500rpm that equates to 50Hz electrical output frequency, although this depends on the alternator design. In any case, frequency stability, which is essential for UPS synchronisation, is assured by a mechanical or electronic engine governor that regulates the engine’s fuel feed. Mechanical governors use springs and spinning weights to regulate fuel flow. They are lower cost than electronic types missioncriticalpower.uk

Sizing and environmental considerations Correct generator sizing is important, with oversizing usually being advisable. In most facilities, the generator must support air conditioning and emergency power as well as the UPS load. As an approximate guideline, 1.5 x nominal UPS capacity should be allowed for transformerless UPSs; this rises to 2 x nominal capacity for transformer-based UPSs, and 3 x nominal capacity for air conditioning. Another sizing

Figure 1: typical protected power installation with AMF panel recommendation is to select generators according to their continuous rather than standby rating, as this will equip them better for running at any time and for any duration. Additionally, the generator’s ability to support a step load should be reviewed, especially if the critical load does not have any soft start facility. The generator, once selected, must be installed into its environment correctly. All UK countries apart from Wales have regulations governing fuel storage, designed to prevent environmental damage. Most standby generators use a base tank that is doublebunded to ensure capture of any spilt fuel. Acoustic noise is another form of pollution, especially if the generator runs at night. Acoustic housings with various noise attenuation ratings, and costs, are available to mitigate this issue. When running, generators create considerable heat and exhaust fume volumes. Usual

practice is to install them outdoors in weatherproof and acoustic enclosures, to ensure sufficient airflow for cooling. Outdoor installation also simplifies venting of exhaust fumes. The generator must be installed on a flat, level surface such as a purpose-built concrete slab. It should also be positioned as close as possible to the AMF panel and/or the essential services board, to minimise the required power and signal cable lengths. Most data centres with critical loads regard generators as essential complements to UPSs within their power protection systems; they cannot afford to shut down during a power failure, even if the UPS allows them to do so ‘gracefully’. Ultimately, generators can fulfil their role successfully, provided that they are wellprepared, carefully matched to the UPS, and installed into their environment with sufficient care. l

It is important to avoid switching the load back to the mains prematurely. If mains power reappears, it may be part of the utility company’s fault location procedure or because of an automatic breaker operation Alex Emms, UPSL December 2018 MCP

THERMAL OPTIMSATION

Power planning: are your assets protected? You wouldn’t overlook the protection of any other form of capital investment, so why should telecommunication technology be any different? Carl Webb, HVAC sales director at Andrews Sykes, outlines the crushing impact of avoidable negligence

here are very few issues that can affect a business as quickly as server failure – where the effects are often immediate. Put simply, when servers break down, the smooth operation of your company is instantly put in jeopardy, which can be very difficult to recover from if you are not sufficiently prepared. Protecting your business’s critical assets should not be left to chance, which means formulating a set protocol to follow if something goes wrong. Depending on the severity of disruption, your data centre or server room’s overall integrity may be completely destroyed. Whether that is the case, or a far more minor issue develops, you will still need a plan of action. The presence of air conditioning should be a mandatory feature of any application where vital electronic hardware is stored. Data centres and computer rooms use a significant quantity of energy, producing large volumes of heat which must be safely counteracted. For this reason, the presence of a reliable cooling source is essential and should be MCP December 2018

replaced with urgency if it falters at any stage. A survey of 128 data centres last year, carried out by EkkoSense, revealed that temperature-related issues account for approximately one in three data centre outages. This worrying statistic reinforces the point that thermal factors continue to cause interference on a large scale, with UK businesses being caught out on a daily basis. Facilities managers or those responsible for the upkeep of your servers should be able to spot the many warning signs that suggest trouble might be just around the corner. If you have noticed a steady increase in the cost of maintaining your data centre, then you should heed that as a potential indicator that something is awry. Rising costs probably denote that

your systems are operating below full capacity due to the equipment’s age or it needing to overcompensate for deficiencies elsewhere. Ineffective cooling, as already touched upon, is one of the most common causes of server failure but is often difficult to diagnose. As time passes, the density of electronic framework designed to house networking devices and other hardware will naturally increase. This gradual rise will eventually reach a point where the concentration of electronics slowly negates the impact of your air conditioning arrangement, leading to the emergence of hot spots. It will then necessitate the intervention of an HVAC specialist to determine whether the existing cooling apparatus can still contain a more substantial load. Poor airflow

management will also contrive to reduce the effectiveness of traditional cooling methods so if you’re already in this situation you almost certainly require immediate assistance. The ramifications of a data centre malfunctioning are as varied as they are far-reaching, which is why it is imperative that anticipatory measures are taken at the earliest available opportunity. When breakdown strikes, there is a cost associated with detecting the original problem including a preliminary investigation into how and why it arose. At this juncture, it is likely you will also need to undertake a process of containment to prevent an outage from worsening or affecting other parts of your business. Once offline, the immediate priority will be restoring

There’s no doubt that a major data centre collapse would affect the way in which an operator is perceived by clients, and that can have long-term repercussions Carl Webb, Andrew Sykes missioncriticalpower.uk

29 networks and key systems as quickly as possible. This is easier said than done and the financial expense of this phase can be difficult to quantify, although it is normally significant. Replacement equipment, reduced productivity and lost revenue are all additional variables that constitute a cost and that’s without considering any third-party expenditure where contractors or consultants are required on site. Not all losses can be measured in monetary terms, however. There is no doubt that a major data centre collapse would affect the way in which an operator is perceived by clients, and that can have long-term repercussions. Trivial everyday complications can normally be rectified but a damaged reputation is far more difficult to repair. Data centre failure is a daunting prospect for any company that depends on the continued functionality of all technology contained within. The good news is that devising a back-up plan is straightforward when you review your options with an industry expert – and frankly, there really is no excuse for not doing so. When disaster does strike, your first port of call should be a 24-hour specialist HVAC company with sufficient resources to ensure any issue can be instantly addressed. A prominent supplier of temporary cooling hire solutions will offer tangible nationwide coverage, site surveys and market-leading equipment to guarantee you arrive at the best course of action for your unique circumstances. By acknowledging the sensitive nature of data centres and related applications, dedicated technicians can quickly propose and commission a short-term cooling arrangement that can either supersede or supplement whatever you have in place. In some cases, installing missioncriticalpower.uk

additional air conditioning units to support an existing system will be more than adequate for preventing a breakdown caused by electrical components overheating. A reliable contingency service significantly increases the chances of daily output targets being preserved – even during a crisis – with business continuity very much the primary objective. By constantly developing and improving the technology used in their modern air conditioners and chillers, a trusted supplier will be able to provide superior replacement equipment should your own cooling system falter without warning. Your preferred provider should be capable of responding to emergencies promptly and have genuine experience of working within one of the world’s most temperamental and sensitive sectors. Understanding the potential impact of failed IT systems enables engineers to react quickly, take preventative measures and install the necessary cooling apparatus before any damage is done. The round-the-clock availability of high capacity air conditioning units should be coupled with an offer of no obligation assessments before a project is undertaken. If something goes wrong on site, clients will reap the benefits of technical guidance before any hired cooling solution is implemented. If you are not sufficiently prepared for overcoming warm server room temperatures and the multitude of complications this can bring, then now is the time to act. The absence of a preordained response plan is unforgivable and leaves your business vulnerable. With the stakes so high, why risk suffering a decreased level of output, sky-high expenses and a vastly reduced budget when sourcing a hired air conditioning arrangement – and as a result peace of mind – is so simple? l

