END USER INSIGHT
Overseeing data centre infrastructure involves maintaining and upgrading physical components – switches , routers , storage devices and managing virtualisation . When it comes to the day-to-day activity , we ’ re talking about capacity planning , future capacity needs and expansion optimisation . This may involve adding new hardware and optimising the resource allocation . The security of the data centre is also very important . This includes ensuring security measures are up-to-date and effective , which includes managing access controls , firewalls , intrusion and detection systems and regular security audits . It is also important to consider the maintenance of the data centre and Disaster Recovery .
I also manage budget and cost control , vendor management and relationships , collaborating with hardware and software vendors to procure equipment and services and negotiating contracts . We also need to make sure the data centre is compliant , mainly in keeping with Uptime Institute and ASHRAE requirements , depending on the organisation ' s needs .
As Data Centre Technical Director of a large enterprise in Saudi Arabia , what are some of your key priorities when maintaining uptime and ensuring the smooth running of operations ?
Important to us is the redundancy and resilience of the data centre . Implementing redundant systems as critical components , such as power , cooling and networking , to minimise the risk of downtime due to hardware failures , human errors or maintenance activities .
Ensure failover mechanisms are in place for critical applications and services . This is usually done at the design level and then at the operation level .
Making sure we have a great relationship with technology vendors and service providers is a priority . We provide timely support and any maintenance and equipment to minimise downtime and address issues promptly if we do have any downtime .
Staff training and development are really important to me as most issues or downtime occur as a result of human error . I believe in investing in training and development programmes to keep staff updated on the latest technology and best practices because data centre technology is always evolving , such as immersion cooling and other advanced cooling solutions . This encourages a culture of continuous improvement and knowledge sharing within the team .
What are some of the fundamental challenges you encounter in this region and how do you tackle these with sustainability top of mind ?
Sustainable build and design to minimise environmental impact is a challenge as it gets very hot in this region and can reach highs of 50 + degrees in the summer . The solution is to design data centre buildings with energy-efficient insulation and cooling solutions . Use sustainable construction materials and implement efficient space utilisation and techniques using CFD
58 www . intelligentdatacentres . com