December 19, 2014February 16, 2015 by Matt Seaton

London Central Build Blog – Week 49

Cable pulling and system commissioning is now in full swing here at the London Central facility, which is a very exciting time for our entire team. Things are coming together very quickly now, and the data centre will soon have power and connectivity flowing through it as we head into a testing phase shortly thereafter.

We took delivery of our forklift this week, which will be employed to move heavy equipment around our campus moving forwards - it will be getting a full respray and livery soon

We took delivery of our new forklift this week, which will be employed to move heavy equipment around our campus moving forwards – it will be getting a full respray and livery soon

Final containment bridge in place, linking the first pod with the network backbone which runs across the entire data floor

Custom power distribution enclosures being built on-site

APC maintenance bypass switch for UPS being fitted with custom fabricated rack ears, for fitment into power distribution rack

Test fitting of APC maintenance bypass switch in power distribution rack

Customised door panel for power distribution enclosure, ahead of assembly

Power distribution enclosure being fitted with modified and sprayed door panels

Power distribution enclosure door panel assembly underway

Power distribution enclosure door panel assembly completed

Custom built internals for power distribution enclosure

Fully assembled power distribution enclosure ahead of internal wiring and final commissioning

Containment run in place for cabling to external generators

External cable ladder system installed to generators

External cable ladder system being installed on generators

External cable ladder system joining the generator sets to the facility cladding

Cable basket affixed to generators and cladding

Basket affixed to cladding, ahead of cable exit holes and glands being cut and fitted

Final cable ladder elements being fitted

Internal generator containment spine along external cladding, ahead of cable exits being cut into the external facial

Internal generator containment spine along external cladding, ahead of cable exits being cut into the external facade

New fire alarm call points being installed throughout the facility, along with install and commissioning of centralised alarm and VESDA systems

Ceiling void alarm notification points fitted to data hall ceiling

VESDA system and power supply units fitted to data hall entry point

December 12, 2014February 5, 2015 by Matt Seaton

London Central Build Blog – Week 48

With the final elements of the facility wide containment systems now finalised, we can run headlong into the final stage of the project, which will involve running cabling, commissioning the power and network, and final testing. With all being well we are hoping to welcome existing and pre-sale customers into the new site very soon, with absolute finalisation to follow (smaller ancillary works such as signage, finishing touches, etc).

Multi-tiered containment basket running across pod rows

Second pod bridge in place between backbone containment and racks

Second pod containment bridge in place

A look at the containment system taking shape

Inter-pod containment bridge in place, to allow for maximum cross-connect flexibility

Power and network bridges between rows in place through cold aisle

First UPS power cabling being installed

UPS cable bridging through cold aisle for first UPS run

Power cable running into distribution rack, ahead of power management fit out

Power cabling being tied into containment backbone

Main power cable exit point from primary power riser onto first floor data hall

Power cabling to second pod tied into containment bridge

Final networking bridge in place between first pod and main backbone, thus completing the containment system for the first two online pods

A look at the scale of the first cable pull – 4 initial cables weighing close to 500kg

Ground floor rear warehouse flooring taking shape

December 5, 2014January 26, 2015 by Matt Seaton

London Central Build Blog – Week 47

This week saw the completion of the containment systems throughout the facility, which means that all runs to hardware requiring power and/or network connectivity are now complete.

Final backbone basket installed in data hall

Containment backbone installed in cold corridor

Cold corridor access control being installed

Cold corridor access control being installed

Access points for future cooling stack controllers installed along cold corridor enclosure

HD CCTV cameras being installed in first floor data hall

Custom migration flight cases being prepared for specialist hardware during the move into the new facility

Finalisation of cold corridor enclosure sliding doors

Containment bridges being installed for power and network runs to each pod

Through-aisle containment bridges fitted with brushes for air management

November 28, 2014January 12, 2015 by Matt Seaton

London Central Build Blog – Week 46

Again this has been a week of change across various elements of the facility, as we draw near to the stage of initial occupation.

Air flow signage added to cooler stacks

Flow controllers in place for cooler stack supplies, which will be controlled by our building management systems

Skirting installed in warehouse / loading bay, ahead of floor coating

One of our core system racks with UPS and mains bypass switch fitted, along with terminated patch panels

Loading bay / warehouse floor coating preparation under way

Loading bay / warehouse floor coating under way

Completed floor covering in loading bay / warehouse

Custom cold corridor doors being built and installed

Custom cold corridor doors being fitted

Completed door assemblies for two pods

New water filter / cooler and coffee machine to cater for visitor tastes

November 21, 2014December 23, 2014 by Matt Seaton

London Central Build Blog – Week 45

This week saw the first of our generators land on site, which is a massive step forwards for us, and allows for the power side of the build project to begin in earnest after Christmas – essentially the final phase ahead of moving existing clients into the new site.

Our Christmas cards for 2014 headed out to their recipients!

First two generator sets arriving at site

First set being lifted into place inside of the compound

First and second sets in place inside of compound

A closer look at the backup generator sets

Final pieces of ductwork being installed to complete cooling system air handling

The arrival of the first generator sets is a big milestone for us as we head towards Christmas for a short period of well earned rest.

Our generators will always run at N+1. When at capacity, we will have 5 identical units inside of our compound, with a new unit added each time additional capacity is required to maintain the level of redundancy that we have specified.