VERTIV WHITE PAPER

Optimizing Data Center Power Distribution

Through Innovative Busway Design
Introduction
This white paper explores power distribution in the changing data center landscape, highlighting the emerging trends impacting
the industry and evaluating the suitability of innovative busway solutions as an optimized approach to power distribution.
A comparison is drawn between traditional and modern power distribution architectures to determine their efficiency in satisfying
modern data center requirements. Finally, this paper highlights the significance of arc flash risk in the data center and discusses
how improved arc resistance can be achieved through innovative busway power distribution architecture.

The Changing Data Center Landscape

Over the past decade data centers have become one of the world’s fastest growing industries, with the market expected to grow with
a CAGR of 15.1% between 2019 – 2025. Despite being little understood by the population it serves, the data center industry plays a
critical role in modern society by storing, processing, communicating, and distributing the data we produce every second of every day.

The Driving Force

In recent years there has been a paradigm shift towards a new Power distribution is a huge investment for any data center,
digital era which has changed the dynamic of how we process, and it is typically expected to have a minimum lifespan of 10
consume, and communicate information. The emergence of the years. In contrast, the IT equipment it powers typically has
IoT, big data and machine learning amongst other developments a lifespan of 2-3 years, sometimes even shorter. As a result,
has digitized our every day lives, resulting in an increase in data older power distribution systems can become outdated if they
consumption patterns. In fact, it is estimated that the global cannot be easily adapted and integrated with these newer
datasphere will grow to over 175 zettabytes by 2025. As a technologies, resulting in rigid, inefficient, and fragmented data
result, data centers must seek to employ higher capacity power center operations. Similarly, there is a concern that data center
distribution networks with higher rack densities and higher capacity may become overloaded as organizations struggle to
efficiency designs to satisfy demand. keep up with the increasing levels of data consumption,
causing increased risk to uptime and safety in the data center.
The primary objective of any data center is to achieve 100%
Over

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availability of safe and reliable power. As the digitization of
services continues to drive the global demand for data, this
is becoming increasingly difficult for data centers across the
world, who are being forced to change their DNA and seek
out smarter power distribution solutions to overcome these
zettabytes new challenges.

by 2025

“It is estimated that the global datasphere will

30%
grow to over 175 zettabytes by 2025”.

The Challenges
Many data centers are struggling to keep up with rapid rate of
change in the digital landscape. According to a report by
Forbes, less than 30% of data center decision makers state
their data center meets their current needs and only 11% say
that data centers are updated ahead of their needs. The “Less than 30% of data center decision makers state
issue is that many of today’s data centers still employ the same their data center meets their current needs”.
power distribution systems that were installed on day one.

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Scalability Cost
Regardless of the type of data center – Hyperscale, Co-location, As the landscape is changing so rapidly in terms of new
Enterprise, or Edge – Scalability should always be a key technology and demand, investments in power infrastructure
priority when specifying power distribution architecture. must be carefully considered to ensure the investment will
Today, society expects seamless transitions and instant access not become obsolete before its value has been recouped.
to data, so it is vital that data centers have sufficient elasticity Operating costs are also a growing expenditure for data
to expand or contract their available power capacity in line with centers as they are estimated to consume between three and
demand. As data consumption trends continue to fluctuate and five percent of the world’s power by 2025. As power capacity
grow at an unprecedented rate, it is more important than ever increases, so too does the associated energy costs, therefore
for data centers to employ infrastructure that can quickly adapt data centers must seek to offset this increased expenditure, if
to changes in the market without putting operating efficiencies profits are to be protected. As a result, Data center managers
at risk. are seeking out power solutions with both relatively low capital
and operating costs.
Efficiency
Data centers require uninterrupted and efficient power supply
to remain competitive in today’s market. A key issue facing