Stulz takes chiller technology to the next level

tulz has announced the availability of its CyberCool WaterTec series of water cooled indoor chillers. Comprising five different models, with a cooling capacity ranging from 350-1,400kW, CyberCool WaterTec is designed for use in a wide variety of applications including data centres, manufacturing and production locations, as well as commercial environments. Built using energy-optimised components, extensive equipment options and a wide temperature range at the chilled water outlet (1-19°C), these indoor chillers also utilise oil free magnetic Turbocor compressor technology. This contributes to low noise operation, ease of maintenance and an energy efficient partial load mode. The spray evaporator technology used in the CyberCool WaterTec range works with climate friendly HFO-R1234ze refrigerant and reduces the required refrigerant charge by up to 70% compared with flooded evaporation. Just as importantly, the minimum

efficiency values according to level two of the Ecodesign Directive’s Seasonal Energy Performance Ratio (SEPR) and Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio (SEER) for the year 2021 are easily met. Free cooling is now established as a highly effective way to reduce the energy consumed by chillers. The CyberCool WaterTec can be equipped with a precisely fitted free cooling module, which minimises running time of the compressor and is fully integrated in the control system. Optimisation is guaranteed, with 24/7/365 operation in free cooling, mixed and compressor modes, with smooth transitions. In order to offer the most flexible solution possible, CyberCool WaterTec not only ensures future safety and energy efficiency, but also meets the practical requirements of consultants and refrigeration specialists. With trouble free installation and assembly features, the system can be quickly and easily dismantled into its basic components. l Stulz’s CyberCool WaterTec chillers can be fitted with a free cooling module

December 2018 MCP

POWER MANAGEMENT

ission critical sites must be able to trust their backup power systems, and a reliable control solution for detecting and acting on power issues is crucial. While power line communication (PLC) solutions have traditionally been used to control such systems, multimaster controlled power management systems (MM PMS) are claimed to provide several advantages, according to a new white paper. Published by Deif, a global supplier of power control solutions for decentralised power generation, the paper says that the multi-master architecture of MM PMS means that these systems are extremely reliable – even if a controller fails – providing uninterrupted control for applications where power failure is not an option (see deif. com/whitepapers/multi-masterpower-management-system). Traditionally, PLC solutions have been used to control critical power systems, with one PLC monitoring the entire power system and switching from grid power to backup power sources, such as a genset or battery, in case of grid power failure. MCP December 2018

Ensuring safe control of backup power There is a more effective way of managing power than using PLCs, argues Deif’s René Kristensen. He builds the case for multi-master controlled power management systems. Louise Frampton reports While this solution is widespread, Deif claims there are some disadvantages: • If the controlling PLC fails, there is no power control until the PLC is repaired or replaced • Troubleshooting and repairing PLCs requires in-depth technical knowledge of the PLC solution used, making the installation vulnerable to prolonged shutdowns • Complete PLC solutions including hardware, special dongles or connectors, software licenses, and training are often comparatively expensive “Critical sites using PLCs often experience problems if

one of the controllers break down, or they want to add gensets and expand the system. The PLC program may have been created by one software programmer – if this person is no longer available, this can create issues, as the system is not standardised. “It is not easy for a new software programmer to come in and change an existing PLC system when adding new sources such as transformers and gensets,” explains Deif Solutions’ sales manager, René Kristensen. A key difference between a power management system controlled using a PLC and one controlled with a MM PMS is the number of controllers used. In a PLC-based system,

one PLC monitors and controls the entire installation. With a MM PMS, there is one controller for every power source and associated breaker, and optionally one controller for every additional important switch such as the bus tie breaker (BTB). Each controller is capable of acting as master controller in the system, as all controllers are interconnected over a communication network such as a CAN bus. An MM PMS setup provides three major benefits: • Improved security and reliability through redundancy and features such as close before excitation • Simpler system design and serviceability, with a standardised software missioncriticalpower.uk

31 platform and features such as system emulation • Financial savings through lower purchase and opex “Compared to a PLC system, a multi-master controlled power management system is much safer,” argues Kristensen. He explains that a multimaster controlled power management system with intelligent controllers offers controller redundancy, improving the security and reliability of the critical power system. Intelligent controllers offer features that enable sites to get full backup power online quickly. In one respect, an MM PMS critical power system performs just like one controlled by a PLC: if a power source fails, the controller will quickly change to a backup power source. The real safety and reliability benefit in using a PMS becomes apparent if a controller fails. In an MM PMS, the multi-master design philosophy means that even if one controller breaks down, the control system will not fail. It is only the individual controller and associated breaker that does not work. When controllers are interconnected over a CAN bus, the master controller role is automatically assigned to the available controller with the lowest CAN ID on the network (for example, 01). This controller is assigned a so-called token. All controllers constantly exchange availability information over the CAN bus. If the master controller fails and no longer responds over the CAN bus, the token is instantly and automatically moved to the available controller with the next-lowest CAN ID (in this case, 02) which then becomes the new master controller. This solution ensures that there are no power or control interruptions, and the multi-master setup therefore provides much greater security and reliability than a single-master missioncriticalpower.uk

PLC solution. (Redundant PLCs are possible but it is a very costly solution). When a controller is down, an alarm message is generated to alert the operator that the faulty controller needs to be repaired or replaced. The CAN bus setup is very robust. Two independent communication channels (A and B) ensure that even if one channel becomes unavailable (because of a cable break, for example), the system is able to use the other channel for communication. In order to ensure continued communication in case of an incident on one channel, the cabling for the two channels must be physically separate. In many critical power applications, the time it takes to restore full power from an emergency backup source is a key consideration. For hospital applications, for example, EU regulations require full backup power to be available within 15 seconds of a grid blackout while the US FPA stipulates a 10 second limit. In data centre applications using rotary UPS solutions, backup power needs to be restored before the UPS stops spinning, and the faster you get backup power online, the less power you need to restore in the system. It therefore makes a great difference how quickly full power is restored, and this is another area where MM PMS solutions with intelligent controllers can offer additional advantages. The CBE (Close

Before Excitation) feature found in Deif’s AGC-4 controller, for example, reduces the time it takes to get full backup power with several gensets. With a flexible hardware platform, designing an MM PMS system is comparatively easy: the system designer only needs to specify one controller per power source and breaker, and connect the controllers over a communication network such as the CAN bus. Once everything is connected, the designer can set up all system parameters, often with userfriendly PC software. The designer or installer can then connect the PC to any controller in the network through Ethernet or USB and upload the system setup to the controllers. The built-in intelligence of an MM PMS can also include the load side of the system. Traditionally, PLCs have been used to carry out load side power management, for example disconnecting and reconnecting non-critical loads as needed to ensure sufficient power capacity. By using intelligent controllers on the load side, it is possible to design an integrated system in which power and load side controllers communicate without the need for complex and costly PLC programming. Controllers such as the ALC-4 from Deif can be used to provide a configurable load control logic where the designer only needs to set load levels for disconnection and reconnection. The integrated

Critical sites can avoid the failures that can occur with PLC systems. Standardised software means that many different engineers can programme the controllers René Kristensen, Deif

solution means that the designer often does not need separate measurement devices. One additional financial advantage of using an MM PMS is that intelligent controllers often include built-in features that optimise power consumption. These features go beyond ensuring constant power, adding value to the customer’s business. The AGC-4, for example, offers peak shaving that adds additional power for peak load situations. The peak shaving feature detects when installation power consumption approaches the upper limit set by the grid power provider. Exceeding this limit usually means incurring a much higher fee from the provider. To avoid this, the controller activates and readies one or more backup power sources such as gensets. All power consumption in excess of the limit set by the grid power provider is handled by the backup power source; usually a much more economical solution than purchasing grid power at higher rates. “The industrial sector in Sweden particularly likes this functionality. If there is a blackout, however, the system is still able to continue with the gensets in a peak situation. The technology also allows facilities to export power to the grid and we are seeing increasing demand for this capability in countries such as Denmark. Sites across Europe are seeing significant financial benefits,” comments Kristensen. The real financial saving with an MM PMS lies in avoiding unplanned downtime. However, Kristensen concludes: “Ultimately, critical sites can avoid the failures that can occur with PLC systems. Standardised software means that many different engineers can programme the controllers; they aren’t locked into one person’s unique idea and approach. The technology is easy to use, flexible and scalable, which means you can easily add gensets and transformers (or remove assets), while the system is operational.” l December 2018 MCP

