Schneider delivers modular data centre solution to support 150-year Sagrada Família build
Mon 9 Mar 2015
Schneider Electric, the global energy management and automation giant, has announced that it has completed a customised data centre build to provide Antoni Gaudí’s Sagrada Família with the IT infrastructure needed to manage operations at the UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The Barcelona-based church, which attracts over three million visitors annually, was in need of a customised and portable storage solution to replace its small server room and respond to the growing capacity demands required by the church’s business functions, such as email, security operations, tourism control and digital ticketing while the site is still under construction.
“Today, there is no longer a one size fits all approach to data centre design and build. For Sagrada Família, it was clear that a flexible and portable, yet powerful facility was needed to meet the unique demands of their growing business,” said Kevin Brown, vice president, global data centre strategy and technology, at Schneider Electric. “Schneider Electric is privileged to work with this UNESCO World Heritage Site to deliver a prefabricated data centre solution that not only fits within the complex environment around the Sagrada Família, but delivers the security, availability, reliability and agility needed to support this popular attraction during and after construction.”
Construction on the Sagrada Família started in 1882 and is not expected to be completed until 2028. Considering the complex nature of the build and tourist management, it was not an option to set up a data centre facility within the building. A prefabricated modular data centre was created to facilitate portability and reduce installation pressures, as well as preventing any disruption to tourists or contractors.
The module was delivered on site last week, complete with racks, UPS, power distribution, cooling and management pre-installed and ready for deployment. Schneider will also be providing ongoing maintenance support for the church’s new data centre.
