November 9, 2021November 9, 2021 by Matt Seaton

London East Build Blog – Weeks 79 to 82

We breathed life into many of the main power systems for the first time in this instalment, with commissioning actions underway on our primary switchboards and our backup generator systems.

The push towards phase one completion has seen many exciting milestone events reached in a short space of time, which is always great to see. We’ve energised the main switchboards, integrated and tested the generator failover, and removed the temporary site power, amongst a range of other system commissioning tasks.

Weekly overview

Things are sharpening up quickly on-site, as a wide range of systems begin to spin to life for testing and commissioning, ready to begin serving client kit in due course.

We’ve hit a number of milestones this time around, including the testing and commissioning of our cooling systems throughout the building (both critical and comfort), and the same point reached on our fire detection and extinguishant panels, both building-wide and the enhanced systems in critical spaces.

Speedgates — The speedgate area has been carpeted through from the main entrance and reception, to finish off the space ready for client arrivals

The cooling systems throughout the building have now been commissioned and tested, with cold and warm air now available in all critical spaces

Our UPS commissioning is well underway, with the main units now interconnected with the UPS output boards

The building is now powered through the primary switchgear and distribution boards, with all temporary site power now fully decommissioned and removed

DH1 — A look across Data Hall 1 after it’s had its initial post-work clean, with one of the supplementary AC units open for commissioning

DH1 — A look across Data Hall 1, towards the first pod of racks

DH1 — The four CREC units have now been brought to life, with cooling, recirculation and extraction now tested and proven

Both the primary CREC and supplementary CRAC systems feed into the shared underfloor plenum, which will distribute closely controlled air to all footprints in DH1

DH1 — The entrance into the cold corridor in Data Hall 1 is the first view of our new signage design language (*just* visible here!)

DH1 — The view towards the A-side power distribution in Data Hall 1, with ODF A visible on the right hand side

DH1 — The primary CREC system has now had all filters installed – here we see the 28x quad-fin air intake filters, this being the first layer of filtration before hitting the multi-stage filtration inside each cooler

DH1 — It’s been very exciting to see the cooling system spun up for the first time, and fantastic to see the real-world culmination of all our design and simulation work

DH1 — Here we see some of the detail as you enter the cold corridor from Data Hall 1, showing the lighting system and the access hatch for the otherwise-sealed extraction loop

Loading — Our warehouse and loading bay now has large floor lettering / numbering on each receiving dock door for quick and easy identification while loading and/or unloading

Signage — We’ve opted for a more modern approach to our signage at London East, an evolution of the design at London Central – simplicity and clarity is the main order of the day here

Wifi — Visitors will now see wifi access points and access control beacons in various places throughout the facility – the wifi is an extension of the mesh deployed at London Central, meaning you’ll automatically connect at East if you’ve already done so at Central

As you can imagine, with much of the work on-site now commissioning actions, presenting this visually for the build blog is tricky. We’re hoping to put together another fly-through video soon, to show phase one completion.

Another unseen but extremely critical area which reached completion this time around is our fire stopping, which has now seen all additional wall apertures cut in since initial construction fully sealed and certified. This ensures that the building fully complies with our extremely strict fire design and operation policies.

With all of the broad strokes of the project now complete, we’re able to begin working through the more detailed finishing work, while system commissioning actions continue.

What’s next?

As is to be expected at this point in the project, more of the same.

We’re quickly moving towards welcoming in our first client systems, with the final set of work ahead of this to focus on UPS systems, network integration, and general facility commissioning (things like onlining our NOC for CCTV and systems monitoring).

October 12, 2021October 12, 2021 by Matt Seaton

London East Build Blog – Weeks 75 to 78

The pace has certainly picked up now, as we push towards phase one completion at London East.

This acute focus has left little time for the blog, and as broad strokes visual change has slowed down at this point, we’ve put together a four week short summary of the last month on-site at NLE.

Weekly overview

Phase one completion will see the facility ready to take its first clients, which is an enormous milestone for us here at Netwise.

There will still be some ongoing works beyond phase one, which will include things like our customer lounge and some other secondary niceties, as primary focus at this point is getting the technical spaces completed and ready to receive live client systems.

Looking slightly further ahead still, phase two will involve the preparation and roll-out of further technical space, making use of the other data halls, which given the amount of work put in ahead of time for this will certainly come to fruition much more quickly. This is expected in 2022, and will be based on a dynamic roll-out schedule, driven largely by demand.

The largest area of progress in this instalment of the build blog has been centred around air conditioning. This is not our primary cooling source in the technical spaces at NLE, with that role falling to our extremely efficient adiabatic systems, however traditional AC does still play a crucial role in both supplementary cooling in critical spaces, and comfort cooling in customer and staff areas.