3-5%
businesses is the risk of unplanned downtime, which can
have a potentially devastating impact on both profitability and
brand reputation. Data centers must strive to employ improved
efficiency design to increase the level of power available to
their IT infrastructure.
To ensure continuity of efficient power, data centers must
have full visibility of the power distribution system and all
connected infrastructure. This can be achieved through
bespoke monitoring architecture that can anticipate and react Operating costs are also a growing expenditure for data
centers as they are estimated to consume between
to impending issues that may compromise the power supply, three and five percent of the world’s power by 2025
thus reducing the risk of costly downtime.
Safety
Space Optimization
Safety always has and always will be a key concern in the data
White space is at a premium in the data center as this is center, as not only can electrical faults result in costly downtime,
where core infrastructure such as server cabinets, storage, but they can also cause serious harm to human life.
network gear, racks, air-conditioning units, and power-distribution However, as power densities and capacities increase, the
systems are located. As the demand for data increases so too scale of electrical infrastructure within the data center
does the IT infrastructure required. Therefore, usage of the increases too, which in turn increases the potential risk
white space must be carefully planned and optimized to reduce during standard installation, operation and maintenance
wasted space and must be easily reconfigured to facilitate the procedures. For instance, the more time spent repairing or
addition of new IT infrastructure as and when required. upgrading a piece of infrastructure, the more likely it is that
human error will occur. This error could be something as
small as dropping a tool into a live PDU or not correctly
disconnecting a circuit breaker before maintenance, which
can have potentially fatal consequences.

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Traditional Power Distribution Architecture
Many of today’s data center facilities still rely on traditional power distribution architectures that pre-date the digitization of the
industry. When traditional power distribution systems were designed, data centers were a lot less complex than they are today, consisting
of a small number of large IT devices, where changes or upgrades were infrequent and lower power densities required less cooling.

Traditionally, power in the data center was distributed through However, in applications with limited room height or heavy
power distribution units (PDU). PDU’s are typically rated from equipment. Raised floor access may not always be a feasible
50kW to 500kW and consist of a main input circuit breaker, choice. An alternative practice is to create an overhead cable
branch circuit panel boards, a power transformer, output power pathway via cable trays that are mounted above the racks or
cables, surge arrestor and the monitoring and communication suspended from the ceiling.
modules. PDU systems can be designed with an inbuilt or
standalone transformer to convert the incoming voltage and
distributes the appropriate voltage to the branch circuits to
power the IT load. PDU’s designed with an inbuilt transformer
will have a much larger footprint, consuming approximately
2.5m² per 100kW of IT load.
To accommodate the long lengths of cabling required to
distribute power from point A to point B, data centers can be
designed with a raised floor access or overhead cable trays.
One of the main uses for raised floor access is to create an air
plenum for cooling. Air flow is typically managed via vented
floor tiles with aluminum grills. The under-floor void provides a
space to route cabling and pipework including electrical wiring,
data and telecoms wiring, security wiring and HVAC/air
conditioning system components.

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Although these traditional architectures have evolved over the years, the fundamentals of their design are fast becoming
incompatible with the fast-paced and volatile nature of the industry, resulting in the following inefficiencies.
y The scalability of underfloor applications reduce as they y The overall electrical design of the room may require a
expand and underfloor cable space becomes limited. re-think with under-floor electrical cables rerouted to
accommodate new infrastructure layouts.
y Large footprint of the PDU reduces the space available for
additional power/ IT infrastructure in the white space. y Electricians may be forced to carry out live work during
maintenance, increasing the risk of an arc flash incidents.
y Due to underfloor cabling, circuits can have poor traceability,
making it difficult to monitor which circuits are near overload. y There is always the danger that a worker will accidentally
touch a live circuit, or drop a metal tool, resulting in an arc
y Large transformer based PDU units generate waste heat flash incident.
that must be cooled, decreasing data center efficiency.
y Power availability is reduced as systems must be
y Circuit addition is slow, therefore any additions or changes powered down for maintenance or system changes to
to the power network will require significant lead time. be undertaken safely.
y Limited underfloor space can have a negative impact on y Complex installation and configuration processes require
efficiency as cooling plenums become blocked with large significant time to complete, increasing labor costs.
amount of cable, reducing air to flow risk and increasing
heat loss. y Low day 1 cost, however the cost of adding new circuits
can be high due to the lengthy process required to route
y Rigid layout due to complex architecture and reduced cable new cables.
access, making it very time consuming to facilitate new
data center layouts. y Lack of scalability results in power distribution systems
being either overbuilt or under built; both of which reduce
operational efficiency.

