Transcript Effectively Benchmarking to Accomplish Change and Gain

David Boston
October 21, 2014
Session TRD 7
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Data Center Benchmarking Experience
• Facilities Mgr., GTE Data Services: 1985 - 1995
– Conducted performance and operating cost survey
through site visits of 35 data centers
• Program Director for Site Uptime Network
(Uptime Institute), a consortium of mostly Fortune
100 companies: 1996 - 2009
– Conducted over 60 benchmarking surveys
• Multiple surveys conducted for consulting clients:
2009 - present
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Why Benchmark?
• IT and Facilities managers cannot deliver
optimum performance working in a vacuum
• “What others are doing” frequently makes
the difference in justifying needed resources
and process changes
• Data will drive strategic decisions
• Comparison studies yield best practice ideas
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Why Benchmark? - continued
• How can you confirm your processes are
optimal?
• Can you confirm your operation is efficient and
productive?
• How will you identify the best sources for
hiring when your present workforce retires?
• How do you determine your technologies are
current?
4
Identifying Peers
• Local, national, international industry groups
(like AFCOM)
• Equipment suppliers (request similar clients)
• Top Computer Executives directory (Applied
Computer Research, Inc.)
• Consultants (similar clients)
• Industry publications
5
Validating Peers
• Industry groups will validate participants for
you
• If you create your own survey:
– Invite selected peer involvement by email and
phone
– Once interest verified, screen for comparability:
• Continuous availability objective
• Size
• Operating platforms / architecture
• Etc.
6
Incentives for Participation
• Copy of completed report
• Confidentiality
• Tour of your operation
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Survey Methods
•
•
•
•
Telephone
Email
Formatted documents (mailed or emailed)
Site visits
8
Conducting the Survey
• Formal
- May be completed within 6 – 8 weeks
- Carries more weight
• Informal
- May be completed within 2 – 3 weeks
- Less time, if participants are existing contacts
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Informal Surveys
Survey Questions
1. What % of your maintenance staff’s total “usable” work hours do you reserve for “unplanned” work activities like
emergency response, inclement weather response, hot/cold calls, floor tile cuts, and other customer requests?
2. What % of each shift’s hours is generally expected to be consumed by lunch, coffee breaks, personal phone calls,
and other "non-productive” time?
3. On average, how many PM hours (in-house or escorting contractors) does your staff expend annually for:
a. UPS maintenance (per module)
b. Generator maintenance (per unit)
c. Chiller, pump, and cooling tower maintenance (per “train” or “lineup”)
Question Facility 1 Facility 2 Facility 3 Facility 4 Facility 5 Facility 6 Facility 7 Facility 8 Facility 9 Average
1
25%
-
15%
-
35%
-
20%
40%
7.5%
24%
2
5%
8%
20%
12.5%
15%
12.5%
12.5%
12.5%
10%
11%
3a
6
16
16
12
8
10
20
8
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14.2
3b
12
16
40
40
15
24
55
20
32
28.2
3c
26
16
40
50
16
40
200
120
100
67.6
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Formal Surveys
• Promise confidentiality, include a deadline:
Operating Costs for Data Center Facilities
Please complete all questions and return this survey to
[email protected] by March 14, 2014. All survey
responses will remain confidential (no site or company
name will accompany the data in the report). The list of
companies participating will be shared separately.
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Be Specific
• Please submit cost data based on actual total year
expenses in each cost category for the most recently
completed full calendar year. Survey input should only
include costs associated with data center maintenance.
• Costs to be excluded from this survey are:
–
–
–
–
–
–
Security costs
Network cabling installation/de-installation
Landscaping, grounds, parking areas, snow removal, etc.
