Data centre enterprise management suite

ABB has introduced its Decathlon suite including software, hardware and services for data centers to provide a single view of IT, facilities and energy management information for improved data access and use, while making the data centers themselves more reliable and energy efficient.

Decathlon enables better control and proactive maintenance of data center operations, with access to information from multiple systems, and provides potential energy savings of 10% to 50%. Decathlon delivers to the data center market the first true Data Center Enterprise Management (DCEM) system which allows the management of energy use and resources across multiple sites; this can result in millions of dollars saved each year for some enterprises.

Remotely located data centers are being used more frequently to handle the continually increasing volume of information required to run any business effectively. The reliable storage, management and round-the-clock security of information are very energy intensive and require that data center equipment must operate without interruption.

Decathlon provides real-time equipment health status to ensure reliability and proactive maintenance. It also transforms energy consumption data into valuable information so that data center operators can optimize power use while maintaining high levels of productivity and reliability. It shows precisely where and how energy and resulting costs can be saved in a risk-free way. 

“By providing intelligent access to vital operating systems, Decathlon helps to ensure reliable operation, availability and security of data centers while proactively managing energy use for the most efficient and cost-effective operation possible,” said Eric Olson, Control Technologies product manager for data centers at ABB. “This solution leverages the integration power of our proven   control and information management platforms to provide these benefits to a wider range of business customers.” 

By using the integration and information access capabilities of ABB’s System 800xA platform as its foundation, Decathlon harmonizes various disciplines from IT, facilities and energy management into a unified environment. It enables a single entry point within its database structure to address the needs of Building Management, Asset Management, Power Management, Load Management, Maintenance Management, Server Optimization, Enterprise Historian, Change Management, Energy Management, and Remote Monitoring functions.

Decathlon is scalable from one to 100 or more data centers, and integrates with all leading third party equipment and systems for information access or control. It aligns with the DCIM (Data Center Infrastructure Management) Maturity Model expanded to meet DCEM objectives. This enables customers to start with Decathlon as an information gathering and monitoring tool alongside their existing platforms, and later expand and upgrade to a full DCEM as needed.

Decathlon exceeds the full range of DCIM functionality as defined by the 451 Group of the Uptime Institute, an independent third-party research, education and consulting organization focused on improving data center performance and efficiency. The Institute serves all stakeholders of the data center industry, including enterprise and third-party operators, manufacturers, providers, and engineers.