Modern Power Distribution Architecture

Busway is an alternative to traditional PDU and RPP power distribution. Modern busway power distribution architecture typically
includes an end feed unit connected to an upstream LV electrical switchboard, busway and tap-off units equipped with over-current
protection devices, connection fittings and their accessories.

Busways are most often seen in high-density data center applications providing flexible overhead power distribution where scalability
is vital to success. Busways can be installed horizontally, vertically, overhead or underfloor depending on power requirements however
they are typically installed overhead in data centers to power the IT racks. Busway alone can provide all LV power distribution from
the LV switchgear/switchboard to IT racks, eliminating the need for bulky PDU’s.

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Busway trunking solutions use feeder lengths to distribute power to rack level. Each feeder length will be designed with a set amount of
tap off points as specified by the client. Alternatively, modern open channel busway solutions are designed with a continuous open
path that delivers power along the entire length so tap off units can be installed without restriction.

Open Channel for continuous

tap-off unit positioning

The development of open channel busway systems has revolutionized the data center industry, offering an optimized power distribution
architecture that can distribute and manage power capacity in line with current and future requirements. This innovation in power
distribution enhances data center safety, flexibility, availability and cost efficiency through the following characteristics.

y Integrated branch circuit power metering means that y ‘Hot swappable’ plug and play installation means circuits
capacity and redundancy are managed on every circuit. can be quickly added and removed while the busbar is live,
reducing data center downtime.
y Flexibility to reconfigure data center layouts by adding
additional tap off boxes or relocating existing tap offs on y Pre-assembled tap off units improve efficiency by
the busway. eliminating field wire cutting and terminating branch circuits

y Lifetime cost is lower due to improved scalability and y Finger safe protection from conductors improves
reduced installation time required. operator safety.

y Zero footprint design – Increased availability for y Higher integrity than cable applications. Aluminum/steel
IT infrastructure in the white space. housing protects the conductors from physical stresses.

y Improved traceability - Tap off units are located above racks y Overhead positioning of the busway allows for unrestricted
and circuit protection is located exactly above the load. system cooling.

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Comparing Power Distribution Approaches
Having discussed the key challenges faced by modern data center managers and evaluating the application of both traditional and
modern busway solutions, we will now compare how each power distribution architecture satisfies the challenges previously discussed.
The table above clearly highlights how modern open channel busway solutions provide optimized power distribution in terms of
scalability, power availability and space optimization. Whilst open channel busway also provides improved safety, the risk of arc flash
is not completely eliminated without the use of additional OCPD. Complexities also arise when assessing the cost efficiencies achieved
by each architecture, as this will be largely dependent on the size of the individual data center and unique specification.

TRADITIONAL PDU ARCHITECTURE MODERN OPEN CHANNEL BUSWAY

Adding or removing circuits is complex and requires an electrician, Plug and play installation allows for quicker capacity deployment.
SCALABILITY resulting in longer lead times to scale power up or down. Capacity can be added more gradually, as and when required.

Limited space for underfloor cabling can restrict airflow reducing electrical Superior cooling and material properties result in a more power
POWER efficiency of the system. efficient system.
AVAILABILITY Scheduled downtime is required to make any changes to the system. Hot swappable tap off units eliminate the need for downtime.

