Data centre in old military bunker makes move to Multi Sentry
Author: Isha Jain
Multi Sentry’s combination of performance and compact footprint make it the perfect choice for a cloud hosting data centre located in an old underground military bunker.
Operating since 1994, Cyberfort offers the highest level of protection for companies’ business-critical data and applications with military-grade security.
Housed in a former Ministry of Defence nuclear bunker in Kent, and thanks to a unique underground design and ultra-secure location, its cloud hosting data centre previously known as ‘The Bunker’, offers clients enough protection to literally withstand any army.
As an enterprise offering secure space where infrastructure can’t afford to fail, having a reliable and fully working UPS and supporting infrastructure in place is crucial to ensure Cyberfort and its customers continue to operate without disruption regardless of the situation.
However, the data centre’s existing power protection setup consisting of 6x80kVA UPS was approaching its end of life and increasingly expensive to run and maintain.
The decision was made to phase out the existing UPS and replace with newer more efficient technology.
A challenging install and a move to Multi Sentry
Authorised Riello UPS reseller and service partner, Specialist Power Systems, is a long-standing supplier for Cyberfort, having looked after the UPS at both the sites in Kent and Newbury since 2008.
It was asked to specify a replacement, but the unique installation environment threw up several significant challenges. The data centre is housed in a bunker 5m underground, with only a relatively small opening available to lower the equipment into place, while each item couldn’t exceed a 1,000kg lifting beam rating.
Taking these space and weight restrictions into account, Riello’s Multi Sentry (MST) range proved the optimum solution. Delivering exceptional performance and up to 96.5% efficiency in one of the most compact footprints in its category made the transformer-free MST the ideal fit.
The six times end of life UPS would be replaced with 4x100kVA MST units, connected in parallel to deliver 300kVA N+1 redundancy.
Successful outcome
Due to the complex nature of the installation environment, the replacement was staggered over a 12 month period involving substantial electrical works, such as two new 630A electrical supplies from A and B substations. This involved running infrastructure for more than 100m and trenching new low voltage cables of 85m.
However, the new Multi Sentry UPS is already proving its worth. With enhanced efficiency, it is already cutting the data centre’s electricity costs by around £32,000 a year.
Read the full case study here.