UNINTERRUPTIBLE POWER SUPPLIES

Evaluating availability of UPS architecture A new white paper from Centiel has examined different UPS architectures and topologies to compare availability

nsuring a continuous supply of electrical power is vital in safetycritical environments such as hospitals, data centres and commercial institutions, where even the shortest of duration interruption may cause significant financial losses or even endanger lives. An uninterruptible power supply system is used to provide power when the main source is interrupted or fails. It also ensures a high level of power quality. Therefore, ensuring the highest possible level of availability of a UPS system is of paramount importance. Redundancy is the most common way to improve the availability of a UPS system. However, different architectural solutions with the same number of redundant components may result in significantly different levels of availability. The white paper, entitled Evaluating Availability of Centiel UPS Architecture, which was developed through a collaboration between UniversitĂ della Svizzera Italiana, Lugano and ETH Zurich, can be downloaded MCP December 2018

in full at centiel.co.uk. In the white paper, different UPS architectures were examined to compare availability. Availability is defined as readiness of a system to provide a corrective service. Steady-state availability is the most commonly used metric for availability quantification and is defined as the fraction of time a system is operational during its expected lifetime. Availability equals mean time to failure (MTTF) divided by MTTF plus mean time to repair (MTTR). MTTF is the mean time between two consecutive failures, whereas mean time to repair is the mean time needed for the repair. In other words, MTTF is the average time during which the system is up after it has been repaired and before it fails again. To make the comparison

Rec. 1

between architectures straightforward, steadystate availability is usually expressed with a number of nines. For example, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;five ninesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; availability means that steadystate availability is 0.99999 or 99.999% (see Figure 1). A single UPS unit comprises of a rectifier, battery and inverter. The mean time to failure for the rectifier is an average of 50,000 hours, the battery 100,0000 hours and the inverter 50,000 hours. Because the availability of the individual components were known, the authors used a hierarchical modelling tool called SHARPE, to calculate the mean time to failure of a single UPS unit as 20,000 hours (more details about this calculation can be found in the white paper). This assumes mean time to repair is six hours and so the availability of a single

Batt. 1

Inv. 1

Figure 1: A simplified reliability block diagram of a UPS module

standalone UPS unit is 0.997. Therefore, in one year the expected downtime for a single UPS is 2 hours 37 minutes. To improve the availability of a single UPS unit, it can be placed in parallel with the main power source using a static bypass switch (SBS). Then, if any of the UPS components fail, power can be switched, ensuring there is no interruption. The authors compared the availability of a UPS with the main power source and static bypass switch (see Figure 2). By calculation, a customer using only the mains supply without a UPS system will experience 17.5 hours of power interruption per year, compared with a single UPS module where interruptions are 2.6 hours per year. Including the static bypass switch, availability is significantly improved to just one second of annual downtime or availability of 0.99998. To get higher power outputs, several UPS units must be combined. Next the authors analysed these architectures. A system with higher missioncriticalpower.uk

33 output requires several single UPS units to be connected in parallel to the main power, over a static bypass switch. The UPS units must also be connected to each other to ensure synchronous operation. Communication is established via a parallel bus (PBUS). Despite the fact that the parallel bus is a highly reliable component, in a typical configuration, failure of any of the buses will cause the entire system to fail. Availability of a system example of 160kVA output therefore, has a reduced availability of 0.999993 equivalent to three minutes and 40 seconds per year. To boost dependability, redundant UPS units are introduced, known as n+1 configuration. Here, the system may continue operation with the remaining n modules. The MTTR of a modular architecture decreases to only 30 minutes. Such systems may tolerate failure of a single UPS unit. However, again failure of any of the parallel buses makes

Mains 1 Rec. 1 UPSM 1 Figure 2: A reliability block diagram of a UPS with the main source the entire system fail. Centiel’s n+1 modular architecture introduces numerous changes to improve the overall dependability. Specifically the control logic allows the communication between UPS units to be maintained even when one of the parallel buses has failed. In addition, the MTTR of a single UPS is decreased by placing the static bypass switch fuse on each module at the frame level, out of the module. In this way, the fuse may be replaced without the need of

pulling-out or opening the entire module. The authors assumed the MTTR of the fuse is five minutes and the fuse causes 5% of the overall module failures. In Centiel’s architecture, there are changes that increase system’s MTTF and decrease MTTR. In this white paper, the authors only consider two: the improved parallel bus configuration and isolating the static bypass switch module fuse. In this way, Centiel’s architecture is claimed to

outperform the one with typical n+1 architecture, as it increases from six and a half to even 10 and a half nines. Annual downtime is decreased from 12 seconds to 0.0006 seconds. However, the 1+1 configuration also has a limited output of 40kVA. As the output increases, availability of both architectures slightly decreases but the level of availability improvement with the Centiel architecture (when compared with a typical one with the same level of redundancy) gets even higher. For example, when the output is 160kVA (4+1 configuration), a typical architecture has availability of six nines (annual downtime is 32 seconds), whereas availability with the Centiel architecture is nine nines or 0.03 seconds downtime per year. In conclusion, with an advanced architecture it is possible to improve availability by multiple orders of magnitude. l

ENERGY MANAGEMENT

s the colder weather sets in and energy needs are at their highest, energy has a significant impact on cost base for mission critical sites. Organisations are particularly feeling the pinch, as the current bullish market conditions persist. Wholesale gas and electricity prices are at the highest they have been since before the oil collapse 10 years ago and show no signs of abating any time soon. Several fundamental drivers have contributed to this price position, from heightened demand in emerging markets to low gas storage levels, among others. Wholesale costs are, of course, only part of the picture. Changes to network and regulatory charges – which typically represent at least 50% of the bill – are also having a significant impact on costs, with electricity charges forecast to increase by 9%. April 2019 will see the Climate Change Levy (CCL) rise 41%, as charges associated with the CRC Energy Efficiency scheme are absorbed into CCL instead. Even the most resilient sites could feel the chill of these cost factors. Organisations must therefore use all the weapons in their arsenal to develop strategies that cushion the impact; addressing those costs that they can control, as well as those that they can’t. Flexibility means strength For mission critical sites, core business is the absolute priority. Understandably, businesses are therefore cautious about participating in demand-side response (DSR) schemes, and the commitment to delivering capacity that comes with DSR. However, the very nature of a critical

