Modular IT Rooms

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Remtech Modular IT Room
Physically Secure + Fire, Heat & Water Protected
Blast protection or bomb protection from flying glass etc.

A 10 sq.m Server or Archive Storage Room to a 1000+ sq.m Data Centre
From Under £10,000 installed and fully decorated

- a fraction of the long term cost of loosing hardware, communications or data in the event of a fire or flood outside of the room! Are your critical systems physically secure?

Traditional fire rated doors and wall materials (plasterboard, block, concrete, etc.) will only keep the flames out of your comms room. Fire suppression systems will only protect from internal fires. They will not protect against the

heat, smoke, dust and fire fighting water

that will cripple your systems and corrupt your data in the event of an external fire.
Other physical dangers to critical systems not protected by traditional building methods include:

Explosion Electromagnetic pulses that occur with all explosions Broken window glass and exposure to the elements Vandalism & Theft Plasterboard panels are very easily breached Dust – circulated by air conditioning systems General build up in ceiling voids Plaster dust from damaged plasterboard Flood Burst water pipes Weather related Fire fighting water (often causes more damage than the fire they extinguish

The Solution: The Remtech ModularIT Room

Independently tested by The Loss Prevention Certification Board to LPS 1208 Issue 2

Steel faced pre-finished wall and ceiling panels with a high performance thermal barrier core that lock together to form a protective enclosure that is quick and clean to build to any size

All points of cable & service entry are protected by our high performance sealed transit system or with simple intumescent material that expands with heat to fill any voids left by burnt cables.

The System can be

• Built slab to slab for partial protection (but better than plasterboard)
• As a 5 sided box with walls, ceiling and doors
• Or with an optional steel floor to provide additional protection against electromagnetic pulses (generated in an explosion) and radio frequencies

Ceiling panels are self supporting up to 6m spans Over 6m we can use an existing roof structure (if available) or build an independent steel frame

• Quick and clean to build
• Modularity ensures ease of extension or complete relocation
• Does not have to depend on or affect the fabric of the building – hence the system is ideal for leased or listed buildings and an ideal product for leasing itself
• Build in an office, warehouse or car park with a weatherproof roof

20m x 15m room built in a warehouse

9m x 5m room built in a car park adjacent to a loading bay. Built in the factory in 2 halves, delivered to site and assembled in a few hours.

Existing 3m x 4m computer room upgraded and extended. Internal false ceiling removed. 2 existing partition walls lined on inside face – to above ceiling cable trays. 3rd wall with cable runs, data/power dado left in place with new panels cladding outside face (new panels placed to join at cable entry position, shaped around cables and sealed with an intumescent material that expands under heat). The fourth wall removed and a new wall and door system constructed to provide larger space. Roof panels laid and false ceiling replaced.

New comms room 20m x 10m inside warehouse space. Large span roof supports, 1 double and 1 single door system with outer ramps/steps, false floor and ceiling, air conditioning, internal fire suppression, lighting, UPS, floor power and data sockets with full electrical installation. Fitted out with patch and universal server cabinets plus bespoke console furniture and visual display wall in Network Operations Centre.

Shell only or complete fit out and project management available:
UPS – Electrical Installation - Air Con – Fire Suppression – Raised Floor
Server Racks – Switches – Environmental and Security Monitoring

TESTING AND CERTIFICATION Loss Prevention Certification Board: LPS 1208 Issue 2 – FR60 100 minutes integrity plus 85 minutes insulation
The system was furnace tested by the LPCB to 950 degC. according to BS 476 pt22 at the Building Research Establishment. At 30 minutes there was ‘no discernable rise’ at the unexposed face. At 60 minutes the mean temperature was just 40 degC at the unexposed face. (Traditional ‘1 hour’ rated materials will exceed 120 degC after 60 minutes). Hardware will be corrupted at 75 degC and computer media at 55 degC.
BS/EN1047 – The EU standard for resistance to fire for computer room construction – stipulates a maximum increase of 50 degC. (e.g. 70 degC if starting temp is 20 degC). The patented core material is structurally stable and contains no CFC’s or any other elements that are harmful to the environment Advantages of ModularIT System Over Traditional Build Quick and clean to build to any size in any space Easily extended or relocated Protects critical hardware and data from flame plus heat, water, smoke, dust, EMP, vandalism, sabotage, theft and explosion Steel skin provides good physical security (additional steel reinforcement can be built into the panels) and protection from window blast in an outside explosion Protects from falling debris and water from above Removes the problems of dust and debris building up in a ceiling void (surface mounted lighting is fixed directly to ceiling panels) No harmful plaster dust from broken plasterboard panel Cost effective solution - only a small increase over traditional build as a proportion of total build and fit-out cost Meets Turnbull recommendation that Directors (or others ultimately responsible for the continuity of the organisation) follow a ‘best practice’ adherence to a set of operational risk factors – by building to the highest affordable recognised standards

