Brits fear server boom may lead to power crisis

Data centre managers are starting to worry if the proliferation of increasingly power-hungry servers isn’t about to suck the electricity out of the U.K.’s National Grid.

Specifically, the U.K.’s Data Center Networking Group is to hold a discussion next week around whether the U.K. could sustain power for IT and ask what would happen if the grid went down. The group is part of DatacenterDynamics, a global knowledge exchange for professionals involved in the design, construction and management of data centres.

In conjunction with the BIFM (British Institute for Facilities Management) and BSRIA (the Building Services Research Information Association), the event will discuss the fragility of power resources and whether the U.K.’s National Grid can sustain the ever growing demand for power.

Under the title of , the meeting, to be held in London, will focus on securing power for critical facilities. In the face of concerns about continued power availability in the U.K. (and across other major capitals), the group will investigate the current legislative drivers for power generation, as well as future improvements to the grid.

DatacenterDynamics’ conference director George Rockett said: “Demand for technology in our everyday lives and in business have placed a heavy burden on a power infrastructure system which wasn’t designed for the Internet age. With our reliance on IT, there are fundamental questions that need to be asked about our power resources and how the National Grid can secure long term power to mission critical IT equipment.”

The basis of the U.K. Datacentre Networking Group is a series of informal quarterly meetings inspired to foster a closer relationship and increased understanding of common problems between the various stake holders in the modern datacomms facility, and to act as a focal point for the evolution of best practice in the U.K. industry.

This new collaboration is driven by the need for guidance and standardized practices as the industry moves into a period of renewed growth. It aims to foster a closer relationship and increased understanding of common problems between the various stake holders with an interest in modern datacomms facilities, as well as acting as a focal point for the evolution of best practice in the U.K. industry.

The meeting will also view a presentation from disaster recovery specialist Sungard Availability Services.

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Jim Love, Chief Content Officer, IT World Canada

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