So, you get a new cooling system or a new generator and you think you’re set. The equipment is of such top-notch quality, and made really well, so you can just kick back and relax, and let it do its thing while you put any thoughts of future maintenance or service for the equipment in the back of your mind. Bury it away for another time. At least until something acts up.

Right??....

WRONG!

The power is yours to prevent something from going wrong in the first place. All the more reason not to take a dangerous gamble, risking the chance that the thing that goes wrong will be the priciest or most significant of repairs. Just show your equipment, even the shiny new stuff you just installed, some TLC, and you’ll stay ahead of the game. 

Soon you will see for yourself that the key to getting the most out of your equipment is being proactive. For example, checking on certain things in between scheduled preventative maintenance visits (we're talking oils, coolants, debris, filters, and more) will optimize efficiency and help you recognize potential issues that you can prevent from snowballing into something even worse down the road. 

Your ultimate goal is to comfortably rely on your investment for many more years to come.

Set yourself up for success. Check out these documents for pointers on how you can show your HVAC systems and Generators the love and attention they deserve.

Since we began our DVL Power Hour webinar series a few years ago, we've been able to bring you more than 40 live episodes. We’ve hosted many discussions about a variety of topics related to critical infrastructure and data centers. Thermal Management. Batteries. E-Rates. Green Data. Pandemics. Service. We’ve talked about all of this and more, as we welcomed guests from some of our partners, such as representatives from Vertiv, Generac, Critical Labs, Packet Power, and more, as well as some of our customers, and even scientists who have helped explain some of the latest technologies and trends.

If you haven’t had the chance to tune in for any of these webinars, or haven't in a while, we hope you’ll make your way over to our list of past webinars, as all our previously broadcasted webinar episodes can be accessed on-demand via our website. We invite you to browse topics and titles to find any that may interest you.

Some of our most popular episodes include:

• "How to Choose the Right Cooling System"
• "The Importance of Indoor Air Quality"
• "Research & Development: Advanced Methods of Cooling Electronics"
• "Power Distribution in Critical Facilities"
• "Expanding the Monitoring Equation: Alert Management to Risk Mitigation"
• "NFPA Standards & Generator UL Listings with Generac"

As far as new webinar episodes go, we are currently on a break for the summer, but check back soon for more information. We will continue to bring you new episodes on a monthly basis. In the meantime, if you'd prefer, all our webinars are ALSO available in a podcast format as well. Episodes have been edited down--you won't be able to see video or slides, but will still get to enjoy some interesting conversations and insights into the critical infrastructure world while on the go. We hope you'll tune in. And if you have any questions or comments, please reach us at Marketing@DVLnet.com.

DID YOU KNOW? All five DVL offices in Philadelphia, Albuquerque, Denver, Harrisburg, and Salt Lake City, have a parts department that you can contact to order emergency parts, portable cooling, or even a customizable spare parts kit. Spare parts for your equipment can be invaluable to have on-hand BEFORE you need them, especially with supply chains as unreliable as they are today. You don't want to be waiting for a piece in the mail that you need to have installed in your data center right away. We recommend a Spare Parts Kit, tailored to your equipment and needs. Don't be left out in the cold (or heat) waiting for much-needed thermal management parts to arrive, AFTER your equipment has called it quits due to a broken piece.

In need of Liebert or Generac parts or portable air conditioners?
Please contact the Parts Department at your local DVL office.

As Dave Rubcich (Vertiv’s VP, Key Accounts- Multi-Tenant) puts it, “you can’t be sustainable without being efficient,” and “if you’re going to have a sustainable data center you’re certainly going to be efficient—but you can be efficient without being sustainable.” He cautions they are two different terms not to be confused with one another.

Data center energy efficiency has varying driving factors for the range of effects yielded. When infrastructure and equipment are more energy efficient in the way they work, one of the most favorable results is the fact that operating costs will go down. Also, less repairs are needed, and less equipment too, which results in more open space in your data center. Lastly, but perhaps most importantly, the less energy that is used, the less of an impact you have on the environment and its natural resources. That’s where sustainability comes into the picture.

Sustainability is becoming more and more companies’ priority, but can have different meanings depending on how you’re looking at the issue. Overall, we are trying to sustain the levels of natural resources we have on the planet so as not to contribute to global warming, or even my some miracle make a dent in efforts to reduce it. To work towards this, data centers are striving to have absolutely no impact on the planet.

