Compass Datacenters has launched a beta software project that is linking mobile and wearable technology with data center management processes. The pilot project is taking place in Compass’ suburban Columbus data center in collaboration with American Electric Power (AEP), which the facility was built for, and software-systems developer ICARUS Ops, Inc.
“Wearable technology is very cool. But do you know what else is cool? Getting all of your employees to operate and maintain your data center facility by the book so you get the most availability out of your data center. It turns out that wearable technology is the perfect way to achieve that goal,” said Chris Crosby, CEO of Compass Datacenters. “By converting our extensive facility documentation and best practices from the traditional paper documents into actionable, interactive checklists that a data center worker interacts with via wearable technology, that employee immediately becomes a walking, talking encyclopedia of knowledge about your facility. Plus, the wearables allow for complete interaction without having to take off personal protection equipment, making sure that OSHA compliance does not mean shirking the maintenance procedures due to inconvenience. The interactive checklists track and time stamp activities, enabling audit-friendly records while ensuring that human error is reduced dramatically.”
The project will bring together Compass’ detailed operational documentation for its data centers with a software app designed for wearable visor technology (e.g. Google Glass), Android mobile devices and a comprehensive web application that provides management dashboards that tie all the elements together.
The pilot project that Compass and AEP are collaborating on is currently in the app development phase, which involves conversion of Compass’ documentation into interactive checklists that can be used on tablets.
The content is easily customizable by customers to reflect their own policies and procedures as well as preferences for how data center workers utilize the information and checklists. The second phase of the pilot project builds on that app by developing a web-based management console that allows the customer to view the status of work being conducted, manage the assignments of workers, and incorporate that information into other systems as needed.
The final phase, which will be completed before the end of 2015, will involve delivery of wearable visor technology that utilizes the tablet app and is ready for live use on the data center floor.
For more information about iCarusOps, visit www.icarusops.com.
For more information on Compass Data Centers, visit www.compassdatacenters.com.