Grounding!
What a sexy subject!
Well it was. Compared to the virtualization, IP and IT gospel preached nearby, this had a standing corner only crowd.
From a speaker in Florida known as the lighting capital of the world, he started to discuss a Florida emergency dispatch center that used an old Motorola radio system. The problem is if one part goes down, the entire system needed to be replaced., as a result the cost was nearly $100,000 with an insurance policy.
Of the recommendations:
- racks – do not touch concrete (where water is)
- The National Electrical Code is barely legal and it’s not good enough for data centers.
- Telephone grounding – attach to electral service, nearest to the ground. Lighting travels down on telephone lines (not up.)
- Be careful when bundling wires (cross contamation)
- Bolt in circuit breakers, use double nuts and bolt washers
- Do not daisy chain!
Most often, data centers are more prone due to the IT’s lack of electrical engineering, and their need to keep costs down, remember IT is profit center, not a division (Clickford’s words).