The Perfect Raised Floor
A raised floor is a crucial aspect of data centre design, because it affects rack location and the method by which power, refrigerated air and communications are supplied to it.
How should the perfect raised floor be designed? Generally, it should be based on a front-to-back cooling system with rows of racks facing each other. Chilled air is fed to air vents in the raised floor in front of the racks – this comes from air conditioning units blowing into the space formed by the raised floor. Precautions when fitting a raised floor
The area housing the equipment should be pressure sealed because chilled conditioned air can escape through poorly finished floor tiles. Worse, unsealed service penetrations such as cables or pipes into the area can help the spread of fire.
Never use the under floor area for any purpose except the supply of air and the distribution of cables. All cables should be safety checked and positioned so that airflow is not impeded, and all redundant cables should be removed.
Disabled access is also an important consideration when fitting a raised floor. Ramps need to be built in so that wheelchair users can access the raised floor from the normal floor level.
Designing and installing the perfect raised floor is a task best left to the experts. Fieldmans Access Floors Ltd has been successfully installing raised floors in the UK and abroad for 20 years. Quality and job satisfaction are always the highest priority. For more information, please call 0208 462 7100 or write to Enquiries@Fieldmans.com. |
