Sustainable Energy is a good bid this Year? -also in Data Centers- / Es la Energía Sustentable una buena apuesta este año- inclusive en los CDs-

This year has been declared by UN  the "Sustainable Energy for All". With all those figures appointing Data centres as one of the most energy consumer building type, all of us have to take this fact to intend to be mor energy efficent -if not "green"- with our operations.

We have had heard or read a lot of ideas to reduce, recycle & reuse the energy generated inside a DC, well all of these are a very good ideas to save money, however the operator have to invest some to get the benefit.

The CoC from EU is one of the documents that give us a set of actions that can be done without a huge investment some of those actions are more in the way we do the day to day activities. Also the DoE in USA has deliver very good ideas to improve the energy efficiency. Why so much DC have not start with all these  simple tasks?

One issue that the common people is scared is regarding AVAILABILITY & OPERATIONS requirements; most of our customers would like to be more "green" but they are concern if those investments will hit the Operational Business Continuity,

Energy efficiency is not a matter -only- of equipment updating, the investor should understand that all the systems that are involved in the DCs operations have to be consider because the interrelationship among them. So the fact is that every plan can has an amount of uncertinity if it has been done with out an "holistic" approach -not only energy efficency- so what the DCs´ operators & project investors have to aware is to have a full team of specialists in the designing team, not only M&E, TI, pros, but those experts that can forsee all the interactions among cabling, fire detection, automation, and so on.

 At this time of the year the Euro weakness will hit all economies, so the DCs investors will be quite reluctant to spend money if we as DCs professionals -consulting/contractors/vendors- do not give them the best benefit - cost relationship in those new or refurbish project.

Then Sustainability -energy efficiency- is a very good token for offer in each project where the money -almost all- is the most concern.

Or what do you think?

roberto sanchez, RCDD
México