ebm-papst recently completed a project for UBM that has delivered energy savings of 10,657MWh – Here’s how those savings were achieved…
Project Overview
UBS operates a 130,000 sq ft data centre in west London which is fundamental to the operation of the firm’s global banking systems. Within this site there were a number of misson critical Down Flow Units (DFUs) operating around the clock to sustain the required operating conditions for the computer equipment in the data centre.
The Fans
ebm-papst replaced the existing Down Flow Units in the data centre with high efficiency direct drive EC fans in the computer room air conditioning (CRAC) units. UBSs objective for the project was to reduce the drawn-down power by up to 30%, resulting in a 180kW power reduction load to be allocated to IT equipment.
The Project
The challenge was to improve the energy efficiency of the data centre, freeing up additional electrical capacity to use on IT resource. In addition, our task was to improve the airflow and improve controllability of the cooling units in the data hall.
Typically heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems can be responsible for over half the energy consumed by data centres. In cases where energy is limited, improving the energy efficiency of HVAC equipment will result in a more improved allocation of energy resource to IT equipment.
The Results
The solution resulted in a load reduction of 250 kW against a target of 180 kW. This resulted in an annual power saving of 48%, which allowed UBS to increase IT power consumption in addition to reducing CO2 emissions and energy costs.
Over the past 4 years and 10 months since the project took place (as of March 2017), UBS has achieved:
- 191 fans installed
- 76 CRAC units upgraded
- 3 different models installed
- Energy savings -10,657MWh (4 years and 10 months)
- Financial savings – £667,836 after payback of total install costs
(payback period of 23 months)
