Advantages of a Raised Floor in Data Centers
Raised floors have been common features of data centers for decades. Although some data centers now use hard floors and overhead cable trays, raised floor systems remain popular because their perforated tiles and elevated design — which can range from several inches to several feet above concrete — allow for efficient cooling and cable management.
Why Raised Flooring Is Important for Data Centers
When designing or redesigning your data center, you’ll need to choose between raised flooring and slab flooring before you can make other decisions. While raised floors may not be the right solution for every data center, they can provide a number of powerful advantages when used and maintained properly. Here are several raised floor benefits to consider for your data center.
Future Scalability Of Raised Flooring
Raised flooring systems are modular in design, meaning you can rearrange floor tiles individually and add more perforated tiles as necessary. This feature proves advantageous when scaling a data center.
As you add more servers and cooling needs increase, you can place additional perforated tiles strategically to increase airflow and adjust to higher heat densities without the need to build new cooling infrastructure. If more cooling power is needed you can easily install overhead cooling systems unobstructed by cabling, since raised floor data centers typically store wiring under the floor tiles.
Enhanced Cooling
Another benefit of raised flooring is its ability to handle higher heat densities. To keep servers cool and prevent the problems that come with overheating, data centers with raised floors place perforated floor tiles in cold aisles. These tiles allow for controlled airflow management and effective cooling.
Using a raised floor is the simplest way to achieve hot/cold aisle containment, since it doesn’t require new walls or structures. Using raised flooring as a cooling solution may also help you keep data center operating costs down, as airflow cools servers without additional fans or systems that use electricity.
Flexibility and Adaptability
Modular raised flooring also offers enhanced flexibility and adaptability. If you want to rearrange servers, you can move the perforated floor tiles easily to maintain effective cooling. You have complete control over your data center’s setup.
In addition, having a raised access floor makes data center maintenance simple. You can terminate cables wherever you need to and access cabling safely without using a ladder.
Contact DataSpan for Raised Flooring Solutions
Raised floor systems provide excellent scalability, cooling and adaptability, benefiting data centers by preventing downtime, streamlining management and enabling fast growth. At DataSpan, we’re dedicated to helping you get the raised floor solutions you need to make the best use of these systems. Our helpful experts can make design recommendations, help you configure your underfloor cable trays to handle higher heat densities and provide raised flooring options from a range of trusted vendors.
We have 50 years of experience serving data centers. To see how we can help you find a raised flooring system that meets your needs, find a local representative or reach out to us online today.
