Shedding Light On Data Centers

At ArchLIGHT Summit in September, I met staff from a lighting manufacturer named Lantana. One of Lantana’s specialties is lighting for data centers, specifically linear architectural luminaires with remote drivers and PoE options. The company cites that they’ve installed over 70,000 luminaires, 6,500 low voltage systems, and illuminated over 30 million square feet of data centers, nationally. Lantana published a fact sheet on their lighting solutions for data centers that details some interesting aspects of data center lighting:

Lantana data center lighting fact sheet

• During the pandemic, e-commerce grew dramatically, creating a significant surge in data center construction that continues today.
• Rising demand for high-performance computing (HPC) is causing an increase in data rack density. Servers, storage racks, and networking devices require increasing amounts of energy as computer density increases. Energy per rack has recently increased by 300 to 500%. One hyperscale data center can require the energy of 80,000 US households. Electricity for data centers includes server energy as well as significant cooling energy.
• Many data centers have hot aisle heat conditions that can jeopardize conventional fixtures.
• Data centers typically have no windows and flat black equipment cabinets, eliminating daylight and much of the reflected light. Poorly placed lighting can cast shadows, impairing the servicing of equipment.
• Lighting maintenance above server racks risks costly damage to sensitive equipment. Remote drivers outside the server rooms provide easy access that protects servers. It can also avoid electrical shutdowns that could impact servers.
• Remoting drivers can move most of the heat generated by luminaires to outside the server rooms.
• There are different applications within data centers. The lighting requirements for a colocation (data center in a 3^rd-party leased facility) differ from an enterprise hyperscale (significantly larger data centers, typically for large, high tech companies).

Download the Lantana Data Center Fact Sheet, here.

David Shiller

David Shiller is the Publisher of LightNOW, and President of Lighting Solution Development, a North American consulting firm providing business development services to advanced lighting manufacturers. The ALA awarded David the Pillar of the Industry Award. David has co-chaired ALA’s Engineering Committee since 2010. David established MaxLite’s OEM component sales into a multi-million dollar division. He invented GU24 lamps while leading ENERGY STAR lighting programs for the US EPA. David has been published in leading lighting publications, including LD+A, enLIGHTenment Magazine, LEDs Magazine, and more.

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