Group seeks advances in data center design

IDG News Service - A new industry group plans to apply open-source principles to the design and construction of data centers in order to accelerate the use of new, greener approaches.

The Open Source Data Center Initiative, announced this month, will act as a repository and testbed for mechanical and engineering advances in data center design, which it hopes will be submitted by small engineering firms, graduate students doing research with federal grant money and others.

The group was founded by Dave Ohara, who writes the Green Data Center Blog, with administrative support from the University of Missouri.

A key player in the alliance is adviser Michael Manos, who previously ran Microsoft Corp.'s data center operations and is now building Nokia Corp.'s cloud infrastructure. His support stems partly from his concern about what he sees as the reluctance of established engineering firms to rethink how data centers are built.

The data center industry is "dominated by a handful of large engineering houses" that are wedded to proprietary designs and are stifling innovation, Manos said. They aren't interested in educating customers about simpler, standardized alternatives, he contended.

Large engineering firms reject the idea that they're holding back the industry. Bruce Edwards, president of CCG Facilities Integration Inc., said data centers have seen significant innovation in the past 10 years in areas such as electrical power delivery and cooling.

Edwards also questioned whether a new industry group is needed. "The idea that a nonprofit, collaborative, noncompetitive model will be a powerful engine to drive innovation -- I'm not convinced of it at this point," he said.

The new group's leaders say they don't aim to compete with The Green Grid forum, Uptime Institute and others but are frustrated with the rate of progress.