Make any room a data centre: Huawei unveils Smart Modular Data Centre products

MONDAY, March 15, 2021

Huawei has introduced a new smart modular data centre solution for small and edge computing scenarios, including three products – FusionModule500, FusionModule800, and FusionModule2000 – designed for different industrial needs.

Promising to "Make Any Room a Data Centre", the recent online launch event gathered together Information and Communications Technology (ICT) thought leaders and key partners from across the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region.

In his opening remarks, Brandon Wu, chief technology officer at Huawei's Asia Pacific Enterprise Business Unit, emphasised the need to ensure enhanced resiliency across all industries, given the impact of the global pandemic.

Wu explored the key trends emerging in edge computing, namely better connected infrastructure, increased resiliency through the use of edge computing, and enhanced reliability through the use of artificial intelligence (AI).

Market predictions suggest that 75 per cent of all data generated by enterprises will be processed at the edge within four years.

Demand for real-time interactions is driving businesses to bring computing power closer to end-users. As a result, small and edge data centres are making appearances in several industries and scenarios:

Retail: Small and edge data centres can exist within retail outlets as retailers close the gap between online and offline sales.

Manufacturing: Edge data centres deployed in distribution warehouses are capable of managing growing volumes of inventory and shipping data; in factories, such data centres manage data generated from sensors as well as communications between equipment, contributing to a growing industrial internet of things (IIoT).

Telecoms: Central offices of telco companies are being converted to computing rooms and used as edge data centres to make networks more dynamic.

Mahesh Choudhary, solution architect for the Huawei Digital Power Line, launched the new solution directly from the Huawei Digital Power Innovation Experience Centre, offering a real-life demonstration for event attendees.

Changing the game with SmartLi inside – Huawei's smart lithium battery Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) – now any room can be made into a data centre.

Indeed, with far lower requirements placed on ceiling height, the Huawei Modular Data Centre Solution has no need for a traditional raised floor design.

Instead, air conditioner pipes and strong- and weak-current cables are routed from top-down, meaning that equipment can be accommodated in ceiling heights as low as 2.6 metres, far below the 3 metres minimum height required for a traditional data centre.

FusionModule2000 supports a single row design, with the flexible configuration of cold and hot aisle containment and simplified architecture reducing delivery time by 50 per cent compared to traditional alternatives.

FusionModule800 supports pre-integrated rack-mounted cooling and a UPS system, offering on-site installation in just four hours and service rollout in a mere two days.

FusionModule500 offers a highly integrated, one cabinet-one data centre design, requiring only a two-hour installation time, with business effectively brought online in just four hours.

At the Smart Modular Data Centre Product Launch, Huawei's partner – NetCraft Information Technology (Macau) Co Ltd – shared its experiences cooperating with Huawei. Benjiman Wong, the company's sales director, said: "With the Huawei Modular Data Centre Solution, all required components are modular.

An easy way for customers to understand this solution is to consider that each component is like a building block: you can build up your castle by adding different blocks together, so you can add more blocks in the future when needed."

Stated simply, Huawei's Smart Modular Data Centre Solution is designed as an ideal choice for small and edge data centres.