The Green Grid, a non-profit consortium dedicated to advancing energy efficiency in data centers and business computing ecosystems, has announced the completion of three key deliverables from its Technical Committee. The three key deliverables made available to members include:
- Qualitative Analysis of Power Distribution Configurations for Data Centers
- Existing Data Center Energy Efficiency Metrics
- An updated version of the Data Center Efficiency Metrics White Paper
In the Qualitative Analysis of Power Distribution Configurations for Data Centers, The Green Grid identifies seven high-level configurations for power distribution in the data center. This paper is one of the first to consolidate the advantages and disadvantages of each of these power distribution configurations.
The Existing Data Center Energy Efficiency Metrics white paper is the first consolidated look at all existing organizations and metrics that are focused on energy efficiency in data centers and related IT equipment. The Green Grid will use this research to determine what areas are currently being addressed and, more importantly, what areas have the greatest need for energy efficiency metrics.
The updated version of the Data Center Efficiency Metrics White Paper refines the metrics first introduced by The Green Grid in February 2007 by more explicitly highlighting infrastructure efficiency. The Green Grid expects the Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) and Datacenter Efficiency (DCE) metrics to be adopted by the industry and that, moving forward, all data centers will track and report their efficiencies using these metrics. It is important to note that, while these metrics currently define infrastructure efficiency, The Green Grid is also working on developing metrics for data center productivity which will include computational efficiency.
“The Technical Committee of The Green Grid has been aggressively researching and developing key deliverables designed to bring focus to the industry around ways to improve energy efficiency in the data center,” said Rick Schuckle, director of The Green Grid. “The research we’re making available to members today highlights our emphasis on first evaluating and then improving upon best practices in today's global data center environments.”
The Green Grid today also reiterated its intention to develop an industry-standard rating system for data centers, a goal adopted by the organization earlier this year.
“We are very excited by this complex and challenging piece of work,” said John Pflueger, member of The Green Grid’s Technical Committee. “The Green Grid’s unique position enables us to leverage a broad range of skills and technologies. Our initial examination of data center efficiency, for example, has led to follow-on work on productivity-related metrics. The Green Grid’s goals, with the rating system being just one example, would not be achievable were it not for the strength and diversity of our membership – from data center infrastructure providers to end-users to Silicon and system vendors.”
The Green Grid Signs Memorandum of Understanding with The Information Technology Industry Council
The Green Grid also announced the consortium has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with The Information Technology Industry Council (ITI), an organization dedicated to public policy advocacy on behalf of its membership of leading high-tech companies. The Green Grid expects the MOU will help align the two organizations’ positions and affirm the respective and distinct role each organization is playing to help the IT industry address the demand for energy efficiency.
