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Minkels Launches Varicontrol 1.0: Data Centre Monitoring & Management With all KPIs
HIGH WYCOMBE, England, December 7, 2010/PRNewswire/ -- Minkels, a major European manufacturer of cooling, monitoring and housing
solutions for data centres, has introduced the Varicontrol 1.0 software
product to the market, supported by Minkels UK based in High Wycombe. This is
a fully integrated, brand-independent data centre monitoring system, which
uses sensors to measure, analyse and manage aspects including power
consumption, temperature, air humidity, air flows, access and fire detection.
Minkels developed the monitoring system in cooperation with the
University of Antwerp and leading customers. The monitoring system comprises
all the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) required to manage the entire
infrastructure of a data centre environment cost-effectively. The system
accesses all the real-time data required from the various types of
infrastructural equipment in a data centre, including PDUs, chillers, CRAC
units, UPSs, coolers, cameras and fire detectors.
Managing a data centre using Varicontrol 1.0
"Existing data centre monitoring & management systems are primarily
designed for the monitoring and management of individual pieces of data
centre equipment, which are often brand-specific," explains Jeroen Hol,
Minkels' Chief Commercial Officer (CCO). "Varicontrol 1.0 is different. It
serves as a sort of umbrella for the measurement, analysis and management of
all parameters in the data centre, in which brand-specific protocols can
communicate with one another and all the management information is
accumulated in a single, central database. This makes the underlying
technology and systems transparent to users. It is an open-source platform
that supports all the popular protocols, including SNMP, Modbus and various
others."
As a manufacturer, Minkels is aware that many commercial data centres,
corporate data centres and SME data centres throughout Europe currently lack
a fully integrated monitoring system. Mr Hol says: "They do often use a
Building Management System (BMS) for instance, for the general control and
management of the data centre. However, a BMS offers little scope for
interaction with IT, as it is usually installed from the real estate
perspective, which implies that it does not fully comply with the increasing
needs of data centre managers, in terms of operational excellence."
Mr Hol: "Anyone who aspires to achieve operational excellence in a data
centre therefore requires a means of managing all the KPIs using a platform
in which various sub-solutions have been integrated. And this is the reason
that we developed Varicontrol 1.0, a solution which approaches the problem
specifically from the perspective of IT and the data centre infrastructure
technology. Thanks to the open source nature of the platform, it readily
enables the integration of existing management software - such as an access
control system, a Network Management System (NMS) and a building management
system (BMS) - in Varicontrol 1.0."
Operationally excellent data centre
As a manufacturer, Minkels does not consider existing management software
suitable for the detailed monitoring and management of all the processes
currently performed in a data centre. Mr Hol explains: "It is not capable of
measuring power consumption at rack level, which is currently certainly a
crucial requirement now that electricity has become a relatively large cost
item. Nor is it generally capable of managing the various power strips fitted
in each data centre rack. And finally, existing management software is not
equipped to handle IP traffic, or to collect data from routers and switches
using the SNMP protocol."
According to Minkels, there is quite a considerable market demand for a
specialised data centre management product, such as Varicontrol 1.0, which is
aimed at operational excellence in the data centre.
"Given the sharp growth of data centres during the past few years and the
increased complexity this entails, integrated monitoring & management
solutions have simply become a must," Mr Hol maintains. "Data centre
management is precision work nowadays. One simply has to endeavour to achieve
operational excellence these days in order to acquire favourable Power Usage
Effectiveness (PUE) and therefore low energy consumption. And this can only
be achieved by monitoring and analysing all the relevant parameters, without
exception. A data centre monitoring & management system like Varicontrol 1.0
offers firm footholds, which enable one to gain control of all the various
parameters, with a view to achieving optimum alignment and cost efficiency of
the technologies involved."
---------------------------------
About Minkels
Minkels B.V. (http://www.minkels.com) is a European manufacturer of total
solutions for data centre infrastructure, whose headquarters, R&D department
and assembly lines are in the Netherlands (Veghel). The firm also has
branches in the UK, France, Switzerland and Belgium. Minkels' product
portfolio is subdivided into cooling (Varicondition(R)), housing (Varicon(R))
and monitoring (Varicontrol(R)) solutions. The following are significant
products in the Minkels portfolio: Data centre watercooling solutions
(Varicondition H2O); hybrid cooling solutions, using both air and water; and
Cold Corridor systems, which are used to segregate hot and cold air flows in
the data centre.
Minkels' client base comprises prominent organisations, including
Swisscom (Switzerland), France Telecom (France), Radboud University Nijmegen
and EvoSwitch data centre (the Netherlands), as well as De Persgroep media
firm (Belgium). In view of the considerable knowledge and experience Minkels
has acquired throughout the years in the field of data centre infrastructure
solutions, it was approached by the European Commission's Joint Research
Centre (EU-JRC) in 2008, to assist in the process of drafting the EU Code of
Conduct for Data centres.
A supplier of total solutions for technology housings and cooling since
1948, Minkels is a subsidiary of the Aegide Group (
http://www.aegide-group.com), a major European player in the field of
integrated development, manufacturing and marketing of high-quality housing
solutions for the ICT and high tech OEM industries. Aegide has a workforce
comprising some 175 dedicated and experienced specialists, while its client
base includes various prominent global market players.
Source: Minkels B.V.
