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The Utility and Data Center Nexus

The Utility and Data Center Nexus. GSMI – GDCON Dallas Texas, June 6 2013 Mark Bramfitt, P.E. Bramfitt Consulting. The data center and utility industries are increasingly intertwined, and energy efficiency gains are driving the biggest IT industry trend. . Topics.

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The Utility and Data Center Nexus

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  1. The Utility and Data Center Nexus GSMI – GDCON Dallas Texas, June 6 2013 Mark Bramfitt, P.E. Bramfitt Consulting The data center and utility industries are increasingly intertwined, and energy efficiency gains are driving the biggest IT industry trend.

  2. Topics • Key intersections of IT industry and utilities: capacity, cost, carbon • How energy efficiency is behind the key industry trend: the move to managed services or the “cloud” • What it means for data center operators and IT managers

  3. Utility and DC/IT Drivers Utilities Data Centers • Regulatory Compliance • Reliability • Risk Management • Load Growth • Competitive Rates • Load Management • Renewable Resources • Energy Efficiency Services • Smart Grid • Reliability • Capacity • Low Rates (Opex) • Capex Avoidance • Carbon Content

  4. Data Center/Utility Nexus IT and data center energy use growing rapidly, though still modest portion of overall energy use • At the large end of the market, growth is staggering • Microsoft will have 300,000 servers supporting Xbox versus the 15,000 today, and announced a 10x expansion program for their DC fleet • Data storage growth is an untold story: 50 to 100% annual growth rates

  5. Data Center/Utility Nexus Service capacity is now a challenge for data centers of all stripes • “Utility scale” standard “throw weight” is 40 MW • Data center industry starting to complain about utility capacity constraints (in some cases resorting to reuse strategies) • Capacity issues can affect legacy enterprise centers too

  6. Data Center/Utility Nexus Power price and carbon content becoming big issues • Energy rates are projected to double every dozen or so years • Utility scale developers seeking sub 5cents/kWh power, and clean too! • Drivers are infrastructure costs and generation portfolio standards

  7. Greenpeace Targets DCs and Utilities Other NGOs like the NRDC are taking aim too

  8. Press Attention Too Series of New York Times articles

  9. More Renewables Are Coming

  10. Juxtapose With Existing Rates

  11. Utilities (Try To) Respond • Many states have renewable energy requirements • Prediction: rates will go up most where coal is still king • Some utilities have units to make siting utility-scale DCs attractive (Dominion, AEC, Duke) • Leading utilities offer robust energy efficiency programs for data centers and IT infrastructure

  12. How is The IT Industry Responding? By building extremely efficient, centralized data centers • Best in class data centers are now massively multi-core servers that we can walk in • Theoretical limits of PUE being reached • No mechanical cooling – only ventilation • Back-up power and conditioning obviated by fail-over capability

  13. Cloud Provider Advantages • Energy efficiency • IT asset utilization • Lowest power costs • Ability to manage loads for fail over, balancing, and arbitrage

  14. Legacy DC Disadvantage • Capacity constrained – can’t meet growth needs • Reliance on inefficient support systems (cooling, generators) • Cost to serve equipment over life exceeds purchase price • Above all, poor utilization rates of IT assets

  15. What Does It Mean To You? • Managed service providers have an inherent cost advantage over even the best enterprise operations • That gap will widen • Your operation will look untenable as a result • You can compete by undertaking energy efficiency upgrades

  16. Why Pursue Energy Efficiency? You should pursue it like your life depended on it – it is driving the major shift in IT services • Cost savings (financial return) • Capacity avoidance • Competition • Commitment to the environment

  17. Questions? Mark bramfitt, p.e. 3055 Gough Street, #100 San Francisco, CA 94123 Phone 415.407.6291 mark@markbramfitt.com information technology  utilities  data centers  energy efficiency  demand response  smart grid  program design  training  strategic engagement impact

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