Lighting — Here we see the overhead lighting system installation underway in the cold corridor area for Data Hall 1 – this is where external air is filtered and processed for our primary CRAC system

Power — The UPSs and UPS switchboards are now in place and terminated in LV B, to match the state in LV A

Racks — Here we see one of our custom designed security panels fitted to Pod 1 in Data Hall 1, for the privatisation of racks within said containment system

Razor — We’ve now fitted the razor wire to the top of our compound fencing, which aside from adding electric motor controls to the main gate, takes this area to completion

Spraying — As part of the final stage of work, we’ve had any construction marks and / or damage on our metal clad panel walls repaired, which included full panel respraying where necessary

The VESDA pipework has now been installed in both LV rooms

As you can see, NLE is still an extremely busy site, with lots of finishing stage work underway. Yet so much more of the work being undertaken at this point is not of a visual nature; commissioning of power systems, access control, network setup, CCTV etc, these are all tasks with little to photograph. However progress across all of these areas will be relayed when suitable.

We’re certainly entering into an exciting period of the build, as major systems begin to see energisation for the first time.

What’s next?

More of the same as we head towards phase one end-out. Keep your eyes peeled for the next instalment of the blog, which will show much of the major infrastructure being onlined for the first time!

October 1, 2021October 1, 2021 by Matt Seaton

Business Continuity: why London data centres are essential

Articles

Data shows that only half of UK organisations are confident in their business continuity plan. The importance of a BC plan is evident in how many businesses were affected by the pandemic.

Are you concerned for the well-being of your company? Keep reading to find out the best way to protect yourself and your organisation.

What is Business Continuity?

Business continuity is a term that serves to explain how a company might continue its essential functions even during an unforeseen event. These events can include the following:

Natural disaster
An outbreak of a disease
Fire / flood
Cyberattacks
Industry Strike

A business continuity plan (BCP) includes essential items and procedures that are to be followed in the event of a disaster, whether they are small or large. In addition, it often covers practices that allow the company to function with minimal disruption during the said event.

What is Disaster Recovery?

During your research, you may have come across the term “disaster recovery.” Often, business continuity and disaster recovery are used interchangeably; this is a misconception.

A disaster recovery plan often deals with data protection and cyberattacks. However, it also protects against events such as a system failure or even a device failure.

Business Continuity vs Disaster Recovery

Business continuity is often referred to as the plan needed in case of a disastrous event. It is planned ahead of time and implemented during an unforeseen event. In contrast, disaster recovery is the plan that is executed after the event.

Another key difference is that a disaster recovery plan focuses more on recovering the IT infrastructure of the business. In contrast, the BCP focuses more on the daily operations of the organisation.

What does a BCDR plan look like?

A BCDR plan tackles the issues that arise during an unforeseen event. It often includes the ‘four-R’ predefined plan to allow for continuous operations. The four-R plan is as follows:

Respond
Recover
Resume
Restore

While this may give you an idea of a BCDR plan, it is essential to include some key components in your plan:

Contact info and SLAs

A business continuity plan should include the correct contact information and service level agreements (SLAs) required to identify and inform the right parties. These parties include emergency responders, stakeholders, key staff members, managers, data security, and any service providers.

This information should be the first step in your plan, as it is crucial to inform the right members of your team.

BIA

Business impact analysis helps predict what procedures could be impacted by the disaster. This analysis can help you identify and gather information to prepare for the event.

The BIA will help you analyse items such as extra expenses, revenue loss, reputation damage, dependencies, repercussions of disruptions, and more.

Risk assessment

A risk assessment identifies the risks that could trigger a disastrous event. When completing a risk assessment, your company will need to identify possible hazards such as a fire, flood, terrorism, pandemic, and cyber-attack.

Additionally, you will need to assess the assets at risk, much like the business impact analysis.

Communications

Once you have your contact information together, you will also need to determine the communications method of contacting the critical members involved. Finally, you will need to assess how to reach each group effectively. These groups include your employees, customers and clients, and providers.

Communication is key in any relationship, especially in business. However, in the event of a pandemic such as COVID, it is essential to communicate the company’s needs to your employees, the restriction on which you can operate to your clients, and what your shareholders can expect until the disaster is alleviated.

Testing

Arguably, the most important aspect of your plan is to test it. Having a plan meets the minimum requirements but knowing that it works is critical. Additionally, it is imperative to practice the plan so that your team knows what to do in such an event.

While you are testing the plan, look for gaps and weaknesses in your plan. You may notice that, in theory, the plan works well. However, you need to update and document when the plan falls through in practice.

Data centres: which solution is right for you?

A proper BC plan includes a data recovery plan to restore the servers and systems of your organisation. This data is different for each company; however, you’ll need to recover software, hardware, and basic operations for each company.

The first step to recovering your data is a regular backup. You can do this in-house; however, in the case of a fire, flood, or earthquake, you risk losing the data that is essential to your company’s operations.

However, a data centre provides a safe and secure place for your organisation to store essential data. When you are looking for a reputable data centre, consider the precaution the centre takes to protect the data. Ask yourself questions like:

Is it cooled?
What hardware is used?
What power system is in place?
Is the centre monitored 24/7?

