Guest post by Martin O’Leary, Data Edge Energy is the hot topic of every business and household at the minute. With energy prices increasing and energy-intensive sectors taking the heat, the data centre industry is one that is particularly in the news. Fears of blackouts on the energy grid this Winter is a big threat to everyone. Supply is struggling to meet demand, thus, something must be done. The reality is, that data usage will continue to grow as it is a necessity, and data centres are crucial to this, as well as being critical infrastructure in allowing Ireland to be an attractive digital hub for national and international business growth. What we must remember is that the data centre industry as well as large enterprises are not lost causes in the realm of sustainability. In fact, climate action goals, emissions targets and sustainability objectives are possible to achieve with the help of such industries – paired with the right measurement and management support. A business or data centre cannot manage what it does not measure, so that’s where they can start. The first step of measurement is real-time accurate information. A clear picture of power utilisation and environmental conditions is essential to improving energy efficiency, lowering costs, and ensuring sustainability. Effective power-saving solutions will be underpinned by accurate information and detailed monitoring over time. Remote monitoring and measuring Just as remote working has become essential for many businesses, so too has remote monitoring. The exponential growth of hybrid working has led to large-scale data sharing and storage outside of the traditional office environment, mainly into data centres. The ability to remotely monitor is becoming more and more important for data centre operators to ensure they can adapt quickly to environmental conditions and minimise energy usage. . Monitoring systems need to be capable of seamless, remote upgrades of all software and firmware components, which includes all wired and wireless communication sensors. The systems should be able to completely upgrade and reconfigure all monitoring components with no physical access and no power cycling of anything, without any exceptions. Submetering This is where power submetering comes in. It’s common in Ireland among tenants, business departments, universities, data centres and so on. A submetering system informs your energy usage habits as it provides a precise understanding of what drives your power use. Adding such a system means you can measure power usage at a variety of levels – room, equipment, subsystem and even customer levels. You can then accurately allocate costs, bill customers accurately, optimise energy usage, identify and eliminate waste and plan for future needs which will cater to budget, capacity and targets. Adding submetering monitoring provides a benchmark to power quality readings or “signatures”. When equipment is failing, or about to fail, it will often be identified by changes in its power usage. Thus, monitoring power signatures can reduce downtime and avoid system failure. Often, areas of a business will need to be revamped which can be done through retrofitting, which can be underpinned by the data collected from power monitoring. The trend is that once the data is collected, measured and monitored, the rest follows! Submetering is also very beneficial considering the popularity of colocation services providers, which rent out space to third parties. Submetering allows for breaking down costs at the individual user level which enables billing for actual usage as opposed to estimations. Measuring power consumption doesn’t need to be an overwhelming task. With the right scalable solutions and accurate information, reducing power consumption is a viable option for a business, data centre, your home or even the local shop down the road. The key to effective measurement, monitoring and managing is accurate information and choosing a solution t...