1. Reduce cooling costs.
The cost for regulating a data centre’s temperature can eat up an operating budget. Modern hot air containment solutions help to reduce costs, but the lower operating temperatures for legacy rackmount PDUs mean they can only help so much. Newer metered rack PDUs have a higher operating temperature – up to 140°F/60°C – meaning a big cut to the cooling cost of your facility.
2. Maximise space
Instead of requiring a dedicated infrastructure rack, a metered rack PDU is designed to use space that would otherwise go unused: vertically mounted inside or on the side of a server rack or enclosure. Not all data centre PDUs are created equal though. To make the best use of space, a rackmount PDU should have low-profile circuit breakers and a width optimised for side mounting to avoid interfering with access to hot-swap fans and power supplies.
3. Prevent accidental disconnections
Downtime caused by a plug getting bumped out of place is an occurrence that happens too often in data centres. Most data centre PDUs rely on external clips or cable trays to secure plugs. While those methods of prevention are effective, they require additional time from staff and represent an added cost. Next-generation metered rack PDUs offer built-in IEC outlet grips, which provide the same prevention without the need for proprietary power cables or bulky additions.