Data Centre alwas protected always up and running. Stefano Valdrighi - Siemens
Business continuity is the critical asset to protect 609,500 Average cost per downtime 7,908 Average cost per minute The total cost of a downtime is not limited to revenue losses as it can ultimately include: Productivity Losses Customer disruption Reputation damage Isolation and repair costs Loss of data Lawsuits Source: Ponemon Institute 2014
Examples of application areas in data centers and fire impact Server and data rooms Control room 18% of fires Protect your data and infrastructure for smooth business operation 1% of fires Protect the «big brother» to ensure continued operation even in emergencies Electrical switching room Emergency power supply 22% of fires Protect your main power supply and keep power efficient 59% of fires Protect your backup generators in the event of an outge and prevent fire spread
Business continuity is under constant threat About 6% of infrastructure failures in data centers are related to fire but do you know why?
There are 4 major reasons why there is a high risk of fire in a data center Heavy power load Electrical fire risk Infrastructure Ventilation Heavy power loads or a defective piece of equipment can very quickly lead to a short circuit or overheating Constant ignition source electricity and combustible materials such as plastics in printed circuit boards Extensive cabling, particularly below raised floors Comprehensive air-cooling resulting in a higher air exchange, increases risk of spreading the fire 1 2 3 4
Fire protection in data centers involves one major challenge high power consumption that requires air cooling, resulting in a higher air exchange. And smoke dilution and redirection because of high ventilation can mean that smoke cannot reach the detectors fast enough. inappropriate fire safety solutions. Many regulations only require sprinkler systems to be installed but water causes damages, and sprinklers react too late in case of a fire. Therefore, early and fast detection and extinguishing is essential in data centers. a high noise level during the extinguishing process. Data centers contain sensible and delicate technical equipment. Latest technological findings show that the high noise level of the discharge can disturb Hard Disk Drives (HDD's) in operation. how to minimize potential disruption, downtime or closure. The no. 1 cause for fire safety system failure is the interface between detection, alarming, control and extinguishing
Sometimes, complying with regulations does not mean protecting business assets NFPA 75 says that if a building has already a water sprinkler system installed, the data center shall have one too* Siemens says that a dry extinguishing system is much better suited because it protects the electronic equipment
Real example: Google, Seattle, USA Damages of fire in April 2010 Fire in Google data center affected over 42,000 servers Following the fire, Google mistakenly returned errors all over the world for one hour The bulk of the damage was not caused by the fire itself, but by the water from the sprinklers used In 2013, a 5 minute downtime costed Google approximately 0.8 mil. USD
No that loud please, we are Hard Disk Drives Sound impacts Hard Disk Drives above 100dB in conjunction with frequency range between 500Hz and 12.5kHz Hard drives sensitivity in the acoustic spectrum: [db*] 130 120 Insensitive for noise at frequencies below 500Hz 110 Certain sensitivity in the frequency range from 500Hz up to 1.6kHz 100 90 Most critical is the range from 1.6kHz up to 8kHz 80 0.200 0.250 0.315 0.400 0.500 0.630 0.800 1.000 1.250 1.600 2.000 2.500 3.150 4.000 5.000 6.300 8.000 10.0 12.5 16.0 20.0 f [khz] Certain sensitivity in the frequency range from 8kHz up to 12.5kHz Severe performance degradation and faults Performance degradation Undisturbed operation Insensitive for noise at frequencies above 12.5kHz BT CPS S&C VM Restricted Siemens AG 2014 All rights reserved.
100dB - a noise level that was proven being safe for Hard Disk Drives (HDDs) 90 100 110 120 130 140 150 [db(z)] >140dB: Damage and unpredictable things likely to happen >130dB: No more data delivered by most HDD s Some HDD s might disconnect and need reboot Permanent signs after noise exposure likely (sector re-allocations) >120dB: Significant disturbance of most HDD s likely More sensitive HDD s already stop delivering data Some HDD s with permanent signs after noise exposure (sector re-allocations) >110dB: Many HDD s show signs of temporary performance degradation Sensitive HDD s already show significant performance degradation >95dB: Sensitive HDD s are starting to show performance degradation <95dB: The vast majority of HDD s are working undisturbed at this noise level Comparative Sound Levels Siemens noise sensitivity scale. Noise sensitivity of HDD s is likely to depend on technological evolution BT CPS S&C VM Restricted Siemens AG 2014 All rights reserved.
Siemens Silent Extinguishing Technology for Hard Disk Drives (HDDs) Many tests with different configurations proved that inert gas extinguishing systems with <110 db at the location of the cabinet is safe for the HDD. Tests were performed in a reference room which shows realistic and comparable characteristics to a data center. Unregulated, Std Nozzle CDT, Std Nozzle CDT, Std Silent Nozzle
Silent nozzle Animation
There are 4 major challenges in data centers when it comes to fire protection 1. Fire detection 2. Extinguishing #1 3. Extinguishing #2 4. Communication High power load needs efficient air-cooling This makes it difficult to detect a fire Many regulations focus on building protection and recommend sprinklers Water causes damage to electronics Sprinklers react too slow HDDs are sensitive to the high noise levels during the discharge of dry extinguishing systems No. 1 cause for fire safety system failure is the interface between detection, alarming, control and extinguishing
Solutions from Siemens to meet the 4 challenges Sinorix Compact XC10 Manual call point FDM225 1. Fire detection 2. Extinguishing #1 3. Extinguishing #2 4. Communication ASD detectors from Siemens Point detectors with ASAtechnology Highest detection sensitivity Natural or chemical extinguishing agents Ideal for electronics Non-corrosive, nonconductive, leave no residues Safe for people and the environment Sinorix Silent Nozzle with unique linear design Keeps noise down during extinguishing All devices on one loop No information will get lost, even if loop is interrupted at one end
Put your data is safe hands and keep Mission-critical facilities at maximum uptime With Innovative products, application know-how and integral Fire Safety concept
Thank you for your attention! Stefano Valdrighi Global Head of Extinguishing Sales and Business Development Siemens Building Technologies, International Headquarters, Zug Gubelstrasse 22 6300 Zug Phone: +41 41 724 4157 Mobile: +41 70 930 10 69 E-mail: stefano.valdrighi@siemens.com siemens.com/buildingtechnologies