In conversation with Ar. Hardik Pandit to know more about the rising Demand for new data centres in India and how we will see innovation from an architectural perspective
CXOToday has engaged in an exclusive interview with Ar. Hardik Pandit – Director, APICES Studio Pvt. Ltd
- Soon, we will be witnessing a robust boom in setting up data centres in India, especially Mumbai will be one of the important cities. As an architect, do you feel we have the space to build it?
India is touted as the next data hub of the world. Increased data consumption and generation by more than half a billion digital user’s projects that India’s data centre capacity is expected to double by 2025. States across India are focusing on data centers and promoting investments in the related sector. Presently, 60% of total data centres are in Mumbai, Chennai, Delhi and Bangalore. Amongst these too, Mumbai accounts for the largest share of data centres. Because of its superior power infrastructure, accessibility to power landing infrastructure, and fibre connection, it is the ideal location for data centers. It is also the country’s business hub, which means the demand here is higher. The MMR Region – including Thane and Navi Mumbai is ideal for Data Centers due to the availability of space and economical land cost. The required technical team can be recruited easily in these areas too.
- In terms of security, as it is of radical importance when it comes to Data centres, how is architecture supporting the structures in terms of preservation, protection and sustainability?
Robust data centre infrastructure is necessary to safeguard the digital sovereignty of any nation. The requirement for setting up local data centres in the country has increased as a result of several sectors like banks digitizing their operations and ensuring that the data should be stored within the country itself. As architects and good practitioners we must achieve the necessary levels of resilience and security in an experiential design for Data centres for the desired service. The data centre structure should provide secure access controls, such as Man Trap cubicles, card readers and biometric authentication, surveillance cameras, to prevent unauthorized access to the facility.
Another prominent issue regarding Data Centres is the high energy consumption and emissions from them. Several internet companies are now making changes to green their existing and upcoming DCs. Modern architecture will provide green solutions to achieve this sustainability. Green Data Centre can have tremendous benefits, both tangible and intangible. The tangible benefits include 20-25% reduction in energy consumption, 25-30% reduction in water consumption. The intangible benefits of green Data Centre include enhanced air quality, excellent day lighting, health and well-being of the staff operating such facilities.
- Demand for new data centres is huge in India, how will we see innovation from an architectural perspective?
A modern day data center is fascinating and appears nothing like data centers ten years ago. Data centres are the spine of the ‘Digital India’ vision with high contribution to several national benefits. Architecture innovation is based on the modern day needs and solutions. The buildings for the new data centres will have a façade with solar panels, keeping the need of using green energy in mind. The structures will be significantly different, steel structures with light gauge, using steel stud composite structures. Owing to the demand and the need of quick supply of data centres, the future is modular, where the pre-engineered structures that are built off-site will be brought and quickly assembled on-site. This method is highly flexible and can be used to customize to meet the specific needs of a data center.
Prefabricated buildings not only help to reduce construction time but also ensure higher quality and consistency, cost efficiency, reusability, less raw material wastage, and reduced safety hazards.
- Can you illustrate a few examples of companies that are taking steps to ensure ‘Green Data Centres’?
Google, Facebook (now known as Meta), and Apple are leading on the green DC. Google announced the plans to install the first ever battery-based system for backup power at a hyper scale DC, located in St. Ghislain, Belgium, which marked a major leap forward for clean DC. In addition, three major renewable energy projects came online and began feeding carbon-free energy into the grids that power Google’s DC in Quilicura, Chile, Hamina, Finland, and Fredericia, Denmark. Facebook’s new DC in Mesa brings sustainability to the forefront, with an aim to become one of the most advanced and energy- and water-efficient DC facilities in the world. The DC is powered by 100% renewable energy and will consume at least 60% less water than the average level. Since 2014, all of Apple’s DCs have been powered by 100% renewable energy. Its DC in Maiden, North Carolina, has design features including a chilled water energy storage system along with free outside air cooling, allowing its chillers to be turned off over 75 percent of the time; and high-efficiency LED lighting teamed with motion sensors
- Kindly throw light on the green DC rating system and how it will be impactful?
The green DC rating system emphasis is on data centre equipment, rather than just the building elements. There is a higher emphasis on management information systems, energy management and monitoring. Maintaining indoor air quality in IT spaces to achieve ISO standards, besides addressing air quality in non-technical spaces. There is continuous upgradation in green building materials, equipment and technologies in the market it is important that the rating system also keeps the pace with current technologies.
Green Data Centre Rating System addresses green features under the following categories: Site Selection & Planning, Energy Efficiency, Operation & Maintenance, Water Conservation, Building Material and Resources, Indoor Environmental Quality and Innovation.
- Tell us about the structures for data centres that will be witnessed and why?
The data centre industry is positioned to implement green technologies for current and future data centres, given that it is in a high growth phase. If the upcoming data centres are channelized properly, guided by regulatory requirements and industry-wide initiatives, the new data centres will be green from inception.
Vendors of data centre infrastructure equipment come with built-in AI capabilities that monitor and analyze health status. The automation of this process will improve the accuracy of real-time monitoring and allow operators to have a constant overview of the site. The efficiency of data centers is already improving, and needs to continue as the demand for more centers increases. The future data centres will be conscious about space and energy utilization. And, as digital security measures develop, we will see more virtualization and transitions to the cloud.
