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With cloud services gaining traction, the pressure is on for colocation and large enterprise data centers to scale quickly and efficiently while also meeting sustainability goals. Many cloud and service providers are adopting modular data center (MDC) solutions to help them meet the need to expand quickly.
MDCs are a win-win for companies in need of solutions that offer flexibility, speed-to-market, and cost efficiency to help them stay competitive. MDCs can be up and running in 40% less time than traditional data centers. Plus, they boast an impressive environmental footprint using sustainable construction methods and include features that boost reliability and optimize operational energy savings.
What is a modular data center?
In simple terms, MDCs are prefabricated units that are factory built off-site, then delivered site-ready to the customer’s location. MDCs combine power, cooling, and IT infrastructure into individual or configurable modules that are connected on-site to provide a cohesive data center solution.
With hardware and software components preassembled, integrated, and tested in a factory environment, MDCs offer many advantages, including improved reliability as well as predictable costs and performance. The modular approach can take unused outdoor or remote space and free up traditional data center space to better support an organization’s core function, thus allowing for flexible power management in case there is a future demand for more capacity.
Modular UPS enables MDC sustainability and efficiency
A modular uninterruptible power supply (UPS) is one of the most critical components of a modular data center. Selecting the right UPS for your needs is key to achieving the flexibility and energy efficiency that supports both business growth and sustainability.
A modular UPS that comes with an energy-saving mode helps deliver the right combination of low-power-usage effectiveness and high-efficiency operation to reduce costs and optimize power quality. In addition, choosing a UPS with Lithium-ion batteries will provide 2-to-3-times the life expectancy compared to VRLA batteries, helping data centers save on total cost of operation.
UPS engineered to reduce environmental impact
As modular UPS systems become the standard for use in MDCs, providers like Schneider Electric continually re-imagine their UPS offerings to provide the environmental performance that data centers demand. Schneider Electric’s Galaxy VL 200-500 kW 3-Phase UPS delivers a fast and efficient MDC solution with cutting-edge technology to help you grow sustainably.
Small footprint
Galaxy VL’s economical footprint uses up to 50% less floor space than legacy modular 500 kW designs. When installed in an MDC where space is a premium, this UPS provides added value. The high-density modular Galaxy VL can accommodate additional power modules as needed, giving MDCs more flexibility to scale up in power as their business demands increase.
Increased capacity
As your business expands, increasing power capacity becomes a priority. Galaxy VL with Live Swap allows you to instantly scale power in 50 kW increments from 200 kW to 500 kW while the unit is online and fully operational. Modular data centers have the added benefit of utilizing the Galaxy VL in parallel configurations to service solutions at a larger scale, for example, using four Galaxy VL UPSs to create a 2 MW power solution. By adding power incrementally, you can more precisely right-size capacity to match the actual load. As a result, the UPS can operate nearer to its maximum capacity to optimize efficiency without sacrificing reliability.
Improved efficiency
UPS efficiency is a significant contributor to a modular data center’s overall operating efficiency, especially considering higher kW deployments. The Galaxy VL boasts 99% efficiency when operating in Schneider Electric’s energy-saving ECOnversion™ mode and 97% efficiency in double conversion operating mode. This high level of efficiency makes the MDC even more sustainable and helps create a faster ROI.
Innovation
The Galaxy VL is a Green Premium™ product and compatible with long-lasting Lithium-ion batteries, which provide 2-3 times the expected life of VRLA batteries, weigh 60-70% less, and operate at higher temperatures. The overall cost per square foot is optimized by using Lithium-ion batteries in an MDC, resulting in a smaller enclosure size and requiring less cooling, thus improving both CapEx and OpEx savings.
When combined with Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxureTM IT suite and services that provide monitoring and data-driven insights, data centers can optimize resiliency and performance. Through state-of-the-art remote monitoring, management, and modeling, operators gain system-wide visibility to proactively address issues and maintain uptime, leading to optimized efficiencies that make MDC operations even more sustainable.
Driving MDC sustainability with the right modular UPS
Companies are challenging themselves to improve their environmental performance and sustainability goals. By incorporating the right 3-phase modular UPS into a modular data center solution, Schneider Electric balances the business needs with technology that will help achieve these goals. Learn more about the Galaxy VL UPS and how it might benefit your modular data center.