Floor mounted PDU’s have a significant footprint which eats into the Zero footprint design offers increased space availability for key
SPACE premium ‘white space’. IT infrastructure.

Less exposure to live circuits, due to the finger safe design of busway.
Cables are subject to wear and tear which can cause breaks in
electrical insulation. Solid conductors are more durable and less likely to wear, reducing
SAFETY electrical risk.
Live working may be required during maintenance to avoid downtime -
There is a risk of tools being dropped into the PDU resulting in an arc flash. Higher efficiency design of the busway can increase arc flash risk if
suitable OCPD are integrated.

Power capacity can be gradually scaled up with ease, reducing upfront

Low initial cost of PDU, however the labor intensive and time consuming
COST process of adding new circuits can be very costly.
costs. Minimum labor is required for circuit addition providing lucrative
cost savings.

Safety by Design: Arc Resistant Open Channel Busway

As power capacity and rack densities increase, so too does the available fault current. Ironically, the quest for higher efficiency
designs can also increase the risk of arc flash in the data center. The low impedance design of modern busbar trunking systems,
reduces resistance to the current traveling along the busway. Although this is beneficial for reducing heat loss and voltage drop, it
also increases prospective fault current levels which can trigger dangerous arc flash incidents.

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Vertiv's Intelligent Medium Powerbar is an open channel busway system designed for use in data centers and other mission critical
environments. The arc resistant design of the iMPB product is achieved through an extensive range of inbuilt safety features that
can be tailored to meet the requirements of individual specifications:

y Fully UL Certified and IEC / CE approved y Rated current: 160A – 1,000A

y Rated operational voltage: 600A y Short Circuit Rating: Minimum of 50KAIC

y Rated insulation voltage: 1000A y Individual Tap-Offs rated up to 125 Amps for each phase

Over Current Protection Devices

Overcurrent protection devices are designed to detect fault conditions in an electrical system and automatically disconnect the electrical
equipment from the power source, where the fault current exceeds the current capacity of the busway. The two devices used to protect
circuits from overcurrent are fuses and circuit breakers.
Fuses operate by breaking the flow of fault current through the busway to restore normal operating conditions. Each fuse contains a
metal wire element, designed to carry a limited current. When a high fault current flows through the fuse it will generate heat causing
the fuse element to melt. This creates a gap in current flow, protecting the busway system from high incident energies that could
trigger an arc flash incident. Once the fuse has blown, it can no longer serve as a protection device and must be replaced.
Although circuit breakers serve the same purpose, they operate differently, using an electromagnetic force triggered by a high fault current
to automatically disconnect the electrical equipment from the voltage source. Although they take more time to clear the fault than a fuse,
circuit breakers have the added benefit of being reset so they can be used multiple times.
Vertiv’s Intelligent Medium Powerbar can be designed with an extensive range of MCCB’s, switch fuses and isolators to ensure
maximum protection against potential fault currents, tailored to your specific specification ratings.

Continuous Monitoring
Continuous monitoring is extremely important in modern data center power distribution, where densities, capacities and electrical
efficiencies are increasing. This gives data center managers complete visibility over the power system, detecting potentially harmful
operational abnormalities before continuity of power is compromised.

Vertiv's Powerbar iMPB is equipped with advanced metering technologies at final circuit, end feed and tap off level, ensuring
maximum control and energy efficiency across the entire power distribution journey.

In addition to electrical monitoring, Vertiv offers optional continuous thermal monitoring at end feeds and other power conduction
points that have the potential to develop hot spots over time. This will provide real-time heat rise data for each cable landing. Heat
rise data shall be provided to the EPMS system via Modbus TCP protocol.