MCP December 2018

Managing energy costs for mission critical sites Ørsted’s Ashley Phillips explains how strategies around on-site generation, demand-side response and energy as a service can help mitigate the impact of rising energy costs site means that they often have at least one form of backup generation on site, making them perfect candidates to supply flexibility in some shape or form. Adopting flexible arrangements has increased across multiple industries in recent years. As opportunity is weighed up and learnings become more widely available, there is greater comfort for those entering the field of flexibility for the first time. Data centres are a great example of a sector that has invested in additional generation to optimise returns and take advantage of headroom with their Distribution Network Operator (DNO) connection. Identifying the schemes and products that work best for your organisation is, of course, vital. It is worth looking beyond the more established National Gridrun schemes such as ShortTerm Operating Reserve (STOR) and Fast Frequency Response (FFR). National Grid recently announced its intention to trial a new, short-term frequency response auction from next year, enabling a greater number of technologies and organisations to

get involved in demand side response. The week-ahead service allows provision to start on the day of auction, enabling a far more ‘fleet of foot’ approach. DNO schemes can also provide an attractive alternative for businesses, supporting the balancing of localised distribution networks, as opposed to the electricity transmission network. Because so many schemes contain strict obligations on delivery, which can be offputting for companies that feel unable to make a firm commitment, at Ørsted we developed our Renewable Balancing Reserve (RBR) scheme, launched in 2016. RBR helps businesses to access value from the imbalance market; it works by reducing imbalance costs for Ørsted, as well as providing a revenue from the System Imbalance Price. The resulting savings are then shared with participating customers. One of the major benefits for critical sites is the flexible nature of participation. There are no penalties or revenue claw back for non-

delivery, no contractually committed response times or lengthy call durations. Businesses can opt in or out on a case-by-case basis, depending on whether or not it suits their operations at a given time. Strike prices per MWh delivered are guaranteed, providing revenue assurance for any activation. Because it is associated with the imbalance market, it can nicely complement other DSR activity, rather than replacing it. In fact, customer P3P used excess energy from its CHP plant to earn an additional £273 per hour from RBR, with its energy manager describing the product as “simple, riskfree and profitable”. Timing is everything Network charges vary depending upon the time of consumption, with peak periods attracting a higher premium than those periods when demand is lower. Not only does this affect distribution network

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35 costs, it has a significant impact on transmission and capacity market costs; these are charged based on an organisation’s level of consumption during the three half-hour periods that showed highest overall network demand during the winter period. Where organisations are able to reduce consumption during anticipated peak periods, they

business than running during the cheaper summer period. With that in mind, it might be worth reconsidering planned maintenance, assessing the opportunity to shift it to the more expensive winter months. Generating your own energy – and revenue All critical sites will have some kind of backup

generation is becoming expensive and outdated, it is worth reviewing your options to find a solution that better meets your organisational needs; the right option can make a big difference to running costs and carbon emissions. Some of the obstacles to investing in new technology are resource or expertise in identifying appropriate options and

Resilience will always be of utmost importance, but businesses mustn’t overlook opportunities to manage energy in a smarter way Ashley Phillips, Ørsted stand to lower electricity bills. Turning electricity-hungry assets down, or switching to on-site generation, is frequently a more commercially viable option than keeping operations running at full capacity during expensive peak periods. It is also worthwhile reviewing the timing of maintenance schedules and outages. Higher winter wholesale prices, coupled with increased network costs, make winter consumption a far more expensive

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generation installed, providing contingency for any outages. On-site generation can make a big difference in mitigating high market costs, providing both the facility to switch to self-generation when the wholesale market is especially expensive, as well as a revenuegenerating opportunity via DSR or electricity export. If your on-site

access to capex. To help alleviate these obstacles, we created Energy as a Service (EaaS) – which is a bespoke solution designed to take account of individual business needs, ambitions and assets. Our experts project manage the sourcing, installation and optimisation of generation assets, going on to help optimise the

value through operational scheduling and demand side flexibility. We will even provide upfront funding so that payments can come out of opex spend for periods of up to 20 years. Transitioning the UK’s energy system to one that is greener and more decentralised is a long and complex task. As such, the cost elements that make up the energy bill change regularly. Energy policy and regulations are also evolving. Keeping abreast of all of these market changes is crucial to keep tight control of energy costs but it can be time consuming. The role of energy suppliers is also evolving to better support businesses during these times of heightened complexity. Their specialist experts are able to interpret market changes for business customers, collaborating to manage costs effectively and spot suitable commercial opportunities for their customers. With high wholesale costs having such an impact at the moment, that injection of specialist trading expertise is a must. Right now, the focus must be on stabilising costs over the longer term and your trading team will be your ally in helping you to make the right trading decisions for your business to protect your operations and your bottom line. Ultimately, the right energy strategy is likely to contain a blend of activities. Resilience will always be of utmost importance, but businesses must not overlook opportunities to manage energy in a smarter way. The market is continuing to evolve, supported by technological and engineering advancements. Embracing the changes and taking a fresh approach will enable businesses to take greater control, meeting the energycost challenge head on. l December 2018 MCP

THERMAL OPTIMISATION

Two new cooling systems will deliver massive carbon savings for one of the UK’s busiest airports, while reducing the risk of outages of critical IT systems

Ensuring resilience for critical airport systems

anchester Airport is one of the busiest in the UK, initially opening in 1938 as Ringway Airport. It is the global gateway for the north of the UK and the largest regional airport, with more than 210 destinations served by 70 airlines. Ambitious development plans are now in place to expand and advance the airport’s services extensively to cater for the growing market. Current plans aim to double the size of some areas of the airport, with a 10-year scheme currently under way. With the increasing expansion and development of the airport, Sudlows was commissioned to deliver a number of technical upgrades to the airport’s existing data centre. The mechanical team at Sudlows installed a series of upgrades to the airport’s infrastructure, installing two new cooling systems that will deliver carbon savings in excess of 31,000kg of CO2

MCP December 2018

every year compared with the previous legacy equipment. The installations were undertaken in two of the airport’s existing computer rooms, which both had ageing cooling systems. These were reaching the end of their operational life and would soon be out of use due to new

31K+

CO2 savings in kg that the two cooling systems will deliver every year technologies coming into play. Sudlows proposed installing Airedale Smartcool dual circuit R410a downflow CRAC units to replace the redundant units. Before the project could begin, careful planning was undertaken to ensure the best possible systems were being installed. Sudlows went

through an intensive planning and design stage to ensure every angle was covered. It was critical that the new units were resilient and reliable as the computer rooms were controlling critical systems such as the lighting for the runway. Therefore, it was vital that the systems would not affect the operation of these critical operations. There were some challenges for the project as it was in a critical and high security environment, which is why the planning phase was so important to ensure, in terms of security, that everything ran smoothly. Additionally, as Sudlows was removing the redundant units, cooling to the comms rooms would be lost during this time, so temporary cooling procedures were put in place to ensure staff and passenger safety. The new technology installed is not only resilient and reliable, but also offers a much higher cooling capacity. In addition, the units are

much quieter and provide more air delivery, which means the hot spots in the room have been eradicated, making it a much safer option for this critical environment. The works were carried out to a strict six-week timescale to ensure minimal disruption to the airport. Manchester Airport project manager Stuart Gaffney comments: “This new mechanical upgrade to two of our existing data centres will deliver a highly resilient and energy efficient cooling infrastructure to our facilities.” Sudlows mechanical services director Gary Frith adds: “Manchester Airport has chosen the ideal time to commission this upgrade to its cooling systems. This project is a great example of the direct benefits that any company can witness when considering replacing its legacy cooling systems with a more environmental and energy efficient system.” l missioncriticalpower.uk

CONTAINER PORTS

Tackling the problem of ‘regenerative power’ Due to the increased use of temporary power solutions, container ports are experiencing issues with ‘regenerative power’, so how can the risks be mitigated?