Office area janitorial
Rent
Depreciation, property tax, insurance
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Be Specific - continued
• Costs to be included:
– Utility
• Electric utility
• Water, sewage, gas, fuel, and other utilities
– Staff
• Facilities maintenance staff and related overhead (benefits,
etc.) for anyone who works in your data center on a daily basis
(as part of your payroll or a contractor’s)include those
dedicated 100% as well as the applicable portion of an
individual’s cost if they also support other functions (including
managers)
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Limit the Questions
• Ten or fewer questions for informal surveys
• Twenty or less for formal
• The longer the survey, the fewer the number
of participants
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Ensure Responses Are Quantifiable
• Ask questions that permit results to be
counted and averaged
• Avoid “fill in the blank” unless you offer an
example and an expected range
• Use “multiple choice” and “check this box”
where possible
• You may footnote unusual conditions or
circumstances if they are reported
15
Common Topics for Surveys
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Design Choices
•
•
•
•
•
•
Stand-alone vs. shared use facility
Single vs. multiple story building
Construction methods
Geographical location
Engineers selected
Security methods
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Design Choices - continued
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Effective Processes
• Command center daily tasks and reporting
• Computer hardware master plan
• Detailed ownership of power and network
cabling and connections
• Facilities system transfer procedures
• PM frequencies
• Facility construction processes, schedule
• Commissioning, training
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Processes - continued
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Personnel
• Qualifications:
–
–
–
–
–
–
Degree required for position
Years of experience in this field
Accomplishments
Certifications, licenses
Skill sets
References
• Testing
• Reporting structure
• Annual objectives
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Costs
• Operating costs for Data Center Operations,
Facilities Operations, Network Operations
• Capital costs for same
• Salary ranges for each group, by position
• Utility cost comparisons
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Product Selection
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Types of server racks
Types of servers, operating software
Types of mainframes, DASD, tape devices
Types of switchgear
Types of UPS, batteries, generators, PDUs
Types of chillers, cooling towers, pumps, CRAHs
Types of BAS/BMS, EPMS systems
Types of fire detection and suppression systems
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Product Selection - continued
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Sample Survey Form
Company submitting data: _______ City _______
Individual submitting data: ________ State/Province ________
Your phone number: _______________________
• Facility type: ___ Stand-alone ___Shared
• Average cost per kilowatt hour for electricity: _____
– Please provide cents + tenths (3 decimal places): e.g., 5.5 cents =
$.055 – the range is generally .035 to .220
• Number of data center Facilities employees/contractors
who work at your site each week (all shifts combined):
_____ full time employees _____ full time contractors
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Sample Form - continued
• Total UPS load in kW: _______
– (The highest reading recorded for the most recent month in kW,
not KVA.)
• Total UPS capacity in kW: _______
– (Total rated capacity in kW including the redundant modules.
Please add the capacity for all modules in your facility together.)
• 2013 “Utility” costs:
a. Electric _______ b. Other ________
• 2013 Total “staff” costs: _____________
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Sample Form - continued
• Please list any special conditions or considerations:
____________________________________
____________________________________
____________________________________
____________________________________
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Sample Survey Report
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Sample Report - continued
Footnotes:
* 16 union full time contracted staff, 4 non-union employees; some
Contracted Services costs estimated
** All maintenance and PM performed with resident full time
contracted staff, therefore no Contracted Services costs
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Sample Energy Efficiency Survey
1. Geographic location?
a. City
____________________
b. State ____________________
2. Year the facility was constructed: ________
3. Type of cooling systems?
a. __ Air cooled chillers
b. __ Water cooled chillers
c. __ DX
d. __ Other (please describe) ______________
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Energy Efficiency Survey - continued
4. Level of cooling system redundancy?
a. __ N
b. __ N+1
c. __ N+2
d. __ S+S
5. Variable Frequency Drives in use? (Y / N)
a. __ Chilled water plant
b. __ CRAHs
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Energy Efficiency Survey - continued
6. Electric utility service voltage?
a. __ 480V
b. __ 13.2kV
c. __ 12.5kV
d. __ Other (please list) ______________
7. Power conditioning type?
a. __ Static UPS
b. __ Rotary UPS
c. __ Flywheel
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Energy Efficiency Survey - continued
8. Level of electrical system redundancy?
a. __ N
b. __ N+1
c. __ N+2
d. __ S+S
9. PUE (Power Usage Effectiveness) measured at?
a. __ Estimated from overall building meter reading
b. __ Metered at UPS
c. __ Metered at server racks
d. __ Metered at individual servers
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Energy Efficiency Survey - continued
