After years of campaigning, the UK’s Climate Change Agreement for data centers is finally in effect. That’s great news for Equinix. Not only does the agreement recognize the role the data center industry can play in reducing energy consumption, but it signifies a new, industry-wide commitment towards improving energy efficiency. That commitment is already obvious at Equinix facilities worldwide, including the new LD6 data center we’re building from the ground up in London.
Our entire approach to designing LD6 fits in with the aim of the Climate Change Agreement (CCA), which is to ensure that energy-intensive industries minimize consumption and help the UK meet its overall carbon reduction targets.
It’s no secret that data centers use a lot of electricity. That means data center providers must look for alternative ways to reduce energy consumption, and one key way is through changes in power and cooling systems.
LD6 will have an innovative air system that utilizes 100% natural ventilation as well as mass air cooling technology, which takes advantage of the natural outdoor temperatures to chill the indoor air. LD6 will also reduce emissions with indirect heat exchange, a heating method that completely contains contaminants produced in the burning process. And LD6 will harvest rainwater to reduce the water consumption of our air handling units.
This approach will ensure that LD6 has lower energy consumption and a smaller carbon footprint than other facilities of its kind. In fact, LD6 is set to become one of a small number of Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) platinum-accredited energy-efficient data centers in the UK.
In short, LD6 will be more than ready for the CCA. The new law should be viewed as a positive development for colocation providers everywhere. It reinforces the idea that all data center providers need to continually look for ways to improve energy efficiency. Many providers do this already, but industry enforcement can only be a good thing.
Key things you need to know about the CCA:
- The CCA for data centers became law on July 1 and only applies to data center operators providing colocation space.
- The CCA legislation promises tax breaks for companies that hit their carbon reduction targets.
- The agreed target is reducing Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) by 15% by 2020 from a 2011 baseline without increasing IT power consumption.
- Individual sites must show a 30% reduction in non-IT energy over the same period.
- All current ratings will be reviewed in 2016.
- To be eligible, participants must have an electricity supply of at least 200kW and a back-up electricity supply that can kick in when the primary supply is interrupted.
- Operators need to demonstrate that they have a minimum of 12 months auditable PUE data for each participating site.
A more energy-efficient way of doing business is just one of several advantages at LD6. We’re opening LD6 to meet demand for services at our fast-growing London Slough campus. The soon-to-be three building campus houses LINX, one of the world’s largest Internet Exchanges. The campus is also a virtual financial center – a quarter of European equities trades originate there. When it opens next year, LD6 will be a place to find fast, reliable and high performance interconnection, not just in Europe, but globally.
To learn more about LD6, click here.
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