Energy Saving Project for Datacenters

Volume 57 Number 5 September 2008

Authors

Yutaka Hiramatsu
Business Promotion Dept., Outsourcing Data Center, Outsourcing Services Div., Information & Telecommunication Systems, Hitachi, Ltd.

Masaki Ito
Harmonious Computing Management Center, Strategic Business Development Div., Strategy Planning & Development Office, Information & Telecommunication Systems, Hitachi, Ltd.

Koichi Koyano, Dr. Eng.
Data Center Energy Saving Project Office, Business Planning Operation, Enterprise Server Div., Information & Telecommunication Systems, Hitachi, Ltd.

Hiroshi Hanyu
Wirelessinfo Venture Company, Hitachi, Ltd.

Toshiharu Usuki
Energy-Saving Center Promotion Dept., Outsourcing Data Center, Outsourcing Services Div., Information & Telecommunication Systems, Hitachi, Ltd.

Overview

In regard to datacenters, which support business information systems, as the power consumption of datacenter equipment increases and demand for such datacenters spreads, power consumption of all datacenter equipment and facilities — namely, not just IT equipment such as servers and storage but also other devices such as air-conditioners and uninterruptible power supplies — is becoming an urgent issue. Accordingly, the Hitachi Group is expanding product commercialization of the IT equipment and facilities needed in these datacenters, and by applying our collective efforts, we have established and are actively promoting a datacenter power-saving project — called CoolCenter50. The aim of this project is to cut power consumption of an entire datacenter by 50% over the next five years. What's more, aiming to vigorously promote power saving for the IT equipment that lies at the heart of these datacenters, we have established the Harmonious Green Plan. This plan prescribes the technological-development fields for strengthening power saving in datacenters at the operation, equipment, and component levels. Through these activities, we are also targeting significant reduction of CO₂ emission.