August 1, 2014September 1, 2014 by Matt Seaton

London Central Build Blog – Week 29

The cold corridor enclosure reached completion in terms of its structure this week. Apart from the installation of the cooling stacks, all that remains is to fit the louvred panels, decorate the corridor using climate resistant paints, and tank the floor with moisture resistant rubber.

Top of the corridor enclosure flown up to ceiling height

Internal face of corridor reaching completion

Enclosure insulation reaching ceiling

Internal face of corridor enclosure completed ahead of finishing

Delivery of Celotex reflective insulation to box in our ceiling lights to remove their volume from the overhead air plenum

Delivery of Celotex reflective insulation to box in our ceiling lights, removing their volume from the overhead air plenum

Filling completed ahead of sanding down

Air plenum zoning installed in ceiling, blocking out the large overhead ceiling windows with reflective Celotex insulation

A look across the data hall as plenum zoning reaches completion, and all natural light in the data hall is removed (once completed)

July 25, 2014August 21, 2014 by Matt Seaton

London Central Build Blog – Week 28

Week 28 has seen further progress on the cold corridor enclosure, though focus has also been turned to other areas of the facility as various elements of the project near completion.

Rear wooden panelling completed around cooling apertures

A look at the wooden cladding on the rear of the cold corridor enclosure

Insulation fitted into cold corridor enclosure

First fireboard sheets being fitted to enclosure

First fireboard run completed on outer face of enclosure

First 3M fireboard sheets being fitted to inner enclosure wall

Upholstery completed on our custom NOC lounge seating

First carrier entering our Meet Me room, the first of many over the next few weeks / months

The cold corridor enclosure wall alone is comprised of over 3 tonnes of fireboard, which gives an indication of the sheer quantity of raw materials involved in building an entire data centre. Each 3 metre sheet is just shy of 50kgs.

July 17, 2014August 6, 2014 by Matt Seaton

London Central Build Blog – Week 27

The cold corridor enclosure has taken serious shape this week, which is the final piece of structural work to take place ahead of final decoration and technical installations in the data hall areas. It is fair to say that this is a highly complex structure, as its apertures have been designed to have very small tolerances, and must be positioned incredibly accurately to allow the cooling system to function as intended.

Both extraction and inlet apertures are different sizes, due to the design of air flow and pressure control in the facility. The positioning of the cooling stacks behind each set of apertures has been carefully designed to manage data hall air based on its position and its cooling load.

A look at the apertures designed into the cold corridor enclosure

The enclosure taking shape

A look down the lift shaft with completed fire-rated enclosure

A look up the lift shaft, with temporary cooling fan to move air between data halls

Cold corridor enclosure framework nearing completion

Wood panelling being fitted to inside of corridor space, for strength when mounting high speed fans

Frontal view of the enclosure as panelling takes shape, with a view of the apertures for air handling

A view inside the cold corridor, as wood panelling nears completion

A view of the enclosure wall from the data floor

The cold corridor enclosure is also having highly specialist cladding and wall coverings applied to it. While the face which is on show in the data hall will be made up of basic plaster boards, the internal surfaces are clad in mounting timber and dual function fire and moisture resistant board. The internal surface will also have a highly resilient paint applied for added resistance to the cold air that it will be processing.

No fans or ducting inlets / outlets will be on show in the data hall, as they all handle air in the plenum above the ceiling grid.

July 11, 2014July 30, 2014 by Matt Seaton

London Central Build Blog – Week 26

Fantastic progress has been made once again this week, across various aspects of the project, from the office through to the core service areas.

Modifications made to meet me enclosures, to alloy for side cable entry

Template in place for mounting our logo in the office

Holes drilled and plugs inserted

Mounting points installed, and logo characters being placed

Sign mounted minus the logo tagline

Sign with tagline

The completed sign

The temporary divisional wall installed in ground floor data hall, until this area is converted into technical space

Ground floor lift shaft enclosure reaching completion

Channel installed for base of cold corridor enclosure

Top channel supports cut ready for installation

Top channel supports cut and ready for installation

Cold corridor enclosure taking shape, which is to become a complex frame-like structure with various air handling voids, rather than a basic wall

While hard work is most definitely the name of the game when building a world class data centre facility (especially whilst also keeping a large base of existing rack footprints running smoothly), it is safe to say that a break from time to time is welcomed. The entire build team enjoyed a private day of racing at the local Team Sport karting centre this week, which proved to be an incredibly fun afternoon away from the facility.

Our build team members were treated to go karting this week

July 4, 2014July 22, 2014 by Matt Seaton

London Central Build Blog – Week 25

This week has seen dramatic progress on shell construction in the first floor data hall, along with various other areas of progress which have brought the project forward considerably.