Entries by Kevin Heslin

Lessons Learned From Superstorm Sandy

An Uptime Institute survey reveals that best practices and preparation pay dividends In late October 2012, Superstorm Sandy tore through the Caribbean and up the east coast of the U.S., killing over a hundred, leaving millions without power and causing billions of dollars in damage. In the aftermath of the storm, Uptime Institute surveyed data […]

How FORCSS Works: Case Study 1

This paper launches the Uptime Institute FORCSS Case Study Series and introduces the FORCSS Index Uptime Institute FORCSS is a means to capture, compare, prioritize, and communicate the benefits, costs, and impacts of multiple IT deployment alternatives. Deployment alternatives may include owned/existing data centers, commercial data centers (wholesale, retail, colocation, managed service), or IaaS (including […]

Implementing Data Center Cooling Best Practices

Step-by-step guide to data center cooling best practices will help data center managers take greater advantage of the energy savings opportunities available while providing improved cooling of IT systems The nature of data center temperature management underwent a dramatic evolution when American Society of Heating, Refrigeration, and Air-conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) adopted new operating temperature guidelines. […]

ATD Interview: Christopher Johnston, Syska Hennessy

Industry Perspective: Three Accredited Tier Designers discuss 25 years of data center evolution The experiences of Christopher Johnston, Elie Siam, and Dennis Julian are very different. Yet, their experiences as Accredited Tier Designers (ATDs) all highlight the pace of change in the industry. Somehow, though, despite significant changes in how IT services are delivered and […]

Fuel System Design and Reliability

Topology and operational sustainability considerations must drive fuel system design. When Superstorm Sandy hit the Northeastern U.S., some data center owners and operators discovered that they hadn’t considered and treated their fuel systems as part of a mission-critical system. In one highly publicized story, a data center operator in New York City was forced to use a […]