10. Maximum electrical capacity: __________ kW
11. Average monthly data center electrical load for 2013?
_________ kW
12. Company submitting data: __________________
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Energy Efficiency Survey - continued
From replies to the previous questions, the surveyor
could determine comparison PUE readings for individual
sites, the group as a whole, and sub-groups based on:
• Geographic area (affecting ability to use free cooling)
• Reliability level of design (N, N+1, S+S, etc.)
• Age of facility
• Level of load monitoring
• Type of UPS
• Type of cooling system(s)
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The AP-GfK Poll 2013
• “The use of electronic devices on planes”
• Published by Associated Press and GfK
Public Affairs & Corporate Communications in
December, 2013
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The AP-GfK Poll 2013 - continued
• Defined target participants:
- A survey of the American general population (18+)
- Interview dates: December 5–9, 2013
- Number of interviews, adults: 1,367
- Number of interviews, adults taken at least one
flight in
the last 12 months: 560
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The AP-GfK Poll 2013 - continued
• Quantifiable questions:
1. How many air trips, if any, have you taken on a
commercial airliner in the past twelve months –
counting each round trip as one?
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The AP-GfK Poll 2013 - continued
2. How do you feel about the Federal Aviation
Administration’s decision to let airline passengers use
small electronic devices such as tablet computers, MP3
players or smartphones to read, use the Internet or listen to
music - but not make phone calls - during taxi, takeoff and
landing?
• Somewhat oppose
• Strongly oppose
• Somewhat favor
• Strongly favor
• Neither favor or oppose
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The AP-GfK Poll 2013 - continued
3. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is
considering whether airline passengers should be allowed
to use their cellphones for phone calls while flying. How do
you feel about allowing passengers to make cellphone calls
during commercial flights?
• Somewhat oppose
• Strongly oppose
• Somewhat favor
• Strongly favor
• Neither favor or oppose
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EPA’s Portfolio Manager – Energy Star
EPA's Portfolio Manager has become a standard
national platform for benchmarking energy use
and recognizing the most energy-efficient
buildings in the United States. This is part of the
EPA’s Energy Star program.
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EPA’s Portfolio Manager - continued
DataTrends examines energy and water
benchmarking trends for the thousands of
buildings in Portfolio Manager. Findings:
•Buildings that consistently benchmark energy
use save an average of 2.4 percent per year.
•Buildings achieved a total savings of 7 percent
and an ENERGY STAR score increase of 6
points over the 3-year period of analysis
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EPA’s Portfolio Manager - continued
When you get an ENERGY STAR score for your
building or plant, it indicates how it’s performing
against peer facilities nationwide.
For example, a score of 50 is typical, while a 30
means it’s only more efficient than 30 percent of
peer facilities. A score of 75 or higher means
your facility is a top performer and eligible for
ENERGY STAR certification.
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EPA’s Portfolio Manager - continued
•Number of U.S. commercial buildings: 4.8
million
•Annual energy costs for U.S. commercial
buildings: $107.9 billion
•Portion of energy in buildings used inefficiently
or unnecessarily: 30 percent
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EPA’s Portfolio Manager - continued
You can use Portfolio Manager to generate Energy
Star performance documents for each building.
These can help you to:
•Satisfy LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations &
Maintenance (LEED-EB: O&M) requirements
•Document performance in energy service
contracts
•Communicate energy performance to tenants,
owners, and potential buyers or renters
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The Benefits
• A benchmarking report will add significant
weight to justifications for resources and/or
process changes, if the results show you are
operating with less
• Alternatively, the data can justify retaining
important resources and/or processes
• Best practices found will easily repay the
investment in the survey process
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Contact Information
David Boston
Director, Facility Operations Solutions
TiePoint Engineering
828-526-1675
[email protected]
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