Data centre professionals in Melbourne became Australia’s first contingent to explore Rittal’s new data centre container.

Held at Melbourne’s iconic MCG Cricket Ground, yesterday’s show marked the debut of the six city road show as Rittal showcases data centre innovations to capital cities Australia wide. Rittal met with over 70 delegates from major operators including IBM, Ford, HP, Telstra and Cisco throughout the day.

“I was really impressed with Rittal’s latest product offering” says Telstra data centre manager Robert Camaliri.

“I can see huge potential for Telstra’s Mobile Net. This container would allow our team to significantly increase mobile capacity when required temporarily such as at major events.”

Rittal’s mobile IT container is 18sqm, 3.25m high, with a complete, fully functioning live data centre inside. The Data Centre Container includes Rittal’s complete range of data centre solutions including racks, power, cooling, security and remote management.

As promised, Melbourne delegates were given the opportunity to See. Touch. Tour. Over three sessions, delegates saw presentations from Rittal and partners, Sage and Kidde followed by an interactive tour of the live data centre.

Rittal’s business unit manager Mark Roberts presented the major features and benefits of Rittal’s next generation of containerised data centres.

“Rittal has three cooling options on offer. Direct free cooling has proven particularly popular. Available in the containerised solution, Direct Free Cooling provides up to 40% savings on the usual costs of cooling. When the climate is too hot, Rittal’s DX system kicks in,” he says.

Referencing Rittal’s numerous national and international customer sites; Mark discussed the value of Rittal’s mobile data room for Western Australia’s Department of Mines.

“The focus mine site is viable for a maximum of three years. Once the iron ore is absorbed the mining company must move on to a new location. With Rittal’s data centre container, the investment is no longer tied up in traditional bricks and mortar. Rather the data centre will travel as required. Furthermore, as a modular design, customers can invest today, with the assurance that they are able to grow in the future.”

“The expandability is very applicable to our applications” says Air Services Australia IT manager Geert Devries.

“Fast deployment, durability and expandability are a major focus. The Rittal product appears to deliver on all of these.”

Rittal’s partners, Sage and Kidde also presented their solutions.

“It was a great opportunity to meet with data centre professionals from Melbourne,” says Sage business development manager Leon Efrimidis.

“Sage has enjoyed a close partnership with Rittal for many years, meeting highest compliance standards for a range of defence contracts including Air Warfare Destroyers. We look forward to partnering with Rittal into the future incorporating Sage automation and switchboard designs into Rittal data centre containers.”

Kidde supplied fire detection and suppression solutions to the data centre container.

“High Sensitive Smoke Detection, Senator Units (HSSD) are ideal for data centre environments as they offer the earliest warning smoke detection,” says Kidde business development manager Dino Josefski.

“Furthermore, the Novec extinguishing system is a clean agent, safe for manned areas and electrically non conductive. Kidde technology safeguards critical data assets. The Kidde/Rittal partnership is an easy fit.”

Rittal’s IT team were very pleased with the response to the RDCC Road Show.

“Delegates were very interested in the innovation on offer,” says Mark Roberts.

“This solution is proven to reduce initial capital expenditure and running costs, plus it can be delivered and installed within 16-18 weeks from design phase. In short, the Rittal data centre container is the simplest and easiest way to reduce PUE, maximise efficiency and reduce carbon footprint.”

Rittal’s RDCC Road Show continues to visit capital cities Australia wide. Next stop, Canberra Airport – where government and commercial professionals will visit the facility for mission critical applications. Delegates will also have the opportunity to explore the award winning, highest security LSR room, also on show at Rittal Canberra.

Locations and dates

Melbourne: 30 April – 4 May
Canberra: 7-11 May
Sydney: CeBIT Australia 22-24 May
Brisbane: 18-22 June
Adelaide: 2-6 July
Perth: 9-27 July