TRADITIONAL COMPUTER ROOM CONSTRUCTION:

The Dangers

Traditionally, critical centralised hardware has at best been protected by internal fire suppression systems and building products (brick, block, concrete and ‘fire rated’ plasterboard panels) that simply halt the spread of flame. These measures are designed only to contain or control a fire originating inside the computer room and will not ensure business continuity or disaster recovery following a fire outside the computer room. They simply delay the spread of flame. These are all porous materials that will not protect against water from flooding, burst pipes or high-pressure hoses. Concrete, brick and block materials also hold water from manufacture that is released during heating – leading to humidity levels that are damaging to hardware. Damaged ‘fire rated’ plasterboard panels (which are easily damaged) can contaminate an entire computer room environment with fine white gyproc dust and with the aid of the air conditioning system can penetrate every piece of equipment - causing untold damage and possibly invalidate maintenance agreements.

The Remtech ModularIT System provides insulation and flame resistance, is non porous and has a pre-finished steel surface that will not break up and contaminate the environment.

Traditional ceilings collect contamination

A recent study found that the void area above suspended ceilings and the building materials used in construction proved to be a significant factor in the contamination of operating room areas. Brick and cement surfaces are often exposed in ceiling voids and are not sealed. Many also have fibreglass insulation that is enclosed in plastic. All too often this was found split open - leaving loose fibreglass particles exposed. Many ceilings capture and harbour airborne debris due to the air movement towards the ceiling void area. This debris builds up and drops back into the operations areas.

When air conditioning systems shut down, contamination in the ceiling area falls and settles onto equipment and media. When the air conditioning is restarted the resulting airflow will agitate and migrate contamination once again.

The Remtech ModularIT System is generally constructed without a suspended ceiling. Services (lighting, fire suppression pipes, etc) are face fixed to the pre-finished steel faced ceiling panels.

Floors and the clean air channel

The floor void is normally used as an air channel from the pre filtered air inlet, and air conditioning system. It is from the floor void that air is projected up into the room area via special inlet grills. Floor voids can become a constant source of debris into the room area. Many floor substrates are often not sealed and cement dust is a major contamination problem. Floors that have been sealed using the incorrect sealant could also brake up and also contaminate the environment.

Side walls within floor void areas are often exposed brick and cement. Within some rooms the partitioning walls are constructed of plaster board which extends under the floor void. This can lead to the added problem of plaster board break-up - which also migrates with the airflow into the room area. The migration of debris is a continual process. However, should the floor void be contaminated when a fire suppression system is discharged, the room area will become an environmental disaster.

The Remtech ModularIT System provides a steel floor surface under the raised floor and steel faced wall panels extend from the floor slab to the ceiling panels.

Risk Management

The UK Turnbull Report on risk management and business continuity strategies recommended to company directors (and others ultimately responsible for the continuity of any organisation) that they follow a ‘best-practice’ adherence to a set of operational risk standards.

Essentially Turnbull challenges boards to identify strategic risks to the business. Once those risks have been identified, the board must analyse and prioritise these risks. Two elements will result from each risk – the impact of the risk or event and the likelihood of it happening.

Reducing the likelihood of fire depends heavily on the ‘human factor’ (which cannot be controlled or guaranteed) and the safety of the elements that make up modern working environments (if it can go wrong - it will go wrong at some time). Reducing the impact of a fire on critical centralised computing systems that are vital to business continuity can be guaranteed by building the highest standard affordable protected environment to minimise the time taken to become operational after a serious fire and ensure the survival of the organisation.

In these very troubled times, serious consideration must be given to ensuring business continuity by investing in the best available computer room security and protection for our critical IT systems. The Remtech ModularIT Room meets that specification.