This collaboration between ZTE and Tencent has led to the creation of a data center with numerous technological advancements, particularly in terms of power efficiency (PUE) of 1.0665 (including photovoltaic gains). This figure is based on 24-hour continuous load tests conducted by the China Academy of Telecommunication Research (CATR) and positions ZTE and Tencent as leaders in international standards for the construction of a sustainable data center.
The development of data centers in China has accelerated in recent years, with over 400,000 data centers currently operating. According to China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), the annual energy consumption of China's data center industry exceeds 1.5% of China's total energy consumption. This situation is creating a need to promote more pioneering sustainability and efficient data center projects, as the Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) of most Chinese data centers is greater than 2.2%, compared to the global average of 1.7%, according to data from the 2014 Uptime Institute report.
In response to this challenge, ZTE, in partnership with Tencent, has implemented a series of innovations to build the West Lab data center, which is fully mobile and modular. The new facility incorporates the latest technological advancements in cooling, energy consumption, design, management, and control.
The key elements that have achieved significant energy savings are found in two main areas: the cooling system and the power distribution system. The West Lab data center utilizes a unique energy supply that combines solar photovoltaic power with high-voltage direct current (HVDC) and grid power. Regarding cooling, the project is the first in China to incorporate indirect evaporative cooling technology in an enterprise setting. The energy efficiency ratio (EER) achieved by this method can reach 16.0, which is five times the efficiency of conventional mechanical compression air conditioning systems. As a result, the project has contributed to environmental protection and energy conservation while ensuring low operating costs and low CO2 emissions.
Another innovation of the project is ZTE's "T-block" design. Using a model similar to a prefabricated container, ZTE is breaking with traditional data center construction based on civil engineering principles. This allows data centers to be built block by block in a modular fashion. The equipment can be installed within two weeks of being shipped to the site. It can be assembled and deployed in "mobile mode" to enable comprehensive transport, sustainable mobility, and energy savings.
West Lab also uses the iDCIM intelligent management infrastructure system, developed by ZTE to ensure unit asset management, intelligent operation of linking subsystems, radio frequency identification (RFID), wireless management and control to help Tencent carry out intelligent, efficient operations and process management (O&M).
ZTE has also collaborated with Tencent and China Unicom on the construction of the Pingshan Shenzhen project, the largest micro-module data center in Asia. The implementation of the West Lab data center further highlights ZTE's advanced technical standards and extensive experience in data center development. Currently, ZTE's uSmartDC data center solution has been deployed in more than 40 business offices. Furthermore, ZTE is continuously involved in data center projects with China's leading internet companies.
