Avocent Corporation is shipping MergePoint Infrastructure Explorer, a software platform that integrates heat, cooling, power, and space with asset management.

The company believes it can eliminate the need for multiple management products which currently do separate jobs for IT and facilities management.

Avocent MergePoint Infrastructure Explorer provides the most detailed view ever of data centre conditions and assets and offers ways to design and run a data centre more effectively, the company said.

"It's clear from talking to customers that the traditional domains of facilities and IT are merging," said Avocent CEO, Michael Borman. "Companies need tools for accurate real-time measurements to optimise existing data centres and for planning new data centres with the assurance of having sufficient capacity for servers and cooling equipment. They want to view and manage their environment using one management tool. Avocent MergePoint Infrastructure Explorer accomplishes these goals, effectively eliminating the need for multiple point products currently available on the market."

By utilising the advanced modeling features within Avocent MergePoint Infrastructure Explorer, an organisation can identify specific discrepancies between where power and cooling resources are available and where they are ultimately needed. Reducing these discrepancies enables the significant reduction in overall power and cooling consumption in data centres. When paired with technology such as probes, intelligent power distribution units (IPDUs), and switches placed in the data centre, its advanced user-friendly interface gives IT managers a complete view of data centre conditions and the ability to catalog, plan, track and define outcomes with capacity planning and asset management, Avocent said.

Features of the new product include:
Asset Lifecycle Management Integration
Third-Party Software Integration
New Ease of Operations Management - Facilities and IT Come Together

"Providing a deeper look at data centre assets and monitoring power, heat and other environmental factors in real time is the next frontier for data centres," said Dennis Drogseth Vice President, Enterprise Management Associates. "With MergePoint Infrastructure Explorer, Avocent provides a way to map the outcome before you build or rebuild a data centre. With a clear and detailed view of racks, servers and other equipment, and the ability to track expected power expenditure and cooling needs - smarter ROI decisions can be made, and IT can become the prime enabler of an organisation's 'Green strategy'."