According to this report, the rigidity of current classification systems does not encourage innovation in data center design, which is key to improving sustainability. New data center typologies, even if they are equal to or better than traditional buildings, do not fit into the available categories and are excluded from the existing classification.
These classification standards do not adequately value, for example, the exclusive use of renewable energy and only allow the use of these sustainable sources in conjunction with the electrical grid and diesel generators. There are currently three types of designs that do not fit the current classification and are already in use:
1. Designs using alternative energy sources such as solar, wind, fuel cell, and tidal power.
2. Designs based on multiple networked data centers.
3. Designs that implement availability features beyond their current classification but do not meet all the requirements for the next level.
To include new data center typologies and provide the sector with a more inclusive and flexible standard, three factors are proposed for basing an alternative system:
1. Resilience: Each design component can be evaluated based on its resilience.
2. Sustainability: Based on the energy source used, the design can be classified using an "energy label" that indicates its sustainability level.
3. Efficiency: It is proposed to use PUE (Power Usage Effectiveness) to classify the efficiency of the data center design, given its acceptance as an indicator of this factor.
The full report is available here .