he container shipping industry is an evergrowing, fast-paced environment, and power infrastructure cannot always grow in line with power requirements. For this reason, many container ports are choosing to expand their power capacity by using stand-alone temporary power solutions, such as diesel generators, rather than waiting for additional power infrastructure. This is a quick fix, and the best way to secure additional crane power, thereby increasing the number of containers that can be moved simultaneously. Due to the increase in temporary power usage, Crestchic is witnessing an increased demand from container ports for a solution to the issue of ‘regenerative power’. Power generation vs power regeneration Generally, in power generation a variable frequency drive controls the motor by supplying it with energy, which

then powers the crane to lift its load. In some applications the energy flow will be in reverse, that is, from the load, through the motor, back to the drive. This will occur if the load is giving up energy, such as when a crane is lowering its load, or a cable car is travelling downhill. If this ‘regeneration power’ is significant, the energy will return to the initial power source. In most grid connected situations this regenerative power will be absorbed by the grid without any issues. If power regeneration happens in an ‘island mode’ application with a stand-alone power source, ie where a crane or cable car is being powered by a dedicated generator, it can have catastrophic effects on the asset. The continued operation of the drive will maintain a voltage on the motor, so a magnetic flux will be present, but the phase of the currents will reverse, so energy – that is current – will flow into

Introducing a resistive loadbank into the circuit allows for the dissipation of the regenerated power. The loadbank can rapidly respond and follow the returning regenerative load and ensure the genset sees only ‘good’ load from the system MCP December 2018

missioncriticalpower.uk

UK’s largest port powers up in frozen cargo emergency Emergency power requirements add a new layer of logistics – especially when the cargo is frozen food

eeting the regular energy demands at ports is a huge challenge but emergency power requirements add a new layer of logistics. Part of Associated British Ports, Immingham in north-east Lincolnshire is Britain’s largest port by tonnage, handling 55 million tonnes of cargo each year. When extreme weather including gale force winds forced a Scandinavian cargo ship to divert from its Lowestoft destination, the port authority redirected the ship to the nearest port, Immingham. With the port’s electrical supply at full capacity, it was evident there would be insufficient spare power to supply and maintain the critical temperature required for the ship’s frozen cargo. When Immingham’s suppliers could not provide the necessary equipment within the very short timeframe required, it called the drive from the motor, motorising the alternator and causing it to turn the opposite and incorrect direction. This reversal can twist the shaft and cause alignment problems, both of which are irreversible problems and will damage the generator alternator and engine. The reverse power will make the voltage swell, which will result in an unstable system and may cause damage to other loads, especially critical ones. Introducing a resistive loadbank into the circuit allows for the dissipation of the regenerated power. This means missioncriticalpower.uk

on Newburn Power. As a leading supplier of emergency backup power, Newham had on-call sales managers able to take this request on a Friday evening and immediately confirm equipment supply, delivery and installation at the port. From its Yorkshire depot, Newburn’s service manager set the in-house team to work preparing, testing and loading all of the equipment needed to respond to Immingham’s urgent request. Loaded onto Hiab vehicles and with all the Risk Assessment Method Statements (RAMS) documentation sent to Immingham, to ensure adherence to the port’s strict health and safety policies, the ‘plug & play’ nature of the equipment specified meant that within an hour of arriving on site all the freezer units were fully connected, maintaining the critical temperature required to ensure no costly loss of cargo. l

that the power coming from the crane load back towards the motor is stopped before it can reach the drive, therefore negating the risk to generation equipment. The loadbank can rapidly respond and follow the returning regenerative load and ensure the genset sees only ‘good’ load from the system. A simple, yet rapid and robust system based on CT signals, the Crestchic Regen system (pictured) can operate constantly while also continuously varying the load to the generator at low (380690V) or medium (3-36kV) voltages. l December 2018 MCP

ENERGY STORAGE

Energy resilience: tackling the risk of major outages Choosing batteries that are not ideal for a given application can undermine resilience, putting businesses at risk. Jon Bailey, managing director of Hoppecke UK, offers some advice on ensuring optimal protection for mission critical sites

e are living in times of increased business risk and one of the key issues for many businesses is that of the security and continuity of energy supply. The possibility of energy-related failure is very real and is of increasing concern. More than half of decision makers expect to experience an energy related failure in the next year and eight out of 10 businesses have experienced such a problem in the past year. Whether the cause is deliberate attack, equipment failure or extreme weather – the cost is huge. It is estimated that businesses without an energy resilience strategy are risking 17% of their revenue, or £2.8m each year, in damage and lost opportunities. An outage of one day would be catastrophic for any business, but for those with critical systems or companies whose

MCP December 2018

livelihood is data – banks, insurance companies, financial institutions – the effects of a power outage, be it a brownout, blackout or permanent fault, are even greater. Not only does it disrupt their business operation due to unscheduled downtime, equipment damage or lost

£2.8m

The annual losses businesses risk by failing to have an energy resilience strategy inventory, but it also means that vital data could be lost. And then there is the damage to brand and reputation and relationships – and even lives. In commercial applications such as data centres, there is not as much regulation surrounding the safety control

systems for UPS as there is in industry, for instance, in power transmission applications. Nevertheless, a good UPS system has to be at the heart of an energy resilience strategy to ensure data security and protect the business. It is effectively the best insurance policy available. But what most businesses do not realise is that the best UPS system is only as good as the batteries that power it. Cutting corners A typical 140kVA UPS system – the size required to provide reserve power for a mediumsized insurance company – will require up to 128 valve regulated lead-acid batteries, either in a separate room or housed close to the UPS system itself. At £20,000 for such an installation, the cost of the batteries can be as much as the cost of the UPS system itself, and therein lies the risk and potential downfall

of the entire energy resilience strategy. It can be easy to overlook the importance of the battery and use cheaper or smaller products in an effort to save costs and reduce the price of the overall UPS system. When an organisation is planning a new UPS installation or needs its current system upgraded because it has reached the end of its design life, it typically goes out to tender to companies that specialise in UPS. They then recommend third party battery products as part of the installation, and this area can be seen as a way of saving costs. But choosing batteries that are not ideal for a given application will undermine everything the system is built for and could put the business at even greater risk. High quality batteries will have a design life of up to 12 years, due to the build quality of the battery product coupled

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41 with how well it is maintained. In comparison, cheaper, poorly maintained or incorrectly specified batteries can have a design life of as little as five years and suffer a 20% to 30% reduction in the ability to deliver the promised ampere hours. This gap in performance can present a huge and unforeseen risk to an organisation. The old adage ‘you get what you pay for’ is no truer than when it comes to design life of batteries in mission critical power applications. Quality is paramount. Considerations should be given to the build quality of the batteries. This includes the way they are encased and designed as well as the type of electrolyte used. Some of the best quality batteries use flat plate technology and absorbent glass matts to fix the (gel-based) electrolyte and ensure more efficient transference of energy for higher current capability. With this type of technology batteries do not need refilling with water to top up the electrolyte, and don’t vent gasses, thereby requiring less maintenance and space. Valve regulated batteries, which account for the majority of UPS applications, are designed to work with tight parameters on voltage tolerances and temperature. But expert consideration is needed

Case study: Police Mutual The old adage ‘you get what you pay for’ is no truer than when it comes to design life of batteries in mission critical power applications to match the size and type of the battery with the load size and design time of the system. This area is another potential minefield when it comes to risk of power outage. For mission critical load sizes of 400kVa or higher, a larger size of battery is needed, sometimes up to 1000 Ah, especially if the time period required to support the system runs into hours rather than minutes. Here, a single string of batteries will often not do the job. So it can be tempting for the UPS designer to recommend multiple strings of smaller batteries to keep costs down. But this poses problems in term of charging and maintenance and the risk of thermal runaway, which can literally cause the heart of the entire UPS system to go into a dangerous meltdown. Specifying the perfect battery

