Calculating Trade-offs in Data

Center Design

Data Center Science Center, Schneider Electric

Confidential Property of Schneider Electric

Topics 1 TradeOff Tools overview

2 Tips for viewing TradeOff Tools

3 One slide overview of each tool

4 Summary

5 Demo

Confidential Property of Schneider Electric | Page 2

Schneider Electric TradeOff Tools™

● Simple, automated tools to support specific

planning decisions
● Models complex interactions of systems based on
data and science
● One-screen, standardized user interface
● Instant output allows for rapid creation of “what if”
scenarios
● Optimized for use on PCs and tablets (can also be
used on smart phones)

Free tools at http://tools.apc.com

 Where do the tools come in?

1
Capacity
At the beginning
Budget
of the planning process
Growth plan
Criticality

2
Efficiency
Density

3
4
White Paper
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5
 Difficult questions can affect or delay critical planning
decisions

Should I build a data center or outsource to a colo

?
1 Should I build out now or in
phases
?
What is the capital cost
of different alternatives
?

2 What density should I plan for ?

3 Should I implement Li-ion or VRLA batteries ?

4 What would I need to do to hit a specific efficiency

(PUE) target
?

5
Tips for viewing TradeOff Tools™
1. For PCs & Macs, preferred browser is Google Chrome
(Mozilla Firefox is also supported)
2. For tablets & smart phones, preferred browser is Google Chrome
(Safari is also supported)
3. Configure your browser’s pop-up blocker to allow pop-ups from
apc.com, apcmedia.com, and schneider-electric.com
4. When using Google Chrome on a PC or Mac, it’s possible to
view the tools in your local language by opening the English
version and right clicking and selecting “Translate to ..” option
5. To save your results as a PDF using Google Chrome, select the
print icon at the top of the tool, change Local Destination to
“Save as PDF”, change Layout to “Landscape”, click on “Save”
button, select file destination and fill in file name and click “Save”
(Note for tools with multiple screens, you’ll have to repeat)
6. To reset a tool to defaults, reload the page by right clicking and
choosing the reload choice or icon (or press Ctrl+R)
Data Center Power Sizing Calculator
Determine impact of server and storage configurations on IT load capacity and required utility input power

● Define basic characteristics of a data

center’s IT load
● Server quantity & mix
● Mainframes
● Storage
● PUE
● Estimate data center IT load capacity
● Calculate how much utility power is required
to support IT load
● Demonstrate allocation on total power
requirement
http://www.apc.com/tool/?tt=1
IT Carbon & Energy Allocation Calculator
View impact of efficiency, load characteristics, and location on carbon and energy allocation for IT users

● Assign carbon and energy costs to IT

users, based on data center attributes:
● PUE
● IT load
● Location
● See annual energy and carbon allocations
on a per-server basis, driven by:
● Servers
● Storage
● Networking
● Physical infrastructure
● Illustrate15 year allocations

http://www.apc.com/tool/?tt=2
Data Center AC vs. DC Calculator
View ipact of data center efficiency of various AC and DC power distribution architectures

● Compare energy efficiency of four different

power distribution architectures
● Legacy 208 V AC
● Best practice 208 V AC
● 415 V AC
● 380 V DC
● Demonstrate how 415 V AC and 380 V DC
have virtually same efficiency

http://www.apc.com/tool/?tt=3
Data Center Capital Cost Calculator
Determine impact of physical infrastructure design choices on capital cost

● Quickly set data center budget expectations

(+/- 20%)
● Cost breakdown by subsystem
● Cost breakdown by type of cost (material,
labor, installation)
● Decide priority among competing design
parameters
● Capacity
● Budget
● Growth plan
● Criticality
● Efficiency
● Costs derived from actual configurations,
quotes from 3rd party suppliers & partners http://www.apc.com/tool/?tt=4
Three Phase UPS Efficiency Comparison Calculator
Gauge the impact of 3-phase UPS on energy costs and carbon footprint

● Compare 2 three phase UPS systems

● Efficiency
● Electricity cost
● Carbon footprint
● Assess UPSs from list of APC UPSs
(measured data) or define own UPS
● Demonstrate how scaling UPSs to match
load impacts efficiency curve
● See efficiency, electricity cost, and carbon
as function of IT load

http://www.apc.com/tool/?tt=5
Data Center Efficiency Calculator
Determine impact of alternative power and cooling approaches on energy cost

● Estimate annualized data center

efficiency of new or existing data center
● Power usage effectiveness (PUE)
● Power consumption by subsystem
● Energy cost breakdown
● See the efficiency curve of the data
center
● Determine efficiency impact of key
design decisions
● Redundancy
● Cooling / power architecture
● Percent load

http://www.apc.com/tool/?tt=6
Data Center Carbon Calculator
Determine impact of changes in data center efficiency on energy costs and carbon footprint

● Illustrate how data center changes impact

carbon emissions
● Location
● Efficiency (PUE)
● Load (kW)
● Determine savings in electricity as PUE
improves
● Estimate equivalent number of cars
removed from road
● Demonstrate 15-year cost and carbon
savings
http://www.apc.com/tool/?tt=7
Data Center Design Planning Calculator
Determine impact of power and cooling technology and growth plan strategies on design parameters

