One of India’s largest data centre operators set out to improve energy efficiency in their data center and reduce carbon emissions. The organisation partnered with Ecolibrium to deploy Ecolibrium SmartSense at their flagship data centre site in Chennai. And later on, with expansion across 12 sites pan-India. 

Outcome Summary 

• 7.6% PUE reduction achieved in just one month 

• Equivalent reduction in carbon emissions 

• 75% reduction in person-hours through automation 

The Challenges

Manual reporting and outdated processes were delaying insights critical for maintaining uptime and optimising energy efficiency in the data center. Unified Management Reports (UMR) required five days per month to generate, and 45% of the data, including temperature, uptime, and performance metrics, could be automated. The facility was also seeing inefficiencies in chiller and UPS operations. Later on, which led to elevated PUE levels from October 2022 to April 2023. The challenge was to digitise performance tracking, detect root causes of energy loss, and create a reliable framework for data center energy management and carbon reporting. 

The Solution 

Ecolibrium SmartSense integrate with 90+ assets and 700+ data points, creating a digital twin of the facility. The platform’s machine learning algorithms identified issues like distribution losses >50%, UPS feeder loss at 28.76%, and a 4% spike in chiller energy consumption. We introduced automated reports, real-time dashboards, and energy conservation recommendations. Key findings included an imbalance in chilled water supply, underutilised chillers, and outdated SOPs. The client corrected all of these based on Ecolibrium SmartSense’s actionable alerts. We monitored 63 electrical energy meters, UPS and 29 non-electrical chillers, primary pumps, etc. We implemented operational excellence, energy management, digitised maintenance, asset CBM/PDM, sustainability and CO2e tracking. The solutions to resolve the challenges faced. 

The Outcome 

The implementation led to a 7.6% reduction in PUE within the first month, aligned to current IT load and thermal management needs. This directly resulted in an equivalent carbon emissions reduction. Automation replaced manual data entry, leading to a 75% drop in person-hours for energy reporting. Recommendations included recalibrating flow meters, sequencing chillers more efficiently, and refining energy KPIs, setting the stage for energy savings and better asset management. 

The Impact 

Ecolibrium SmartSense’s real-time asset intelligence uncovered untapped annual energy-saving opportunities and enhanced equipment uptime. By automating reporting and exposing inefficiencies in chilled water distribution and UPS utilisation, the platform positioned itself as a critical tool in the client’s operational toolkit. With validated success, the client is now expanding Ecolibrium SmartSense across all 12 of its sites in India, standardising uptime, carbon tracking, and PUE performance across its entire portfolio. 

Looking to cut hidden energy and accelerate your data centre’s decarbonisation? 

Ecolibrium SmartSense enables real-time insights, automated reporting, and operational efficiency tailored to your critical infrastructure. Book a demo now.