We co-locate in the Global Switch data centre which is located in Ultimo in Sydney, Australia. This location is ideal as it is conveniently located on the fringe of the Sydney CBD and has the ability for customers to connect with practically any carrier.
Global Switch is a Tier III (near Tier IV, as specified by the Uptime Institute) data centre and provides customers with an unparalleled level of security and availability.
Security
All access to the facility is via a security lobby area that is manned 24/7 by security guards with at least two security guards on duty after hours, with more guards during business hours.
Access to the facility is always by means of positive identity verification, passing through mantraps is required to move beyond the security lobby, and there are multiple swipe card doors to pass before a person is able to reach any co-location areas.
Global Switch complies with Federal Government security standards and requirements for the IT hosting of Government Departments.
Power
Power to Global Switch is fed by dual 33kV incoming feeders direct from an Energy Australia zone substation, with the redundant feeders being connected through physically diverse entry points.
The incoming 33kV power feeds are each fed into seperate N+1 11kV stepdown transformer groups, which is then fed through flywheel rotary UPS units which will power the facility for the brief period of time until the diesel generators come online.
At present there is an array of 10 2.2MVA hot start backup generators deployed in an N+1 configuration, with an eventual capability for 22 generators in total.
The 11kV power is distributed around the facility with N+1 cabling, with multiple step down transformers and static switches in place on every floor of the facility.
Cooling
Global Switch currently has 3 4.5MW Trane water chillers in place with upgrades to a total of 9 of these units currently underway. Chilled water is distributed to every floor via N+1 piping. The data centre is fitted with physically diverse incoming water feeds from the street mains and an on site storage tank to act as a back up in the event that both water mains fail.
Customer equipment is cooled by multiple PCUs in each suite, with racks and cooling vents being layed out in a modern “hot row/cold row” manner.
Connectivity
There is a Meet Me Room (MMR) where telco circuits are distributed at both the North and the South end of the building, and each of these is fed via multiple fibre pits around the building ensuring maximum resilience in the case of a cable breakages caused by either external or internal issues.
Fire Supression
All co-location areas within the data centre are fitted with VESDA (Very Early Smoke Detection Alarm) smoke detection equipment.
In the event that a fire breaks out, Global Switch is fitted with an Inergen gas fire supression system which is piped to every suite with N+1 piping. There are also additional Inergen gas tanks fitted in every suite in the case that the redundant piping fails.
Also, as a last resort, there is an interlocked dry pipe sprinkler system fitted that will only be charged if allowed by staff or if a pre-determined amount of time has passed and there has been no staff intervention.