● Show how uncertainty of IT growth plan

impacts costs
● Demonstrate how scaled buildout reduces
data center TCO. Key factors include:
● IT load profile
● Step size
● Redundancy
● Power & cooling architecture
● Compare PUE over data center life
● Compare runrate and cashflow analysis

http://www.apc.com/tool/?tt=8
Virtualization Energy Cost Calculator
Determine impact of server virtualization and data center design choices on energy and space savings

● Illustrate energy savings resulting from

server virtualization
● Compare pre- and post-virtualization
● % energy savings
● Annual electric bill
● Efficiency (PUE)
● Space required
● Demonstrate where energy savings comes
from
● Entire data center
● Physical infrastructure
● Total IT
● Servers
http://www.apc.com/tool/?tt=9
Data Center InRowTM Containment Selector
Determine impact of preferences and constraints on the recommended containment approach

● Generate optimal containment

configuration
● Uncontained
● Hot aisle containment
● Rack air containment
● Rack air containment with front
containment
● Identify dimensions and layouts that limit
configuration possibilities

http://www.apc.com/tool/?tt=10
Cooling Economizer Mode PUE Calculator
Determine impact of geography and cooling characteristics on PUE, energy cost, and carbon emissions

● Determine optimal cooling economizer

approach based on:
● Climate (ASHRAE bin data)
● Data center load
● IT operating environment (temperature &
humidity)
● Compare common cooling architectures
● PUE
● Energy cost
● Carbon
● Full & partial economizer hours

http://www.apc.com/tool/?tt=11
 TM
InRow Ancillary IT Equipment Cooling Calculator
Determine impact of IT, cooling, & room characteristics on ability for row-based cooling to support ancillary IT loads

● Ancillary IT = IT equipment not arranged in

rows, such as:
● Tape libraries
● Storage equipment
● Networking gear
● Power distribution equipment
● Determine if additional cooling is required
or if the existing InRow cooling is
sufficient, based on:
● IT parameters
● Cooling parameters
● Room characteristics

http://www.apc.com/tool/?tt=12
 Data Center Build vs. Colocation Calculator
Determine impact of data center attributes and pricing model on TCO, cash cross-over point, and cash flow

● Impact of data center attributes and

pricing model on TCO
● Compare financials:
● TCO
● Break-even (years)
● Cash flow by year
● Key assumptions:
● % un-scalable infrastructure
● Maintenance , staffing
● Colo setup/install
● Remote hands for colo

http://www.apc.com/tool/?tt=13
Single Phase UPS Efficiency Comparison Calculator
Determine impact of single phase UPS efficiencies on energy costs and carbon footprint

● Compare 2 single phase UPS systems

● Efficiency
● Electricity cost
● Carbon footprint
● Assess UPSs from list of APC UPSs
(measured data) or define own UPS
● See efficiency, electricity cost, and carbon
as function of IT load

http://www.apc.com/tool/?tt=14
 Flywheel vs. VRLA Battery Carbon Calculator
View carbon impact of flywheels vs. VRLA batteries for energy storage of static UPSs

● Reflects entire lifecycle

● In most countries, batteries are
“greener”
● Location is key driver (energy source)

http://www.apc.com/tool/?tt=16
 Prefabricated vs. Traditional Data Center Cost Calculator
Determine impact of design attributes on cost of prefabricated vs. traditional data centers

● Compare financials:
● Equipment cost
● Design installation cost
● Space cost
● Key drivers:
● Cooling architecture
● Rack density
● Placement of prefab modules
● Build vs. lease

http://www.apc.com/tool/?tt=17
 Traditional vs. Open Compute Cost Calculator
View capital cost comparison and key drivers between traditional and Open Compute power architectures

● Compare financials:
● Capital cost summary
● Comparison at subsystem level to
highlight where cost differences occur
● Key drivers:
● Data center load mix of traditional & OCP
● Traditional server power supply oversizing
and cost per watt

http://www.apc.com/tool/?tt=18
 Lithium-ion vs. VRLA Battery Comparison Calculator
View TCO impact of lithium-ion vs. VRLA batteries for energy storage of static UPS

● Compare financials:
● Cumulative cost summary and chart
illustrating cross-over point
● Breakdown of TCO costs
● Key drivers:
● Replacement period for each energy
storage type
● Runtime

http://www.apc.com/tool/?tt=19
TradeOff Tools Summary

What are TradeOff Tools? TradeOff Tools are simple, interactive tools, based
on data and science, that make it easy to vary
parameters, experiment with “what if” scenarios and
make tradeoffs during data center planning

When should they be used? Used early in the planning process, TradeOff Tools
help avoid planning roadblocks by making informed
and accurate decisions

How do they help in planning TradeOff Tools help show quantifiable, tangible
a data center? benefits of implementing certain technologies and
justify project decisions
Contact Us
Data Center Science Center
• Email at: DCSC@Schneider-Electric.com
• Contact us with questions or comments
with TradeOff Tools or related White
Papers
• http://tools.apc.com
• http://whitepapers.apc.com

Confidential Property of Schneider Electric | Page 26