365 Main Inc has became the first data center developer and operator to commit to full compliance with the building certification system put forth by the US Green Building Council (USGBC), a non-profit organization of leaders from every sector of the building industry.
As proof of its commitment, 365 Main also announced the development of a new data center in Newark, Calif., the first LEED-certified data center in the country in which customers can lease customizable private rooms from 5,000 to 30,000 square feet. (Newark is approximately 35 miles southeast of San Francisco). Design and construction has already begun on the 136,410-square-foot facility, which will open in Q4 2007.
The aggregate power consumption by servers and data centers in the United States has more than doubled since 2000 to about 45 billion kilowatt hours of electricity in 2005, accounting for about 1.2 percent of the country's electricity consumption, roughly equal to the power drawn by the nation's color televisions. According to a 2007 report by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory scientist Dr. Jonathan G. Koomey, the electricity costs for the servers and associated infrastructure reached $2.7 billion in 2005 and is increasing steadily.
365 Main is taking immediate steps as a leading provider of modern data centers to address rising energy consumption concerns. Efficient improvements in the newly announced Newark facility and all future projects include the use of:
Recycled and regionally sourced construction materials.
Computer Room Air Handlers (CRAHs) that consume 30 percent less energy than traditional CRAHs by allowing air conditioning units to intelligently ramp up and down to achieve required under-floor air pressure.
Make Up Air Handler units with outside air economizers that use 100 percent outside air on days when the temperature is cool enough to achieve data center cooling requirements.
Various other improvements, including energy-efficient lighting, lighting controls, water-efficient landscaping and alternative transportation modifications.
The Newark data center will be 365 Main's sixth. The company plans to open a seventh in Vernon, California in 2008.
"Today's announcement is a demonstration of the seriousness with which we take our commitment to energy efficiency, said Chris Dolan, chief executive officer of 365 Main. "Pledging to build only LEED-certified data centers is a significant undertaking, but we believe in the importance of green development, and we are extremely proud to be the first data center developer and operator to make this promise. We're also pleased to be opening another facility in the San Francisco Bay Area, which is a reflection of the tremendous momentum we're experiencing in this region and also shows the speed with which we're able to meet the growing data center needs of our customers.