Implement your BCDR plan today

Is your business safe and secure in the case of a disastrous event? It is essential for your organisation to implement a business continuity and disaster recovery plan.

Perhaps you already have a plan in place and have decided to backup your IT infrastructure at a data centre. Look no further, contact us today to book a tour and see how we can help you prepare for unforeseen events.

September 15, 2021September 15, 2021 by Matt Seaton

London East Build Blog – Weeks 71 to 74

Now that raised floors have started to go back down, and termination of cabling is essentially complete, impactful visual change has slowed down slightly, however progress is still pushing forwards at great pace.

We’ve been preparing for some of the final trades to land on site to end-out phase one, which will include the CRAC pipework team and the wall fabrication team from earlier in the project, who will be finishing off some of the final cooling system segregation now that the fans are installed.

Weekly overview

Much of the change this time centres around supplementary cooling, VESDA / fire panels, and data cabling for things such as CCTV, access control and monitoring / system control.

We’re now very much in the end-out phase of the project at this point, which means that various elements that until now were operating separately are coming together quickly.

For example, our evaporative cooling units are now connected back to both their power delivery and control systems, meaning that they will soon be ready for their first spin up and test. This is the same for a number of the core systems which make up the infrastructure of the facility.

We now have most of the building-wide comfort cooling in place for client and staff areas, including here in the build room and customer lounge

Here we see the ceiling mounted AC unit mirrored on the other side of the building, and the same units are now also present in the NOC / office

We’ve also got three high performance models installed in each of the LV rooms, with room for a fourth in due course as and when required based on UPS expansion

Our VESDA pipework is now installed in Data Hall 1 and pre-emptively in Data Hall 2

The CREC units in Data Hall 1 have now had their power and control system cables installed, which brings them up to readiness for commissioning in due course

The ODFs in Data Hall 1 are starting to take shape, with containment now run in from both high and low levels – here, one of the newly installed cleaner sockets is also visible, as part of a wider ring installed throughout the building to support such requirements

This is the B-side ODF, with a range of cabling now run back to it to support various functions in Data Hall 1, such as CCTV, monitoring and system controls

Pod — Here we see the entrance to the first committed private pod in Data Hall 1, which after some forthcoming adjustments to access control and visual identity, will be handed over to the client in Q4

Pod — Another view of the pod entry door systems that we use with our APC racking and containment system, which are operated electronically

Reception — We now have our new reception desk standing in place, which will be finished with branding and a glass security and visitor flow system in due course

We’re getting to the point at which photographing visual change is likely to slow down somewhat, as we move onto more detailed work such as the interconnection of critical systems, and the onlining of various electrical elements including CCTV and door access control.

Excitement is starting to build as the many months of extremely hard work from all those involved begins to show its final fruits, which will become all the more exciting as we start to see systems roar into life.

What’s next?

While build and installation works will continue in a few final areas – such as CRAC pipework, final airflow containment for extraction in Data Hall 1, and the end stages of general system containment – we are now also in a position to begin the early-stage commissioning process.

We are entering an exciting phase of the project, as things finally begin to slot back into place after a good few months of ordered chaos; a necessary evil associated with the extensive electrical work required to take the building from completed shell to functioning data centre.

Over the next few weeks, we expect to see the site visually return to a state of completion (for phase one), at which point the site will be onlined, and commissioning of critical systems will begin in earnest.

August 16, 2021October 12, 2021 by Matt Seaton

London East Build Blog – Weeks 69 and 70

We have more exciting progress to share in this instalment of the Build Blog, as cabling continues to run into the facility at pace.

This progress has been seen across the board, from the largest runs out to external connection points, right down to the smallest termination points inside of the Data Hall PDUs.

Weekly overview

In the last two weeks, we’ve doubled the labour force involved in the electrical side of the project, adding a dedicated cable gang to the on-site trades to help push through the final cable runs, most of which are very substantial armoured cables.

This has seen the vast majority of the on-site cable drums emptied and returned to the vendor, as the cables now lay in place, with termination well underway across the board.

We also have a dedicated jointer on-site, who is heading up much of the largest termination activity, such as inside the generator canopies.

Cabling — The first set of cables that make use of the external ladder runs out to the transformer, seen in place here

Here we see one of our custom ODFs, of which there are two in Data Hall 1 for diversity – this angle shows the installed overhead cable ladder bridging across to Pod 1

This has been a fantastic fortnight for project development, with tremendous progress on the cabling side of things.

We’ve been very excited to see all of the cabling begin to disappear under the floor and into the risers, ready for termination and testing. We’re also very excited to see some additional visual elements installed, such as the bright red VESDA air sampling pipework.

What’s next?

We will continue with progress on all things electrical. As cable pulling nears completion, focus will shift more completely onto termination, along with supplementary power installations, including small scale non-critical power delivery to things like cleaner’s sockets.

Beyond this, the VESDA pipework installations will continue, and with the arrival of additional cabling for things such as the CREC control and monitoring system, this will also begin to take shape.