The Data Center as a Smart Grid

Presenters:  Mark A. Ascolese, Chief Executive Officer, EDSA, with Kfir Godrich, Vice President, HP Enterprise Business; and Alain Steven, Chief Technology Officer and Senior Vice President, Viridity Energy

Tuesday, May 18
2:45-3:15 pm, Gibson

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Not long ago, the idea of operating a mission-critical facility as an autonomous microgrid, one that was "hot-pluggable" on and off the public grid as needed, would have been as far-fetched as building one on a fault line. The greatest obstacle was the fact that the two vital software technologies required - a master controller, and an energy pricing/optimization engine - were at least five years from being commercially viable, according to industry experts. Someone forgot to tell EDSA and Viridity Energy: the two companies have partnered with UC San Diego - already one of the most technologically advanced campus-wide microgrids in the world - to develop one of the first highly-reliable campus microgrids. The implications for data center operators are enormous... bringing them closer to the day when they will be able to make real-time expert decisions about when to rely on self-generated power, when to switch to utility power, and when to sell excess power back to the public grid, all without jeopardizing reliability. Don't miss the sneak preview of what's coming to a data center power grid near you.