RiT Technologies : Jeff Safovich, chief technology officer at RiT Tech, on why the grass can be greener on the other side of COP26 for the data centre sector

Jeff Safovich, chief technology officer at RiT Tech, on why the grass can be greener on the other side of COP26 for the data centre sector

The pursuit of prosperity and preservation of our planet have not always been the best of bedfellows.

Many in the corporate world have certainly previously prioritised short-term profit at the expense of the wider sustainability agenda.

However, the days of companies greenwashing business processes and practices are numbered.

For anyone with their heads still in the sand, this summer's report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change made for sobering reading. The UN scientific study issued a "code red for humanity", warning of increasingly extreme heatwaves, droughts and flooding and a key temperature limit being broken in just over a decade.

And despite the pledges made by nations at COP26, the Climate Action Tracker - which provides independent analysis to policymakers - argues the international community will still be nowhere near achieving its commitment to cap the global temperature rise at 1.5C.

Standing on the precipice of a sixth mass extinction means that we have reached a tipping point and simply paying lip service to sustainability is not an option.

It is time for real change and even though not every CEO will vehemently believe that is the case, they will be pushed on a greener journey by environmentally minded customers, communities and investors.

Fortunately, this climatic crossroads has been reached as technological breakthroughs in areas such as machine learning and automation are heralding a Fourth Industrial Revolution, which presents opportunities to reshape almost every sector in every country.

At RiT Tech, we are intent on being a part of that by championing the adoption of Universal Intelligent Infrastructure Management (UIIM) within data centres - entities historically much maligned for being energy inefficient.

The "universal" aspect of this approach is paramount. Just as climate change demands a united global response, delivering sustainability to the facilities responsible for maintaining technology's march is multi-faceted and needs a holistic answer.

For data centre owners, that means a realignment in their thinking on the ecology, economics, politics and culture of their operations.

From an ecological perspective, XpedITe - RiT Tech's UIIM solution - is already an essential aid. The innovative toolset has been designed to integrate and interrogate its surroundings to create a comprehensive picture of a data centre's topology that charts the role of every asset and its inter-dependencies. Why? Because it is evident that accurate, comprehensive and actionable data is a crucial tool and driver for promoting innovation, growth and sustainability.

Aside from enabling resource optimisation, XpedITe can automate the provisioning process for new assets and services at lightning quick speeds, assessing the impact of infrastructure changes on things like power and temperature, and thus on energy efficiency and pollution.

Consequently, the economic advantages of implementing UIIM are clear. The enhanced effectiveness and efficiency of equipment, resource utilisation and operational processes result in a reduction in costs and unplanned downtime, which are brilliant for bottom lines and the level of service available to customers.

Turning to politics, data centre operators have a duty to maintain dialogue with their peers across the digital domain. Despite the interdependencies that exist within the Earth's electronic ecosystem, the diversity of language and metrics used is fragmented and confusing. Without transparency, readily available data and metrics standardisation, collaborative effort directed towards power efficiency is currently a near impossible task.

Technologically agnostic, our UIIM represents a solution to the communication problem and could become the global language used to share best practice and stimulate further advancements.

Similarly, a culture of community is essential to promoting sustainability within society. Few would argue against the fact that the internet and availability and sharing of data are a force for good given they help to enhance the provision of services such as healthcare and education and enable human contact and communication.

Yet not every corner of the globe can benefit from the technology, with the specialist skills required to set up and operate a data centre scarce in some less developed countries.

Simple to implement and run, UIIM can bridge this experience gap by shouldering the burden of constructing and operating new facilities. The ripple effect of making tech more accessible can be transformative - creating employment and empowering communities to prosper - and should bring solace to those in the industry who still shudder at the very mention of the word sustainability and the regulatory red tape associated with it.

Being sustainable is not just about "separating plastic from paper in our trash bins", it is about staying in business by evolving with your markets. Thanks to XpedITe, the two are no longer mutually exclusive.

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Nov 27, 2021