To maintain IT connectivity and data safety, the police force’s not-for-profit financial services organisation entrusted its reserve power supply to Hoppecke. The 10-year old batteries powering two systems at the Police Mutual Assurance Society’s headquarters in Lichfield, Staffordshire, had reached the end of their design life, so the society decided to upgrade its UPS capability. One set of 62 blocs of grid power VR M 6-170 batteries were installed in the 60kVA UPS system and one set of 66 blocs of grid power VR M 6-170 batteries in the 80kVA UPS system. The Police Mutual Assurance Society had space constraints when it needed to upgrade its UPS capability in a basement facility. The installation included removal and recycling of the old batteries. Batteries are heavy, sometimes weighing up to 65kg, so manual handling was not an option. Hoppecke’s field engineers deployed a scissor lift to gain access down a stairwell and manage the installation of one set of 62 blocs of batteries and another of 66 blocs. Just one day was allocated for the changeover.

for mission critical power involves not only matching the capacity of the battery to the load of the system but considering how many minutes or hours it needs to support reserve power and how many watts are required to deliver over that time period in the event of a power outage. Reducing risk While maintenance of modern valve regulated batteries is minimal, it is still important in maintaining the design life of the build. Modern valve regulated UPS batteries are designed to be a sealed, touch safe unit encased within a solid shell. As the inside of the battery cannot be seen or accessed, maintenance is an expert art. It includes a visual inspection of the case itself, as well as voltage and impedance readings which, if taken on an annual basis, year on

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year, for consistent comparison will provide an indication of whether the cell is deteriorating. It takes an experienced engineering professional to maintain such equipment, as much of this is down to the engineer’s experience of working with and servicing batteries. Given how critical power outage can be for data-driven businesses, no insurance policy is better than choosing and maintaining the right batteries for each installation. If this is not observed, the UPS might as well not be there, as there will always be the risk that it won’t be up to the job when it is needed. Putting the battery at the heart of a reserve power installation by making the right choice of battery supplier and maintenance provider should be a key component of a robust energy resilience strategy. l December 2018 MCP

DATA CENTRE INFRASTRUCTURE

OCP: Delivering increased efficiency Robert Bunger, director of Data Centre Industry Alliances, Schneider Electric, provides an insight into how data centre operators can adopt Open Compute Project principles

he Open Compute Project (OCP) was born out of the necessity for internet giants to quickly assemble massive hyperscale data centres to support their business models cost-effectively. Whereas IT vendors, at the time, had product lines created to address a diverse customer base ranging from home and small business customers up to the largest corporate or enterprise clients and big data centres, the hyperscalers such as Facebook, Google and Microsoft saw the need for IT products that were optimised for the massive cloud data centres they were creating to deliver services. Seeing the potential to cut out unnecessary costs from their businesses, they sought to develop their own designs, which could be produced in high volume and with great economies of scale, using unbranded equipment supplied by original design manufacturers (ODMs). The goal of the OCP is to “enable delivery of the delivery of the most efficient designs for scalable computing”. The MCP December 2018

foundation believes that openly sharing ideas, specifications and other intellectual property “is the key to maximising innovation and reducing complexity”, and that “sharing intellectual property with others helps the IT industry to evolve” and to “throw off the shackles of proprietary ‘one size fits all’ gear”. Challenges to adopting the OCP approach? To date, the widespread adoption by the industry of OCP hardware has not been as strong as might have been hoped. Many of those who have chosen to deploy OCP-compliant solutions are large end users that initiated the foundation and remain the main contributors of ideas and designs for hardware. As such, the supply chain reflects the needs of these very large customers. Many of the ODMs

building products to OCP specifications are focused on producing large volumes and are less inclined to build designs in lower volumes for niche customers. Also, there is a cost overhead associated with installing OCP-compliant hardware. It is not as easy to ‘plug and play’ OCP equipment as it is with converged architectures or standardised IT gear. Specialist expertise is needed to establish an OCP data centre but the payoff is that, once it is operational, it is easier to maintain and requires fewer people to manage. Addressing issues such as these requires the emergence of an ecosystem of product vendors, systems integrators and maintenance service providers willing to address other areas of the IT market. Specifically, those other than the largest data

The OCP is essentially a forum for sharing designs and expertise. The principles are straightforward: efficiency, scalability, openness and impact

centre operators. There is some evidence that this is beginning to happen with, for example, one system integrator in France, a Platinum OCP member, building systems aimed at the gaming industry. Other integrators are building and supporting systems in other niche markets, thereby broadening the appeal of the OCP. Essentially, what any adopter of OCP systems needs to know is who will build the products, who can integrate them into a data centre to meet my requirements, and who will provide ongoing support? How do brands get involved with OCP? As the original impetus for the OCP came from large organisations deploying equipment that was essentially custom built to their own specifications, such products tended to be ‘vanity-free’, or unbranded by the traditional familiar IT vendors. As the market for the OCP broadens, brands will become more important as customers seek the trust and reassurance promised by purchasing missioncriticalpower.uk

43 products from established vendors, that are in turn exploring the benefits to their own businesses of engaging with the foundation. Schneider Electric, for example, was interested by some of the power-related features in OCP specifications and saw, on examination, that centralised power supplies presented a broad market opportunity for its own expertise. Accordingly, the company developed a compliant rack and power supply solution, which were both submitted to the foundation. The power supply design meets a broad market need in terms of density and scalability and as such it is helping to broaden the appeal of OCP-compliant systems beyond the current installed base of large data centres. What can you do to adopt OCP principles? Membership of the foundation is not restricted to vendors; on the contrary, participation by organisations throughout the supply chain is encouraged from vendors, systems integrators through to

maintenance service providers and end-users. Participation is even open to non-members; every meeting is open to the public, all are recorded and can be played back via YouTube, which is another way the OCP continues to drive awareness of its benefits to the industry. The OCP is essentially a forum for sharing designs and expertise. The principles are straightforward: efficiency, scalability, openness and impact. What are the main benefits of OCP? Organisations can benefit in several different ways depending on their position in the market. Vendors can, at a minimum, gain mindshare through participating with OCP. Whether current adoption levels remain high or low is not important; people are still watching its developments and there are many benefits in being seen to participate in driving technology forward. Ideas submitted to OCP can spark developments in a vendor’s own product portfolio, as in the case with Schneider Electric and its development of

the centralised power supply and OCP-ready rack. For systems integrators there is the opportunity to be part of a new eco system, which supports an emerging market for standards-based solutions designed and built by collaboration between key players in the industry. Therefore, the OCP enables both vendors and end-users to join as members, which can submit product designs and open reference architectures that can be used to form the basis for new critical infrastructure applications. From a customer’s point of view, the benefit of using OCP equipment is efficiency both in terms of energy and operations. OCP technology delivers more compute power per kW, helping to reduce costs and meet higher environmental and energy efficiency standards, such as an improved PUE rating. As hardware is optimised for the task in hand, investments in equipment costs are reduced and with a focus on scalability, staff numbers do not have to increase as the volume of equipment in a facility does. l

Why data centres need to collaborate

Schneider Electric’s OCPready rack and power supply solution was developed following ideas submitted to OCP missioncriticalpower.uk

