Edge data centres are becoming more of a consideration for all organisations given the rise in emerging technologies such as 5G and IoT. Shuiyu, Vice President, Marketing & Solution Sales, HUAWEI Digital Power, ME, tells us about the benefits of Edge data centres and why modular data centres should be a solution of choice to enable enterprises to adapt to technology development and real-time service requirements.
For decades, the data centre has been regarded as the nexus of the network and a fundamental component of the digital economy. For enterprises, telco carriers, cable operators and, more recently, service providers like Google and Facebook, the data centre was the heart and muscle of IT.
The emergence of the cloud has emphasised the central importance of the modern data centre. But with the emergence of technology such as 5G and the Internet of Things (IoT), we are hearing rumblings of change, namely that IT decision-makers are focusing on small and Edge data centres, with an increasing need to locate more capacity and processing power closer to end users.
According to a recent study from market research firm Global Market Insights, the small and Edge data centre market will surpass US$20 billion by 2026 with regard to annual valuation.
Small but complete data centre
A small and Edge data centre is a data centre that provides localised IT deployment for cloud services and has computing, storage and analysis resources for application processing and data caching.
It contains the same power, cooling, connectivity and security features as a centralised data centre, but on a smaller scale. In addition, IT deployments in small Edge data centres will handle the processing, data analysis and data storage of applications, end users of those applications and data, and the devices that use them.
Smaller data centre, closer to customer and lower latency
The next decade will produce interconnected technologies that will continue to transform and automate our daily lives. These include 5G mobile networks, self-driving vehicles, as well as Smart Cities and factories driven by Internet of Things (IoT) and Industrial Internet of Things (IoT) devices.
However, to fully exploit the potential of these technologies, we still need to overcome some key technical constraints, mainly latency. The solution to reduce latency lies in small-sized and Edge data centres, which make IT resources closer to users and devices.
Localised computing, data storage and data analysis provide higher application performance and reliability.
Gartner predicts that 75% of data generated by enterprises will be processed at the Edge within the next four years. The growing desire for real-time interactions is driving businesses to bring computing power closer to end-users.
Small and Edge data centres are making appearances in several industries and scenarios:
- Retail. Small and Edge data centres can exist within retail outlets as retailers try to close the gap between selling online and selling at brick-and-mortar locations.
- Manufacturing. Edge data centres developing in distribution warehouses to manage growing inventory and shipping data as well as within factories to manage data generated from sensors and communications between equipment, contributing to a growing industrial IoT.
- Telecom. Central offices of telco companies are being converted to computing rooms and used as Edge data centres to make their networks more dynamic.
More scenarios’ applications are on the way.
Modular data centre solution, the best choice
Modular data centres can quickly provide required IT services and provide space for future expansion, enabling enterprises to adapt to technology development and real-time service requirements. The modular data centre solution has the following features and is the best choice for small and Edge data centres:
- Ease of deployment: Modules can be delivered complete with equipment racks, uninterruptible power supply (UPS) equipment, batteries, switchgear, cooling equipment and monitoring systems. The modules can be grouped together as required for larger sites.
- Cooling: Modular data centres can be designed for a variety of cooling options, based on the needs for the Edge, including in-row cooling and in-rack cooling.
- Power: Modular design elements including utility power hook-ups, standby generators, UPS modules and power distribution are deployed to ensure uptime.
Huawei, a modular data centre solution leader
Huawei launched Smart Modular Solution for small and Edge scenarios, including three kinds of products (FusionModule500/ FusionModule800/ FusionModule2000), suitable for different industrial needs.
All these products are highly integrated and modular in design.
With SmartLi UPS – Smart Lithium batteries UPS – inside, the data centre footprint can be reduced by 50%-70%.
In addition, the rack-mounted cooling system can keep IT devices working reliably. Huawei solutions support unified management of multiple data centres and can evolve to the future cloud for unified management.
- Curious about how Huawei Smart Modular Solution can meet your business computing and IT needs? Schedule a tour.