Thermal monitoring options available include;

y IR/Contact Continuous Temperature Monitoring

y Wireless Continuous Temperature Monitoring

y Infrared Windows for Periodic Manual Scanning

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 End Feed Monitoring Capabilities Tap Off Unit Monitoring Capabilities
Input voltage (L/L and L/N) Input voltage per phases (L/L and L/N)
Current per phase (Min/Max) Current per phase (Min/Max)
Voltage per phase (Min/Max) Voltage per phase (Min/Max)
Neutral current Power factor
Power factor Frequency
Frequency Power (active, reactive, apparent)
Power (active, reactive, apparent) Demand / energy consumption (kWH)
Demand(kWh) Current peak demand
Voltage and current THD% THD – Total Harmonic Distortion (Optional)
Current peak demand Status monitoring (Optional)

Mechanical Interlocking
An MCB Safety Interlock can be integrated into Vertiv's Powerbar iMPB product to prevent the tap off unit being fitted to the
bar while the MCB is in the ‘On’ position. Similarly, the tap off unit can only be removed from the busbar when the MCB is in the ‘Off’
position. The MCB can only be switched on when the contacts are fully engaged with the busbar. This provides users with an extra
layer of safety when fitting/removing tap off boxes from the busbar.
The mechanical interlock secures the tap off box to the busbar using high tensile strength lockable hardware which cannot be fitted
incorrectly. Once fitted to the bar, the engaged handle can be turned. This lifts the contacts into the busbar and has a positive lock
once fully rotated.
This mechanical connection between the tap off unit and the busway prior to any electrical connection, ensure that there is no risk
of an arc flash incident when installing iMPB tap off boxes to the busbar.
iMPB tap off units are fitted to the busbar using a three step installation process and E+I Engineering’s unique ‘earth first, break
last’ safety feature. Each tap off unit interlocks onto the distribution length with a ground strip. This ensures that the ground is the
first point of contact with the busbar system during installation, achieving a lower fault current and lower fault clearance time as excess
current will always exit the busway system through the grounding strip.
STEP 1
The units interlock into the busway with a
ground strip. This ensures that the ground is
the first point of contact with the busway
system during installation

STEP 2
The mechanical interlock secures the unit
to the bar using spring loaded hardware
which cannot be fitted incorrectly. It is
impossible to engage the Tap Off Box to
the wrong phase.

STEP 3
Once fitted to the bar, the engaged handle
can be turned. This lifts contacts into the
busway and locks once fully rotated.

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Conclusion
As the increase in global data consumption continues
to challenge the status quo of the data center industry,
organizations are being forced to change their DNA in
search of smarter power distribution solutions that are better
equipped to change and adapt in line with the operational
needs of the modern data center.
Having explored the key characteristics of traditional data
center power architecture, it can be concluded that the
fundamentals of legacy architecture are fast becoming
incompatible with the ever-changing nature of the industry,
lacking the high level of flexibility and power availability
required in today’s market. In response to this, modern
architectures such as open channel busway systems
have been developed to overcome the power distribution
challenges faced by todays data center operators.
The comparison conducted between both traditional and
modern architectures, clearly highlights how modern open
channel busway solutions have revolutionized power distribution
in the data center industry in terms of scalability, power
availability, space optimization and safety; With particular
consideration given to the enhanced safety measures
available to facilitate higher rack densities and higher
efficiency in modern power distribution designs.

E+I Engineering USA Corp E+I Engineering Ltd. Powerbar Gulf LLC
USA Manufacturing Location European Manufacturing Location Middle East Manufacturing Location
400 Supreme Industrial Drive Ballyderowen, Burnfoot, N16/N17, Al Ghail Industrial Park,
Anderson, South Carolin, 29621 Co.Donegal, Ireland Ras Al Khaimah, PO Box 13229, UAE
Tel: +1 864 375 1757 Tel: Tel: +971 (0)72 216100
(UK) +44 (0)28 71353030
(ROI) +353 (0)74 9368719

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E+I Engineering Ltd. Email:
UK Manufacturing Location [email protected]
Campsie Industrial Estate,
Derry, Northern Ireland, BT47 3XY www.e-i-eng.com

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SL-70971 (R02/23)