Speaking at Data Centres Ireland, John Laban from the Open Compute Project pointed out that many data centre professionals are failing to keep up with key technology trends and commented that there is a significant gap in knowledge when it comes to OCP innovation. When questioning data centre professionals on whether they knew which servers were being used by Facebook, very few were able to answer. “People in their twenties that don’t work in the data centre industry know what Facebook is doing in its data centres, but the majority of people in this room don’t. The industry you are in belongs to the last century. Things are changing,” commented Laban. He added that there is a perception that businesses need to be aggressive, when what they actually need is to be “collaborative”. “Youngsters are coming into the market and are eating you alive; they are doing it because they collaborate,” Laban commented. A survey carried out by IHS Markit, earlier this year, found that $1.2bn (£940m) was spent on OCP installs, outside of the hyperscale space. IHS Markit also predicted that OCP adoption among non-board member companies would surpass $6bn (£4.68bn) by 2021, while OCP year-on-year growth (outside the hyperscale space) was 103%. “All the hyperscalers use OCP technology and they consume it at huge scale. It dominates the hyperscale space and it is moving into the telco space. Now it needs to move into the enterprise space,” said Laban. He pointed out that OCP can have a “radical impact” on the data centre. “An OCP data centre costs half the money to build than a traditional Tier III. It is a very cost-effective way of doing things. An OCP server, for example, uses 50% less energy than a traditional server,” continued Laban. He reported that AT&T, for example, is seeing a 70% reduction in capex, by using the technologies adopted by the hyperscalers, yet there is poor awareness of OCP among companies dealing with telcos. Nokia is also extensively using Open Source hardware. “The opportunities are huge... the telcos cannot move fast enough,” said Laban. December 2018 MCP

RENEWABLE ENERGY

Load sharing hybrid power systems: removing the barriers Deep Sea Electronics (DSE) has developed a control solution that removes the barriers to hybrid load sharing installations. John Ruddock explains how mission critical sites can effectively capitalise on renewable technologies

here is a growing market for independent hybrid power systems that maximise the use of readily available renewable sources, such as PV (solar), in conjunction with generator sets. Many countries are switching on to the benefits of using PV in hybrid systems to help meet government green energy initiatives. Looking to the future, and the upward trend for continued growth in this sector of the energy market, it is time to consider the implications of load sharing two totally different power sources and learn how to simplify the merging technologies. Hybrid load sharing installations no longer MCP December 2018

need go hand in hand with the minefield of complex system design or specialised engineering resources. DSEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s control solutions offer a userfriendly control solution that helps to simplify system design and removes many of the myths and barriers to operating within the hybrid market. There is no reason why renewable energy inverters cannot be paralleled with generator(s) in exactly the same way as they would parallel with the grid supply. However, there are a few key points that must be considered. Using a suitable genset control module from the DSEGenset range offers all the usual sophisticated functionality associated with

the product but until recently linking this to an inverter based system, while possible, has been complex. Now the alternative easy solution is to use a DSEM870, which has the ability to communicate with the DSE genset control module and the inverter and, depending on the information received, will regulate the inverter output accordingly. Setting the inverter to fixed export The inverter would be set for fixed export up to the appropriate maximum level, with the generator(s) set in Frequency Control mode to automatically provide the remainder of the power. Output from the renewable

energy source will inevitably fluctuate up to the pre-set limit through changing weather conditions caused by climatic or seasonal changes etc, and so the load on the generator(s) would also fluctuate, automatically taking a smaller share of the load in favourable weather conditions. However, be aware â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the system will become unstable if the load on the generator falls below a specific kW loading, leading to the generator shutting down. This can be as much as 30% of the genset capacity. Energising the bus If the bus is not energised by a source other than the inverter, the inverter cannot produce any power, so the generator missioncriticalpower.uk

Figure 1: 24-hour period in a solar hybrid installation. The siteâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s main hours of operation are between the hours of 7am and 7pm with minimum power needed overnight for maintenance and security equipment. During daylight hours solar provides up to 70% of their energy requirements The facilityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s main hours of operation are between 7am and 7pm, with minimum power needed overnight for maintenance and security equipment. During daylight hours, solar provides up to 70% of their energy requirements. In the solar hybrid example (see Figure 1), the facility runs one small genset overnight at 62% of its capacity, providing 100% of the load for security lighting etc, while the second larger genset is at rest. In the morning the DSEM870 starts up the second genset and they run in parallel ready for the factory start-up. When solar power becomes available, the dependency on the gensets is reduced accordingly, but never falls below 30% of their capacities, ensuring maximum use of is used to keep the bus live. An effective way to deal with this issue is to use a multiset load sharing system with generators of different sizes so that when changes to the load occur or power from the inverter changes, individual generators within the system are automatically started and brought on line or powered down. Looking for an alternative way to energise the bus can lead to massive investment into such as large batteries, which on top of the cost has a poor carbon footprint and life span. So the choice of system components must be carefully considered and balanced against the needs of reliability and efficiency. missioncriticalpower.uk

the renewable source while maintaining stability of the system. The gensets continue in Load Demand Scheme mode, a built in feature of the DSE control module. The smaller set is shut down once the factory is at full load and the inverter output is sufficient, but can be easily brought on line if or when required. The DSE8610MKII genset controller is ideally suited to load sharing applications as described above. Reverse power If all of the above steps are taken to ensure the system is running as described, the following situation should never occur, but is something to be aware of. It is essential to ensure the

load does not fall below the output level of the inverter to avoid the genset(s) being driven into reverse power, leading to a trip and subsequent black out. In this scenario, if the load were to drop, the DSEM870 is capable of reducing the amount of solar power being produced to an appropriate level or issuing instructions to switch the load entirely to the genset if necessary. This sophistication of the DSEM870 and the DSE genset control modules enables total automation of the hybrid system. A sunny climate, where solar energy is reasonably predictable, lends itself very well to this type of application but hydro, wind and other renewables can also achieve good results. l

The DSEM870 complies with Sunspec modbus inverter protocols and is capable of communicating with multiple DSE genset control modules and multiple inverters in any one system December 2018 MCP

ENERGY PROCUREMENT & CONNECTIONS

ne of the most important deliverables for a new data centre is the provision of its power. The connection to the grid can be an expensive project in its own right, with pressure on capacity in almost every part of the network. So finding the right point of connection is crucial and almost as important getting it delivered on time. After this, there are a number of options that can improve how the capacity is delivered to optimise operating costs. For Kao Data’s new data centre, located in Harlow, Essex, it was essential that the right level of capacity was available. To ensure this was effectively delivered, Kao engaged utility infrastructure provider Noveus to not only secure the power it needed but also to optimise the delivery. In order to get the first stage of the data centre quickly operational, Kao Data identified the need for 7.5MVA of power. Through some negotiation on the point of connection, this was secured at 11kV with a delivery timescale of less than six months. The main 43.5MVA of power capacity could then be

A powerful connection: delivering supply to KAO

KAO Data’s new £200m development required a dedicated and redundant 43.5MVA power supply. Managing costs and ensuring resilience was critical to the success of the start-up business

delivered through a connection to the 33kV network, which Noveus established would be 24 months later – the 11kV connection was going to be sacrificial in the longer term and therefore Noveus set about looking at how this initial cost (in the millions) could be avoided. Noveus set to work

to optimise the point of connection solution in order to manage the capital costs without compromising the phased delivery. Lengthy discussions with the distribution network operator convinced Noveus that the overall capacity could be derived from a source substation, which could mitigate a substantial level of capex. The chosen solution resulted in the 33kV connection being delivered slightly later but well within the project requirements and also in a phased manner such that the capacity charges could be spread out, saving on operating costs – equally important in a new start-up business. The Noveus solution meant Kao Data was able to have power phased initially for 10MVA to meet the early start up requirement, with the full power being available 18 months later with no risk to the resilience or security of supply. In addition to the capital cost, Noveus also undertook a review of the Use of Systems costs, the non-energy elements that are close to the same level as the wholesale electricity

costs. Noveus wanted to ensure that the lower capital cost did not compromise Kao Data’s future efficiency. The chosen solution clearly demonstrated lower Use of System charges (compared with the original approach), allowing Kao Data to provide a lower and competitive cost of energy to its customers. Having the right solution prior to deciding on the delivery model resulted in the build contract having clear objectives, with a defined scope and very little reason for change – change we all appreciate brings with it cost and time impacts. Noveus determined with Kao Data that the opportunity for competition in the connection build would deliver lower capital costs and opted to tender the contestable works under a tightly defined design and build contract. Matrix Networks was appointed and

rose to the challenging targets. The connection was delivered to time and budget. Noveus also provided continuing monitoring advisory services throughout the infrastructure reinforcement programme, ensuring both risk and opportunity were proactively managed through to completion of the work. Kao Data chief operating officer Paul Finch comments: “The appointment and contribution of Noveus has contributed to some of the key early successes for the business. To successfully procure and deliver a 43.5MVA, 33kV/11kV, dedicated substation both on programme and on budget should not be understated. Engineering projects of this nature are capital intensive, technically complex and the delivery process is imbedded with regulatory and commercial risk.” l