Press contact: Minkels European Headquarters, Maartje van Alem, Marketing Communications Coördinator, mvalem@minkels.com, +31(0)413-311-184; Minkels UK, Unit 4, Blenheim Road, M40 Industrial Centre, High Wycombe, Bucks, HP12 3RS, +44(0)1494-451706, info-uk@minkels.com; KINXX PR: Koen Stegeman, koen@kinxx.nl, +31(0)6-30491407
Minkels Launches Varicontrol 1.0: Data Centre Monitoring & Management With all KPIs
HIGH WYCOMBE, England, December 7, 2010/PRNewswire/ -- Minkels, a major European manufacturer of cooling, monitoring and housing
solutions for data centres, has introduced the Varicontrol 1.0 software
product to the market, supported by Minkels UK based in High Wycombe. This is
a fully integrated, brand-independent data centre monitoring system, which
uses sensors to measure, analyse and manage aspects including power
consumption, temperature, air humidity, air flows, access and fire detection.
Minkels developed the monitoring system in cooperation with the
University of Antwerp and leading customers. The monitoring system comprises
all the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) required to manage the entire
infrastructure of a data centre environment cost-effectively. The system
accesses all the real-time data required from the various types of
infrastructural equipment in a data centre, including PDUs, chillers, CRAC
units, UPSs, coolers, cameras and fire detectors.
Managing a data centre using Varicontrol 1.0
"Existing data centre monitoring & management systems are primarily
designed for the monitoring and management of individual pieces of data
centre equipment, which are often brand-specific," explains Jeroen Hol,
Minkels' Chief Commercial Officer (CCO). "Varicontrol 1.0 is different. It
serves as a sort of umbrella for the measurement, analysis and management of
all parameters in the data centre, in which brand-specific protocols can
communicate with one another and all the management information is
accumulated in a single, central database. This makes the underlying
technology and systems transparent to users. It is an open-source platform
that supports all the popular protocols, including SNMP, Modbus and various
others."
As a manufacturer, Minkels is aware that many commercial data centres,
corporate data centres and SME data centres throughout Europe currently lack
a fully integrated monitoring system. Mr Hol says: "They do often use a
Building Management System (BMS) for instance, for the general control and
management of the data centre. However, a BMS offers little scope for
interaction with IT, as it is usually installed from the real estate
perspective, which implies that it does not fully comply with the increasing
needs of data centre managers, in terms of operational excellence."
Mr Hol: "Anyone who aspires to achieve operational excellence in a data
centre therefore requires a means of managing all the KPIs using a platform
in which various sub-solutions have been integrated. And this is the reason
that we developed Varicontrol 1.0, a solution which approaches the problem
specifically from the perspective of IT and the data centre infrastructure
technology. Thanks to the open source nature of the platform, it readily
enables the integration of existing management software - such as an access
control system, a Network Management System (NMS) and a building management
system (BMS) - in Varicontrol 1.0."
Operationally excellent data centre
As a manufacturer, Minkels does not consider existing management software
suitable for the detailed monitoring and management of all the processes
currently performed in a data centre. Mr Hol explains: "It is not capable of
measuring power consumption at rack level, which is currently certainly a
crucial requirement now that electricity has become a relatively large cost
item. Nor is it generally capable of managing the various power strips fitted
in each data centre rack. And finally, existing management software is not
equipped to handle IP traffic, or to collect data from routers and switches
using the SNMP protocol."
According to Minkels, there is quite a considerable market demand for a
specialised data centre management product, such as Varicontrol 1.0, which is
aimed at operational excellence in the data centre.
"Given the sharp growth of data centres during the past few years and the
increased complexity this entails, integrated monitoring & management
solutions have simply become a must," Mr Hol maintains. "Data centre
management is precision work nowadays. One simply has to endeavour to achieve
operational excellence these days in order to acquire favourable Power Usage
Effectiveness (PUE) and therefore low energy consumption. And this can only
be achieved by monitoring and analysing all the relevant parameters, without
exception. A data centre monitoring & management system like Varicontrol 1.0
offers firm footholds, which enable one to gain control of all the various
parameters, with a view to achieving optimum alignment and cost efficiency of
the technologies involved."
---------------------------------
About Minkels
Minkels B.V. (http://www.minkels.com) is a European manufacturer of total
solutions for data centre infrastructure, whose headquarters, R&D department
and assembly lines are in the Netherlands (Veghel). The firm also has
branches in the UK, France, Switzerland and Belgium. Minkels' product
portfolio is subdivided into cooling (Varicondition(R)), housing (Varicon(R))
and monitoring (Varicontrol(R)) solutions. The following are significant
products in the Minkels portfolio: Data centre watercooling solutions
(Varicondition H2O); hybrid cooling solutions, using both air and water; and
Cold Corridor systems, which are used to segregate hot and cold air flows in
the data centre.
Minkels' client base comprises prominent organisations, including
Swisscom (Switzerland), France Telecom (France), Radboud University Nijmegen
and EvoSwitch data centre (the Netherlands), as well as De Persgroep media
firm (Belgium). In view of the considerable knowledge and experience Minkels
has acquired throughout the years in the field of data centre infrastructure
solutions, it was approached by the European Commission's Joint Research
Centre (EU-JRC) in 2008, to assist in the process of drafting the EU Code of
Conduct for Data centres.
A supplier of total solutions for technology housings and cooling since
1948, Minkels is a subsidiary of the Aegide Group (
http://www.aegide-group.com), a major European player in the field of
integrated development, manufacturing and marketing of high-quality housing
solutions for the ICT and high tech OEM industries. Aegide has a workforce
comprising some 175 dedicated and experienced specialists, while its client
base includes various prominent global market players.
Source: Minkels B.V.
Press contact: Minkels European Headquarters, Maartje van Alem, Marketing Communications Coördinator, mvalem@minkels.com, +31(0)413-311-184; Minkels UK, Unit 4, Blenheim Road, M40 Industrial Centre, High Wycombe, Bucks, HP12 3RS, +44(0)1494-451706, info-uk@minkels.com; KINXX PR: Koen Stegeman, koen@kinxx.nl, +31(0)6-30491407