It’s said that after its employees, a company’s greatest asset is its data. After completing digital transformation, businesses have a wealth of data that holds the secrets to customer preferences, market trends, and more. Data centers store and protect this precious information, making it available 24/7, year-round. However, maintaining perfect data center uptime requires real human talent.
While IT may get all the attention, electricians, HVAC technicians, security guards, and others play equally important roles in keeping these facilities humming with perfect uptime. That’s why data center facilities staffing is on the minds of leaders and decision-makers in industries as varied as manufacturing and healthcare — and they’re turning to staffing partners for help with their facilities management workforce.
What Is Data Center Uptime?
Data center uptime is the percentage of time a facility remains operational and available. The “gold standard” is often referred to as five nines, or 99.999% availability. That adds up to just minutes of allowable downtime per year.
For many industries, the five nines are not negotiable. At a financial institution or a logistics hub, even a few seconds of interruption can halt transactions and corrupt critical data. In healthcare facilities, prolonged downtime can be a literal life-or-death crisis.
Studies have found that unplanned outages can cost enterprises an average of $9,000 per minute. Beyond the immediate financial hit, the long-term damage to a company’s reputation can be even worse. Clients lose trust, and businesses lose their competitive advantage, all because of a preventable facility failure.
The Role of Facilities Teams in Data Centers
IT teams manage servers and software, so many people assume they handle everything else in a data center. In reality, the facilities management (FM) team is responsible for the critical physical environment that enables IT hardware to operate. FM teams oversee the complex electrical distribution systems data centers require, complete with generators and battery-powered backups for when the grid fails. They also manage the HVAC systems that prevent sensitive equipment from overheating.
Facilities staff are often tasked with data center security. They manage access control systems, monitor surveillance cameras, and prevent unauthorized personnel from accessing sensitive hardware.
Staffing Strategies for Optimal Data Center Performance
Given the FM team’s responsibilities, it’s clear that achieving 100% uptime is impossible without qualified personnel. A single error by an untrained technician can bring an entire facility down.
However, the facilities management workforce has been shrinking for years, as seasoned experts retire and fewer younger workers pursue careers in the trades. Finding candidates with the unique blend of electrical knowledge, mechanical aptitude, and technical skills required for data center operations is becoming increasingly difficult each year.
Best Practices in Facilities Management for Data Centers
The increasing importance of data centers, the requirement for five-nines uptime, and a dwindling talent pool make it feel like potential disaster is always around the corner. However, it doesn’t have to be this way.
With a strong data center facilities staffing strategy, you can build the FM team needed to ensure uninterrupted uptime. Consider the best practice:
- Practice preventive maintenance: Reactive maintenance is a recipe for disaster. Top-tier teams rely on rigorous preventive maintenance schedules to identify and replace worn componentsbefore they fail.
- Standardization and training: Consistency saves the day. Documenting standard operating procedures helps ensure that every technician performs tasks consistently. Continuous training programs keep staff up to date on the latest infrastructure technologies, so that you don’t have to look to the talent market every time new technology rolls around.
- Leverage technology: Many good software and hardware solutions can help maintain uptime. Data center infrastructure management (DCIM) platforms provide real-time data on power usage and environmental conditions, among other insights. These tools can predict issues before they become problems that cause downtime.
Conclusion and Recommendations
Data center uptime requires modern infrastructure, but the skilled professionals who maintain it are equally important. No amount of redundancy can fully compensate for a lack of expertise.
If your organization is struggling to secure top-tier talent, don’t leave your uptime to chance. Snelling helps businesses across industries find the facilities teams that keep data centers running. Contact a Snelling location near you today to learn more about our specialized staffing solutions.
