intelligent INFRASTRUCTURE
What role can equipment hire
play amid data centre supply
chain dilemma?
Data centre operators and
providers should consider the
benefit of critical equipment hire,
following multiple reports of disruption
and delays of infrastructure projects and
to the lead times of vital equipment.
According to the Institute for Supply
Management, 57% of companies
have noted longer lead times for tier
one China-sourced components, with
average lead times more than doubling
compared to the end of 2019. With
supply chain issues being reported
across the global data centre market,
Aggreko is reminding data centre
providers and operators to consider
rental solutions to ensure infrastructure
projects or cooling requirements are not
impacted during this crucial time.
Across the globe, construction and
maintenance is starting to be phased
back, including significant data centre
infrastructure projects. As building work
is ramped up, so too will the demand
for equipment, and there are some
concerns that the supply chain will not
be able to provide the same support as
agreed prior to lockdown.
Whether it is critical equipment for new
data centres, testing facility capacity
or sourcing replacement parts during
the maintenance of existing facilities,
implementing a temporary rental solution
can keep facilities in operation when
waiting for components and critical
equipment to arrive. Rental power and
cooling solutions are scalable and
flexible. Any output requirements can be
satisfied over any period of time, and this
can be adapted if these requirements or
timeframes change.
If the arrival of components and parts
that are required during the construction
or maintenance of a data centre is
delayed in any way, operations could
see significant delays. With data centre
demand at a peak in order to facilitate
remote working and medical data storage
and with a rise in demand for new
infrastructure to facilitate emerging tech
– such as 5G – downtime or delays are
simply not an option.
“Rental solutions could mean the
continuation of operations when there
are delays in the delivery of critical
equipment,” said Chris Rason, Managing
Director at Aggreko.
“Whether it is a power or cooling system,
temporary solutions are scalable and
flexible and so can be implemented in
any size of data centre for how ever long
they may be required.”
He added: “Throughout the COVID-19
pandemic, Aggreko has continued to
operate at full capacity. This means that
rental can provide a stop-gap solution
for data centre projects, while the supply
chain returns to capacity. As the data
centre industry starts to return, having an
added safety net of rental equipment can
ensure delays are minimised.” ◊
www.intelligentdatacentres.com Issue 18
57