Citigroup Data Center in Frankfurt, Germany
New York-based Citigroup, a leading global bank commonly known as Citi, has approximately 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 160 countries and jurisdictions. The bank's operations in Frankfurt concentrate on corporate and investment banking. In 2008, Citigroup launched the Frankfurt Data Center (FDC). Thanks in part to Siemens solutions, the building was awarded Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum certification just one year after it opened, making the FDC one of the most energy-efficient data centers in the world.Challenge
Availability and reliability are the top priorities in a data center like the FDC. This requires an uninterruptible and redundant power supply, intelligent safety and security technology, and reliable building automation that cools and conditions the air based on demand, thus keeping the servers from overheating.
Solution
In the building itself, Solutions from Siemens have been integrated for automation, security technology and power supply. A dual power feed from energy supplier Mainova, duplicate downstream medium- and low-voltage switchboards with duplicate switches and busbars from Siemens as well as dual cooling technology ensure maximum redundancy.
Benefits
If a power failure were to occur, two independent uninterruptible power supply units and the emergency power supply would take over, ensuring continued power for at least 72 hours. This means that the FDC meets the Tier IV standard awarded by the Uptime Institute for maximum redundancy and 99.995 percent availability. The Desigo building automation system from Siemens plays a central role in maintaining high energy efficiency and the standards of the LEED certification. Furthermore, building automation allows individual control and continuous monitoring of the heating, ventilation and cooling technology.