Engineering projects of this nature are capital intensive, technically complex and the delivery process is imbedded with regulatory and commercial risk

PRODUCTS

New robot transforms safety

Expanded range of modular solutions Schneider Electric is expanding its portfolio of EcoStruxure Ready prefabricated modular power solutions and Uptime Institute TIER-Ready reviewed reference designs. In doing so, Schneider is addressing the demand of the data centre industry, especially among cloud and service providers, for a faster and easier way to deploy power. The designs are available as a 90kW Tier II all-in-one module and a 500kW Tier III multi-module solution for 400V regions. Each reference design includes comprehensive technical documentation, schematics, layouts and equipment all reviewed and approved by Uptime Institute. The TIER-Ready design review programme has been developed to

help improve the process from design to deployment for customers pursuing full Tier certification for their prefabricated modular data centres. Uptime Institute chief revenue officer Phil Collerton says: “Prefabricated and modular data centres are on a growth trajectory as organisations strive to bring business services closer to their constituents. These services must be delivered with the same level of mission critical performance seen in larger data centres, but at a smaller scale, in a fraction of the time, and without incurring the traditional risk associated with remote infrastructures. The TIER-Ready design review programme dramatically simplifies and speeds up the Tier certification process, while reducing costs by as much as 50%.”

Diesel generator offers fuel efficiency Cummins has launched the QSG12 50Hz diesel generator series, which is designed to offer optimum performance, reliability and versatility for stationary standby and prime power applications. With an improved design and an advanced combustion system, Cummins claims this new model series offers more power for less space, by delivering a much higher power density and a more reliable power solution.

MCP December 2018

Available from 360-450kVA at 50Hz, the new C400D5 and C450D5 generator set models are powered by a Cummins fourcycle, inline, six-cylinder dual-speed engine. The Cummins heavy-duty engine is designed to respond to low emissions requirements and delivers fast response to load changes, while using less fuel. In particular, an XPI fuel system is embedded on the engine across all new models for greater fuel efficiency. This series is designed for a wide variety of applications to meet diverse customer needs in different markets such as hospitals, manufacturing, commercial and industrial facilities. The reduced noise level down to 67Db(A) at 75% makes the series an ideal choice. All new models, can run in grid parallel mode to fit the diverse project site customer requirements. Additional features offered within this new product offering include extended service intervals of 500 hours for easier maintenance and unaided cold start capability at -12°C.

ABB is launching its ABB Ability TXplore inspection system in the UK so that transformer operators can reduce risk as well as duration of outages on critical assets. Many transformers in the UK are more than 30 years old and continue to play an essential role in the transmission and distribution of electricity. Over time, stresses on the power grid such as over voltages and short circuits can cause wear and tear to transformers’ internal components. In addition, because of the transition to renewable energy, many transformers are experiencing load conditions that they were not originally designed for. As a result, operators schedule regular inspection to gain detailed insight into the internal condition of their assets – and carry out maintenance before issues can develop. The conventional approach to inspecting transformers requires taking a unit out of service before draining it down. A technician will then enter the transformer to visually check the condition of components such as the windings, tap changer, insulation, gaskets and seals. This is a complex process that requires a risk assessment and a confined space entry, as well as time for cooling, draining down and oil handling. It can require a outage with a total duration of three or more days. TXplore will enhance safety by eliminating the confined space risk to the technician, as well as risk of the technician causing damage while inside the transformer. As the oil stays in place throughout the inspection, TXplore also eliminates environmental and safety risks from oil spillage and enables a full inspection to completed in less than a day. Jamie Stapleton, ABB’s digital leader for transformers, says: “Having delivered the first robotic inspection on a 50-year-old transformer for a North American utility, ABB is launching the TXplore service in the UK to help operators control risk and limit the duration of outages for critical assets.” missioncriticalpower.uk

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December 2018 MCP

Q&A

Dave Mackerness The director at Kaer (a provider of ‘air-conditioning as a service’) discusses the disappearance of Flight MH 370, planning for 100% clean energy, and 21 lessons for the 21st century Who would you least like to share a lift with? My three children. I did it once and quickly came to the conclusion that having a three, six and eight year old in a small space with no toys is not a good idea.

I just can’t believe that with the amount of tech we have on planes these days we can lose one

You’re God for the day. What’s the first thing you do? Make every country in the world the perfect temperature. Everything else would stay exactly the same but it would always be 16-23 degrees, like a cool English summer. If you could travel back in time to a period in history, what would it be? Before my three kids. I miss using the lift! Who are you enjoying listening to? My Spotify Daily Mix. If it was left up to me I would still be listening to the 90s music I grew up with. Spotify’s algorithms are trying to bring me into the 21st century. What unsolved mystery would you like the answers to? The disappearance of Flight MH 370. I just can’t believe that with the amount of tech we have on planes these days we can lose one. What would you take to a desert island? A clock. Even all alone in the middle of nowhere I would like to know the time. What’s your favourite film or book? 21 Lessons for the 21st Century by Yuval Harari. The picture he paints of what MCP December 2018

one who can control how you act.

the world will look like in the very near future is mindblowing. I thought I would be long gone well before the sci-fi future that I saw in movies came about. It turns out it will happen a lot quicker than I thought. If you could perpetuate a myth about yourself, what would it be? That I never lost my temper or spoke too quickly. What would your super power be and why? Being fluent in every language in the world. And with the

I thought I would be long gone well before the sci-fi future that I saw in movies came about. It turns out it will happen a lot quicker than I thought

developments in tech I think this might be a superpower that we all have access to sometime in the near future. What would you do with a million pounds? I would start a business that I know will almost definitely fail but I would have the time of my life trying to make succeed. What’s your greatest extravagance? Apple. Every year I go online and think “wow that’s a lot to pay for a computer, or a watch or a phone”. Three clicks and three days later a computer, a watch and a phone turn up on my doorstep. If you were blessed with any talent, what would your dream job be? I would love to be able to code and build apps. Being an app builder would be a lot of fun.

What irritates you the most in life? Labels and identity politics. Everyone seems to be defining who they are and then using that as a reason to exclude others. Republican, Democrat, gay, straight, black, white, Christian, atheist, Apple, Samsung. How about we just go back to “human” and see where that takes us? What should energy users be doing to help themselves in the current climate? Plan out a pathway to 100% clean energy for your business and take the first step tomorrow. No matter how small. What’s the best thing – work wise – that you did recently? Changed the criteria of our product development pipeline to be experiencefocused rather than productfocused. l

What is the best piece of advice ever been given? You can’t control how anyone else acts but you are the only missioncriticalpower.uk