Critical start-up points monitoring in data centers

‘Data doesn’t do downtime’: these are the well-known words of Caterpillar that perfectly capture the essence of emergency power in data centers. In data centers, only one thing truly matters: continuity. Every component that contributes to a data center's availability must be demonstrably reliable, especially when it comes to the emergency power system. That is why we monitor the Critical Startup Points of these systems, aiming to ensure maximum uptime.

Critical Startup Points: smart monitoring

Ultimately, it all comes down to one thing: ensuring the system starts during a power outage. Periodic maintenance according to a standard schedule is no longer the norm at Zeppelin Power; instead, we monitor critical components that are essential to the startup process of an emergency power system. This allows us to guarantee fully predictable performance in the end.

The 2023 Annual Outages Analysis by the Uptime Institute clearly shows in numbers how crucial a flawlessly operating emergency power system is in data centers and how costly outages can be:

One-third cost more than $100,000

One-quarter cost over $1 million

There are rare cases of $150 million

Important: 78% of data center managers indicated that the last major outage could have been prevented with better processes, monitoring, or configuration. Our periodic checks on the Critical Startup Points help contribute to that preventability.

One step further: insight into the critical factors that make or break a startup

Klaas Krook is Account Manager Service Data Centers at Zeppelin Power: “An emergency power system is only as reliable as its weakest link,” says Klaas. “In practice, we see that failures are almost never caused by the engine block itself, but by the surrounding elements: for example, fluid levels or electrical components that may be stuck. We call these elements the Critical Startup Points. If even one of them fails, the system won’t start, and that is exactly where data centers cannot take any risks. By focusing on these points in our maintenance, we can efficiently and effectively ensure the startup reliability of the emergency power system.”

Where traditional maintenance mainly focuses on intervals and wear, this new service approach targets the functions of these critical components. These elements are periodically inspected so that deviations can be detected early. Klaas: “Through monitoring, we can intervene before a deviation leads to a failure to start. This is an approach that cannot be achieved with traditional maintenance. With this, we significantly increase reliability.”

"In practice, we see that failures are almost never caused by the engine block itself, but by the surrounding components."

From reactive to proactive for data centers

Our monitoring fits within a broader trend: data centers are looking for suppliers who not only perform maintenance but also ensure availability. That is where our focus lies.

This data-driven approach aligns with the way data centers operate themselves: by continuously measuring, analyzing, and optimizing, a clear picture emerges of the health of each critical power unit and its subsystems.

Thanks to this service offering from Zeppelin Power:

interventions shift from reactive to predictive
the likelihood of startup failure decreases significantly
components are inspected based on data, not on time intervals
data centers can better support audits and compliance

"Through monitoring, we can intervene before a deviation leads to a failure to start."

Ready for the next step

The market is moving fast, the load on the grid is increasing, and the reliance on emergency power is growing. By combining monitoring, critical spare parts nearby, and a dedicated data center team, Zeppelin Power offers a service that meets the demands of modern data centers.

Klaas: “Our goal is simple: a data center should never be caught by surprise. With this approach of monitoring, measuring, and responding, we ensure that a system does what it is supposed to do - always.”