Higher education IT
Oxford, England
Track Busway 250T5, 32 amp single phase plug-in units
Approximately 70 server racks
Oxford’s IT Services department runs the university’s central IT: email, the main internet connection used by every department, and the network infrastructure and security behind it. Four internal data centers support that work.
Power reached the racks through hardwired 32 amp commando sockets in an overhead system with fixed positions. Changing anything meant an electrician, new cable, and downtime, which is expensive in a mission critical environment.
The larger problem was protection. Circuits were tripping, and because protection was not localized, a single fault caused multiple outages and left the team checking a large number of breakers at the main distribution panel to find the cause.
Installation included a Starline 250T5 Track Busway system with 32 amp single phase plug-in units, with the option to convert to three phase later. The recommendation came from Cambridge University.
A fault now stops at the rack where it started. Data Centers Manager David Birds described being able to go directly above the rack in question and see that the breaker has tripped, rather than working back to a distribution board. Electrical changes no longer require an electrician, which removed both the cost and the downtime.
Tell us what your building has to do and we will tell you whether busway is the right answer for it.
