Earth Day is a great time to discuss environmentally-friendly technology. We are happy to announce some of the green initiatives that are being implemented during the ongoing construction of our Michigan Data Center, scheduled to launch later this year.
The entire data center uses cutting-edge technology not just for serving blazing-fast websites, but also for contributing to a greener future through cleaner technology. We made as many choices as we could with the environment in mind, despite the costs. Nobody is doing what we are doing on the scale we are doing it.
Less Power
Some of the quantifiable architectural choices include the significant power ratings advantage. While an average data center runs at a Power Usage Efficiency (PUE) of approximately 1.5 to 2.0 with “good” facilities running around 1.25. The new 15,000 square foot MojoHost facility runs at a rating of 1.1, which means it takes less energy to cool and maintain the temperatures of its equipment and operations than other facilities. Every server cabinet in the facility is chilled to achieve this engineering feat.
No Batteries
It is true that it is not always easy to get entirely free of fossil fuels. The new data center has a contract for priority refueling of its four gigantic diesel backup generators (soon to be six), but we hope that they are never used.
Instead of opting for batteries that are horrible for the environment, we decided to integrate a flywheel that uses centrifugal force to cause a drum to spin. In the event of power loss, it takes a minute for diesel generators to fire up, and most facilities use massive batteries to do that. At our facility, the flywheel does the trick and it’s pretty amazing.
Nature’s Contribution
Michigan winters were considered when designing the facility, and the outdoor water chillers provide free cooling for the facility when outside temperatures drop below 42F during the cold season. This means no power is wasted for cooling when there are perfect conditions for achieving the goal using the readily available great outdoors.
Details That Shout Legacy
We care about the environment and want to create a greener future, so we make the right choices, big and small, to minimize environmental impact. “My kids and I recycled motherboards from MojoHost’s first racks of servers to create a new logo art piece for the interior of the building,” shared MojoHost’s President Brad Mitchell. “It’s a small thing, but it means a lot to have that legacy in the new building, beyond whatever small impact there might be by avoiding the landfill.”
