We are often asked about the integration, overlap and/or compatibility between DCIM (Data Center Infrastructure Management) and BMS (Building Management Systems). This is one of our favorite subjects, with a few insights that may surprise you.
At a high level, DCIM and BMS must work together to optimize the operation of a data center and improve its overall efficiency.
A BMS controls and monitors the building’s mechanical systems, including HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning), lighting, life safety, and some power distribution components. It ensures these systems operate efficiently and safely while providing insights into energy usage and other key metrics. The BMS generally does not provide easy ad hoc reporting and analytics or cover the white space of the data center.
Conversely, DCIM is a software solution that provides centralized monitoring and management of data center infrastructure, including mechanical power to the rack, servers, storage, networking, and capacity and utilization of these resources. However, a DCIM does not perform control of these systems. Instead, it enables administrators to monitor and manage the data center’s physical infrastructure from a single dashboard, providing real-time insights into energy consumption, temperature, humidity, and other critical metrics. It also can (should) provide this management capability across the entire portfolio of enterprise-owned data centers.
When DCIM and BMS integrate, they can provide comprehensive management and control of the data center’s physical infrastructure, enabling administrators to identify potential issues and optimize performance.
For example, DCIM can provide insights into available capacity at each rack, power redundancy for failover analysis, server utilization and power consumption. At the same time, BMS can adjust the cooling and ventilation systems to optimize energy efficiency and keep the desired temperature and humidity levels.
Leveraging the best of DCIM and BMS can help data center operators improve their facility’s energy efficiency, reduce costs, and increase uptime and reliability.
Consider Modius® OpenData® DCIM
OpenData augments traditional Building Management Systems (BMS) and Building Automation Systems (BAS) by integrating multiple systems and assets into a single pane of glass and acting as the “monitor of monitors” to assist building operators in reducing costs, increasing sustainability, and prolonging equipment life.
Our deep-level integration with all infrastructure actively analyzes the power, cooling, air quality, power usage location, and health of your entire building asset system and warns you of potential conflicts or capacity issues. OpenData’s ongoing active monitoring also helps predict when outages or events will happen.
OpenData is a ready-to-deploy DCIM featuring an enterprise-class architecture that scales incredibly well. In addition, OpenData gives you real-time, normalized, actionable data accessible through a single sign-on and a single pane of glass.
We are passionate about helping clients run more profitable, better-integrated data centers. We have been delivering DCIM solutions since 2007. We are based in San Francisco and are proudly a Veteran Owned Small Business (VOSB Certified). You can reach us at sales@modius.com or 1-888.323.0066.
