Project Management Case Study
Uninterruptible power supply for major data centres and internet facilities
“The planning of these works required a detailed and complete understanding of the installation and very careful consideration of installation requirements.”
Uninterruptible power supplies are essential to the reliable and low risk operation of the nation's internet infrastructure. Many facilities are improving the standard of their power supplies to eliminate potential single points of failure, increase capacity for growth and improve the ability of the systems to be maintained properly.
Integrated Technical Management has provided Technical Project Management services for major upgrades to uninterruptible power systems for the principal data centres of major financial institutions and internet facilities. In projects of this type, the nature of the existing power supply installation and the requirement that the facility remain continuously in operation, presents significant challenges for the implementation team. These challenges usually range from the relatively straight forward, if difficult to address physical constraints, through to single line of supply situations. In these cases, a multi-staged approach involving significant works is required to upgrade and replace the supply with parallel and switchable supply routes. This has to be implemented without any interruption and risk to the customer's site operations. The planning of these works requires a detailed and complete understanding of the installation and very careful consideration of installation requirements.
The successful overseeing of these projects on behalf of customers requires the implementation of a detailed and closely controlled change management process, driven by the need to minimise, if not eliminate, risk to the operation of the facility at all times. It also requires working closely with operational management and maintenance teams, and contractors. Detailed work plans incorporating risk assessments and procedures are provided and agreed to. These provide operational procedures, technical guidance and support, assisting in the assessment and approval of cut over plans, witnessing critical activities and fulfilling technical quality assurance roles.
These projects have been completed to plan and on budget without shut down or failure of the facilities, ensuring the integrity of the site and its operations were maintained though the life of the project. As a side benefit, the installation contractor's systems, procedures and staff have been significantly improved by their experience on these projects. Their ability to carry out works of this type, complexity and criticality in the future has been substantially enhanced. Integrated Technical Management considers the training of contractors in both understanding the site and the site's risk requirements as critical to the success of the project and ongoing operations.