Sustainable longevity for data centers, courtesy of transformer services

As the “brains” of the internet, data centers process, store, and communicate the data behind the plethora of information services we rely on daily, for social and business communication, computing or entertainment.

The meteoric rise in smartphone and online entertainment usage, widespread 5G networks, and new forms of information services such as artificial intelligence (AI), will continue to accelerate the growth in demand for data. Some data centers contain many tens of thousands of IT devices and require more than 100 megawatts of power capacity – enough to power around 80,000 U.S. households (U.S. DOE 2020). Demand for data center services has grown with the number of global internet users. In 2018, global IP traffic – the quantity of data navigating the internet – increased more than ten-fold compared with 2010, while global data center storage capacity rose 25 times in parallel (Masanet et al. 2020).

In addition to this, data centers are getting larger and more numerous. Hypercenters or facilities owned and operated by the companies they support are starting to manage their own power stations while big corporations are leaning more heavily on data center services to manage their growing data needs.

Data centers are MASSIVE consumers of electricity – the provision of their core services requires a lot of power, and this demand is multiplied by the necessity for cooling services. This puts data centers’ transformers at the center of all the action – the “Life Line” of the data center, if you like.

Transformers have an expected life span of approximately 35 years and keeping transformers running efficiently and sustainably is thus very important. The integrated transformer services supplied by Hitachi Energy enable maximum availability and reliability and are customizable according to the scale or size of the client.

It is therefore necessary to understand the characteristics of these clients’ needs; and demonstrate how Hitachi Energy can step in with the products, services, experience, and expertise to ensure that there are no “pain points” regarding the transmission of electricity. There are various transformer lifecycle management practices, products and services offered by Hitachi Energy for data centers.

Furthermore, Hitachi Energy extends its myriad transformer services to EPC firms as well. EPC firms are engaged in engineering, procurement, and construction services on contractual bases; they are often hired to build and maintain data centers, thus serving as contractors and the channel for transformer services from Hitachi.  

Reliability and redundancy planning

Data centers run around the clock, 365 days a year. It is imperative then, that they receive uninterrupted electricity supply. Unplanned downtime is unacceptable; even the shortest of downtimes can have considerable financial consequences. Data centers must have superior electric supply from well-maintained and serviced transformers and be equipped with active redundancy in case of an emergency. To ensure that their transformers do not let them down, various early life services are proposed to make the transformer run as long as possible, with maximum efficiency.

Hitachi Energy’s teams have extensive experience in delivering and installing any type of transformer in any part of the world. Early Life Services are offered to clients for a worry-free experience. The combination of highly qualified technicians, local expertise and high-quality equipment ensures safe, efficient, and sustainable service. Hitachi Energy also partners with its customers to train their operators, engineers, and technicians, to maintain the skills and technical expertise required for asset base management.

Improving efficiency

Transformers must be used efficiently – given the large investments required, numbers must necessarily be minimized, and existing equipment used to the maximum. Power usage effectiveness (PUE) is also crucial. The more efficient the data center, the more optimized their costs. Therefore, data centers are striving to keep their PUE statistics as high as possible. Operational Life Services (Transformer monitoring and lifecycle maintenance) offered by Hitachi Energy are designed to ensure that transformers perform and maintain their designed 95–99% efficiency; they aim to keep the power clean and productive while minimizing maintenance through the transformer’s lifetime. Hitachi Energy’s services are superior investments for ensuring transformer efficiency, that also provide effective means of preventative maintenance. Furthermore, the digitalization of transformers and their components, helps improve efficiency in their operation and maintenance.

Sustainability goals

Corporates, individuals, society, governments – everyone is aware of the importance of being environmentally friendly and adopting sustainable practices. Carbon neutrality is a major focus for data centers, and many are achieving this goal. In fact, many companies have taken a step further, from aiming at carbon neutrality to being carbon negative. Hitachi Energy provides Upgrade Services to support their sustainability targets: effective transformer repairs on-site; transformer and component upgrades and retrofitting and replacement; and support for end-of-life disposal and replacement services. Hitachi Energy’s capabilities to repair, provide efficient and sustainable technology upgrades such as eco-friendly oil type changes, cooling updates and the environmentally safe recycling of aged transformers provide a sustainable way to manage the replacement of customers’ existing transformer assets. Hitachi Energy’s capability to respond speedily and effectively to customer needs in unexpected events enhances the value of the services on offer.

Achieving freedom from asset maintenance troubles

Data center managers aim for minimizing or eliminating maintenance troubles, to be more reliable and efficient, and gain peace of mind. Maintenance requires downtime and downtime reduces efficiency and reliability; thus, data centers strive to minimize this potential point of pain. This can be achieved through Transformer Care long-term services agreements that allow customers to breathe easier, knowing that their transformer assets will be cared for throughout their lifecycle through a partnership with the world's largest transformer manufacturer and service organization. Hitachi Energy’s Transformer Care offerings are flexible modular long-term service agreement packages delivering the required reliability and availability over the full transformer lifecycle. These partnerships help transformer operators and owners to cut service complexity, control cost, and maximize capital efficiency.

Maximum uptime, high energy efficiency, sustainability, digitalization, and freedom from maintenance worries are the key areas of concern for data centers and EPC firms, and these are areas where Hitachi Energy provides precise and comprehensive solutions and support.

Click here to find out more about Hitachi Energy's Transformer Services.