It is a dream of an ideal scenario. The way Vertiv sees it, sustainability means zero losses, zero carbon, zero water, and zero waste. “We’re nowhere near there today,” Rubcich admits, “But if we don’t start thinking about it, we can never get there.” So, is it plausible to truly not use any natural resources? Not today, but down the road, it’s the long-term goal, but only once real efforts have been made to chip away at the issue. Rubcich adds, “If you’re going to be carbon neutral or carbon negative, you’re not going to be using generators that are running on diesel fuels.” Alternative energy sources will be a must, going into the future.
Elsewhere, in the case of cooling equipment that rely on water, and therefore the equipment’s WUE (water usage effectiveness) is measured, there has been considerable movement away from certain any of these technologies that use a large supply water. Total water usage is becoming a leading factor for companies’ decision-making criteria for new equipment.

So, in what other way can end-users start to include sustainability strategies in the present-day operations of their data center? Rubcich notes that there are already a number of products readily available on the market today that are going to help improve overall efficiency of the data center and will help drive some of the sustainability goals. For example, pumped refrigerant as an economizer, as is the case with the Vertiv DX system, which doesn’t use any water.

Vertiv, along with many other companies are ramping up their efforts to be innovative with all types of technologies. Companies like Microsoft, Google, Amazon, and are able to make commitments for sustainability milestones in the future. For example, Microsoft is committed to use 100% renewables by 2025, and to be carbon-negative by 2030. While some companies’ sustainability goals seem like far off pipedreams, they are on the right path as they have brought on C-suite level sustainability officers to create and implement certain strategies to attain these results. As Rubcich points out, “when you’re hiring [someone to focus on sustainability] at that level, you’re committed to it.” And it is that commitment that will make it a reality.

To explore more of this subject with Dave Rubcich, we invite you to listen to our recent Podcast, The Cooler Side of Data Center Sustainability.

Just five months into 2021, we, the employee owners of DVL, already have several positive milestones to be thankful for. Earlier this year we were recognized with the Pinnacle Award from our friends at Vertiv, given to Local Vertiv Offices that have shown excellence in many aspects of the partnership. We were then named the Company of the Year by the Pennsylvania/Delaware Chapter of the ESOP Association, awarded to a company that excels at engaging its employee owners and educating them about the ESOP and company culture. While still basking in this glow, we received confirmation that DVL has been certified as a Great Place to Work® for the 4^th consecutive year!

Great Place to Work® is a global authority on workplace culture and employee experience, so their praise is an incredible honor, one which we do not take for granted. This accomplishment isn’t something we were able to earn overnight, it has taken many many days, and years of promoting our core values of Caring, Collaboration, Creativity, Integrity, and Professionalism to our associates. This is a large part of what Sarah Lewis-Kulin, the vice president of global recognition at Great Place to Work, means when she says, a “Great Place to Work Certification™ isn’t something that comes easily – it takes ongoing dedication to the employee experience.” And, as an ESOP, this dedication is second nature for us all.

Each year, Great Place to Work® certifies roughly 2,000 US companies. The rating is based entirely on what the companies’ active employees say about their experience working for the company. Employees anonymously complete an extensive Trust Index™ survey to determine numerous things, including their satisfaction with resources and responsibilities they are given, as well as if they think management is fair and ethical. When summed up, 93% of DVL’s 130+ associates said DVL is a great place to work. This figure is a whopping 34 percent higher than the average US company. A summary of these ratings can be found here. 

Conversely, some of our survey results were not as high as we would’ve liked. These findings serve as useful tools, as leadership can find and address areas in which improvement is needed. Whether a score is on the lower side or a number that dropped from last year’s results, these anonymous responses are an opportunity for the company to hear employee’s honest feedback. Once armed with this valuable input, we work together to improve in ways that matter to our associates.

Currently, DVL is on the lookout for our next employee owners. So, if you or someone you know would like the opportunity to have “not just a job, but a career” (as CEO Gary Hill likes to say), then check out our current open positions located in PA, CO, NM, and UT. Thanks to the Trust Index survey results, we know that if you’re hired, you can rest assured that 96% of your future co-workers agree that “when you join the company, you are made to feel welcome.” So, whether you’re on Day 1 or Day 10,950 (like some of our longest tenured employees) you’ll be a valued member of the DVL family.