In a recently released whitepaper “Beyond Current State: Asset Evaluation for Better Capital Planning” we argue that understanding both the condition and the criticality of your data-center infrastructure is necessary for making the most informed capital-investment decisions. Yet, many operators are challenged when it comes to being able to plan for future growth or investment.

Here we begin a two-part series on the importance of understanding – and truly evaluating –each mission-critical asset in your portfolio. In this first part, we will focus on six ways we look at our customer’s assets to arrive at a fair, consistent, and reasonable assessment of current state.

Asset Conditions Defined

Here is a list of questions to ask when evaluating a mission-critical asset—from air-handling units and chilled water pumps to leak detection cabling:

Environment: What is the asset’s operating environment, including ambient temperature and humidity? Does it conform to the manufacturer’s recommended installation and operating specifications?

Profile: How does the asset function within the system it supports? Is it appropriately sized to the load? Does it efficiently and effectively conform to the overall system performance?

Utilization: Are the run times of the equipment low, normal, or high when compared with manufacturer recommendations or industry standards?

Degradation: What is the current, physical state of the equipment? Are any identified conditions—such as wear and tear, damage, or corrosion—normal when compared with manufacturer or industry recommended operating standards?

Operating Characteristics: What is the current operating state of the gear? Has careful track been kept of any leaks, noises, or vibrations, and do you know if they are normal when compared with manufacturer or industry recommendations?

Chance of Failure: Within the full context of the asset’s condition and the manufacturer’s data, are there any indications of a lower, normal, or higher probability of failure?

Conclusion

To learn more about comprehensive capital planning and improving operational reliability in data centers, download our new whitepaper Beyond Current State: Asset Evaluation for Better Capital Planning. You can also contact our team direct to learn more about asset planning at 1.877.427.2368, or email us at answers@ascentcorp.com.