Only seven other colocation data centers in the nation have passed the rigorous assessment. BendBroadband, an colocation and cloud services provider, announced that its Vault data center has earned the Environmental Protection Agency’s highest ENERGY STAR rating. The Vault is the only colocation data center in
A typical data center has a power usage effectiveness (PUE) of 2; the Vault operates at nearly twice the efficiency with a PUE of 1.1. The facility also ranks in the top 85 percentile of all facilities in their category.
“We are extremely proud of the ENERGY STAR rating, and that we are able to provide customers with a reliable and secure, carbon-neutral facility,” said Wade Holmes, BendBroadband’s vice president of technology. “In addition to providing benefits to our customers and community, our experiences can offer an example for other data centers worldwide that want to reduce their environmental impact.”
According to recent reports from IDC, the amount of digital data is multiplying daily. Data stored on the world’s computers increased by 48% from 2011 to 2012 to 2.7 zettabytes – that’s 2.7 with 21 zeros afterward. The problem is that traditionally-designed data centers consume vast amounts of energy. A recent New York Times investigation estimated that worldwide, outdated data center designs use 30 billion watts of power — the equivalent output of 30 nuclear power plants. The National Energy Efficiency Information Program projects that the amount of energy used by data centers will increase by 12% per year.
The Vault is a state-of-the art, 30,000 square foot, LEED Gold certified data center.
Sustainable energy technologies include:
- A 900kW
- On-site solar generation plant. With 320 sunny
- Flywheel-driven uninterruptible power supply (UPS) technology is battery free, which translates to a reduction in sulfuric acid waste.
- Smart LED lighting throughout automatically adjusts to take advantage of daylight. Sensors respond to activity within the center and automatically shut off lights when they are not needed.
- There are no conventional cages in the Vault. Custom heat containment Performance-Optimized Data Center (POD) containers were custom designed using natural convection to reduce energy consumption in collaboration with Chatsworth Products, Inc.
In addition to its ENERGY STAR rating, the Vault has achieved Uptime Institute TIER-3 Design and Facility certification, implemented safeguards that are in line with HIPAA guidelines, was featured by the US Green Building Council, and is LEED Gold certified. The Vault buys exclusively Blue Sky renewable energy, which is derived from non-carbon sources.
“Improving the energy efficiency of our nation’s industrial facilities is critical to protecting our environment, “ said Jean Lupinacci, Chief of the ENERGY STAR Commercial & Industrial Branch. “From the plant floor to the board room, organizations are leading the way by making their facilities more efficient and earning EPA’s ENERGY STAR certification.”
About The Vault and BendBroadband
The Vault was built from the ground up with a focus on reliability, security and sustainability. Situated in
The Vault is owned and operated by BendBroadband, a family-owned, Oregon-based company serving
About ENERGY STAR
ENERGY STAR was introduced by EPA in 1992 as a voluntary, market-based partnership to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through energy efficiency. Today, the ENERGY STAR label can be found on more than 65 different kinds of products, 1.4 million new homes, and 20,000 commercial buildings and industrial plants that meet strict energy-efficiency specifications set by the EPA. Over the past twenty years, American families and businesses have saved more than $230 billion on utility bills and prevented more than 1.8 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions with help from ENERGY STAR.
For more information about ENERGY STAR Certification for Industrial Facilities: www.energystar.gov/labeledbuildings
