With data center customers demanding redundant, reliable cooling to safeguard the performance of data servers, Phoenix NAP chose Daikin to help them exceed those customers' expectations. Phoenix NAP, a full service data center in Phoenix, Arizona, offers their customers uninterruptible power as a provider of co-location, dedicated hosting and cloud services. As a carrier-neutral facility, the data center serves as primary network access point (NAP) for the greater southwest region, keeping its customers' data accessible 24/7, 365 days a year.

The two-story Phoenix NAP building, situated on a more than six-acre lot, officially opened its first phase in June 2010 after a complete renovation of an existing one-story warehouse. During the building design stages of that renovation, Phoenix NAP identified the top selection criteria for the facility's cooling needs as a modular solution that could accommodate future growth, concurrent maintainability and ease of maintenance.

As a result of the renovation, the facility was transformed into the mission critical data center equivalent of a Class A office building with both style and security immediately apparent upon entering the sleek lobby with guard station.

Mission-Critical Design Edge

Starting with an initial solution of two Daikin MCPs each featuring a 720- ton centrifugal chiller with variable frequency drive, Phoenix NAP then worked closely with Daikin Applied's Solutions Group to customize the modular chiller plants and add even more redundancies than a standard MCP. Specifically designed for mission-critical facilities, each of the Daikin modular plants at Phoenix NAP includes multiple internal redundancies. The units were configured with dual headers inside each plant, instead of one. In addition, dual chilled water and condenser water pumps with independent power supply and controls keep each module running separately in the case of mechanical or electrical disturbances.

The modular design, which includes removable walls and roofs on the units, enabled Phoenix NAP to meet a tight construction schedule and provided the flexibility to expand cooling capacity with minimal incremental cost compared to typical brick and mortar chiller plants. The pre-assembled units shortened on-site construction time and the pre-commissioning of select components ensured quick start-up on site.

Barry Naegele, director of Daikin MCP Solutions Sales, notes the plants at Phoenix NAP represent the most redundant cooling solution Daikin has built to date. "Uptime is the most mission-critical objective of Phoenix NAP and the cooling system needs to support that. We demonstrated that we could offer uptime support, reliability and redundancy in order to maintain the system in the internal data center environment," he says.

"We were looking for support from the holistic maintenance perspective of the units, including the pumps and controls," says Ian McClarty, President of Phoenix NAP. The Daikin MCPs were integrated with the facility's building automation system by Automated Logic Corporation (ALC) using the BACnet® open standard communication protocol. The ALC system allows for 24/7 monitoring of all building systems and offers customized views with data levels set by user requirements.

McClarty adds, "We appreciate the level of engineering by Daikin and the thought that goes into designing its solutions. For example, mechanical arms were included to hold the pumps to avoid lifting the equipment during maintenance."

Advanced Data Center Design

Phoenix NAP features industry-leading design elements, typically found only in European data centers and uses advanced security protocols to ensure data security. The design configuration separates carrier equipment from customer equipment, making maintenance easier. The advanced design includes two dedicated meet-me vaults with separate fiber runs into the building. A highly secure meet-me room and a separate cross-connect room provides carriers with their own dedicated space.

To optimize air flow, redundant computer room air handler (CRAH) units are arranged in an N+4 configuration with electronically commutated fans with V-frame coil design. Design configuration in a bidirectional closed water loop maximizes redundancy by avoiding single points of failure and allowing for concurrent maintainability.

The facility was designed for staged expansion within the current two-story structure, including the conversion of leased office space to computer rooms.