30 Jan 2014 -- IBM's Leadership Data Center in Boulder, Colorado, has earned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) ENERGY STAR® certification, which signifies that the building performs in the top 25 percent of similar facilities nationwide for energy efficiency and meets strict energy efficiency performance levels set by the EPA. This is IBM's first ENERGY STAR certified data center and one of only 55 certified data centers in the United States.1
"Improving the energy efficiency of our nation's buildings is critical to protecting our environment," said Jean Lupinacci, Chief of the ENERGY STAR Commercial & Industrial Branch. "From the boiler room to the board room, organizations are leading the way by making their buildings more efficient and earning EPA's ENERGY STAR certification."
IBM's six-part strategy to reduce the GHG emissions related to its operations includes designing, building, updating and operating facilities, including data centers and manufacturing operations, that optimize their use of energy and materials and minimize GHG emissions. Highlights of some of the energy-efficient aspects of IBM's Leadership Data Center follow:
- Variable speed equipment, which can adjust its speed to more closely match the cooling and heat loads across the data center cooling system, including chillers, computer room air conditioners (CRACs), pumps, and fans, enables optimization and minimization of the energy used for cooling.
- Flat plate heat exchangers enable IBM to make chilled water with substantially less energy through a process known as "water-side economizing." This process is similar to a homeowner turning off their air conditioning unit and running the fan system with the windows open - given the right weather, this is perfect for keeping occupants comfortable. At the IBM Leadership Data Center, the heat exchangers and Colorado's cold, dry climate allow for chillers, which consume large amounts of energy, to be turned off for much of the year.
- IBM Measurement & Management Technologies (MMT) provides continuous monitoring of the data center floor through a matrix of sensors. Data from these sensors drives optimization decisions such as turning off CRACs, raising supply air temperatures, and raising chilled water temperatures, all of which can dramatically improve IBM's energy performance.
- Energy metering is used to determine data center energy efficiency. The IT equipment (servers, switches, etc.) energy was separated from the support equipment (chillers, lights, CRACs, etc.) so that the power usage effectiveness (PUE) could be calculated. PUE is an industry standard metric for determining data center efficiency.
IBM has a long history with ENERGY STAR, a voluntary, market-based partnership to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through energy efficiency. As a charter member of the U.S. EPA's ENERGY STAR Computer Program in 1992, IBM helped the EPA define criteria for computers and monitors. In March 2001, IBM became the first company to win an ENERGY STAR Excellence in Corporate Commitment Award recognizing IBM's overall commitment and contributions to energy conservation and efficiency across the company's operations and in the design of its products.
For information about IBM's current ENERGY STAR activities, visit IBM's ENERGY STAR qualified products web page.
For more information about ENERGY STAR, visit the ENERGY STAR website.
1As of the date of this article, there were 55 data centers listed on the ENERGY STAR Certified Data Centers web page.