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INPUT wanted on revisions to addendum cs Standard 90.1-2010
January 24, 2013 - Have your say—up until February 3, 2013, addendum cs to ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1-2010, Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings, is open for advisory public review.
January 24, 2013 By Alyssa Dalton
The addendum proposes changes to definitions for computer rooms and data centres in Standard 90.1 to create a distinction between facilities covered by 90.1 and those which are intended to be under the scope of ASHRAE Standard 90.4P, Energy Standard for Data Centres and Telecommunications Buildings, proposed by ASHRAE in late 2012.
The definition proposed for computer rooms more closely aligns with ASHRAE Standard 100, Energy Efficiency in Existing Buildings. In addition, the definition is consistent with Uptime Institutes’ “Tier Standard: Topology” and the Telecommunications Industry Association ANSI/TIA-942 class rating for low-risk Tier I data centres, noted ASHRAE. “High risk data centres such as those designed as Tier II or greater per ANSI/TIA942 or ones with mechanical cooling system redundancy are expected to be covered by the 90.4P standard now under development.”
Steve Skalko, chair of the Standard 90.1 committee, said with the development of Standard 90.4P feedback is needed from the industry to clarify the scope and definitions of each standard. Energy conservation requirements for high risk data centres, initially covered by Standard 90.1-2010, are expected to be detailed in the 90.4P standard. Computer rooms, which can include low-risk data centers, would remain under the scope of Standard 90.1.
“The costs and approaches used in determining appropriate HVAC applications used to achieve energy efficiency are different,” he said.
Computer rooms, which by the proposed definitions include low-risk data centers, are usually associated with electronic equipment spaces that are not considered risks and therefore money is typically not spent to install levels of component and systems redundancies, said Skalko. By comparison, data centers designed as Tier II or greater per ANSI/TIA942 or ones with mechanical cooling system redundancy carry more risk, he said. Industry studies indicate downtime associated with such risk can cost tens of thousands of dollars a minute, with the potential to negate both past energy savings and future business viability in a single act, he continued.
To comment or to learn more, visit www.ashrae.org/publicreviews.
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