pivotel

The room in which your Information and Communication Technology (ICT) equipment is housed is of the utmost importance for the security, availability and stability of the ICT services and business processes enabled by the equipment.  This is true regardless of whether the room is on-site or whether your equipment / services are housed off-site via another company.  At Pivotel we offer the off-site hosting of ICT services and equipment.  We are also involved in the design and building of computer / server rooms.

The distinction between a computer room and a server room is more based on size.  A computer room would typically be a large facility capable of housing up to mainframe computers and a server room would be housing smaller ICT equipment like server computers.  Regardless of the size of the room, Pivotel subscribes to the tiered classification for data centres (computer and server rooms) used by the Uptime Institute namely:

Tier I: Basic Site Infrastructure

  • A Tier I basic data centre has non-redundant capacity components and a single, non-redundant distribution path serving the computer equipment.
  • Tier I data centres are appropriate for: small businesses where IT primarily enhances internal business process; companies whose principal use of a web-presence is as a passive marketing tool; internet-based start-up companies without financially enforceable customer quality-of-service commitments.

Tier II: Redundant Capacity Components Site Infrastructure.

  • A Tier II data centre has redundant capacity components and a single, non-redundant distribution path serving the computer equipment.
  • Tier II data centres are appropriate for: call centres where multiple sites are available; internet-based companies without serious financial penalties for quality-of-service commitments; small businesses whose ICT requirements are mostly limited to traditional normal business hours, allowing system shutdown during off hours; scientific research e.g. chip design, oil exploration, seismic processing or long-term weather modelling, which typically does not have online or real-time service delivery obligations

Tier III: Concurrently Maintainable Site Infrastructure

  • A Tier III data centre has redundant capacity components and multiple independent distribution paths serving the computer equipment. Typically only one distribution path serves the computer equipment at any time.  All ICT equipment is dual powered and installed properly to be compatible with the topology of the site’s architecture.
  • Tier III data centres are appropriate for: companies that support internal and external clients 24x7 such as service centres and help desks but who can accept short periods with limited service due to site failure; businesses whose ICT resources support automated business processes, so the impact on clients of system shutdowns is manageable or acceptable; internet-based companies or co-location providers that have quality-of-service commitments with serious financial ramifications. 
  

Tier IV: Fault Tolerant Site Infrastructure

  • A Tier IV data centre has multiple, independent, physically isolated systems that each has redundant capacity components and multiple, independent, diverse, active distribution paths simultaneously serving the computer equipment. All ICT equipment is dual powered and installed properly to be compatible with the topology of the site’s architecture.
  • Tier IV data centres are appropriate and justified for: companies with an international market presence delivering “24 by forever” services in a highly competitive client-facing market space or where processes are continuous (international in- and outbound wire transfers etc.); businesses based on e-commerce, market transactions or financial settlement processes; large, global companies where client access to applications and employee exploitation of ICT is a competitive advantage; internet-based companies or co-location providers that have quality-of-service commitments with serious financial ramifications.

It is always a business decision to determine the Tier level of the computer / server room necessary to support your business, since it always have financial ramifications.  Pivotel would gladly assist your business in this decision making process.

Regardless of the Tier level of a computer/ server room, the establishment of such a facility typically involves the following components:

  • Civil work
  • Enclosures / cabinets
  • Access flooring
  • Air conditioning
  • Lightning
  • Uninterruptible Power Supplies
  • Power generators  
  • Electrical work
  • Access Control systems
  • Environmental Monitoring systems
  • LAN Cabling
  • Fire Systems
  • Various monitoring systems
  • Consulting & Project Management

Pivotel with its alliances partners has the necessary skills to offer a turnkey solution in the computer / server room space.