Energy Management

Going beyond the data center - energy management across the infrastructure

Managing your infrastructure for energy efficiency requires an approach that incorporates three key infrastructure domains – within the walls of the data center and beyond. Specifically:

• The information technology infrastructure, including IT assets such as servers, storage, and network devices.
• The facilities and property infrastructure, including uninterruptible power sources (UPSs), power distribution units (PDUs), computer room air conditioning (CRAC) units, chillers, heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) units, lighting, security and fire systems.
• Assets, including specialized assets like cell towers, manufacturing floor equipment, trucking fleets or any physical business asset that consumes energy and can be managed for efficiency.

Management of these domains is typically not centralized, but the domains are converging and centralizing the management of these areas will provide the greatest opportunities for improvement.

A practical approach to energy management

IBM has laid out a practical approach to managing these infrastructure domains for energy efficiency based on two key dimensions – the scope of the infrastructure to be managed and the core management capabilities that are required.

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