UK-based IT industry association BCS is currently finalizing audits for the first recipients of the Certified Energy Efficiency Data Center Award (CEEDA) award.

 

CEEDA is a unique, independently governed award for the data center industry which recognizes data center improvements in energy efficiency, while highlighting the capability for further efficiency measures.  

 

The award was announced at Datacenterdynamic’s Datacentre Leaders Awards ceremony late last year. Since then, according to BCS chair of the data center specialist group Zahl Limbuwala, CEEDA has been fine tuned to ensure it carefully fits the market needs.

 

"We’ve spent a good deal of time making sure that the CEEDA assessment fitted the market needs, that assessors are well trained and that the audit process was set up to ensure CEEDA remains as fair as possible and unbiased as possible," Limbuwala said.

 

"We are now seeing the market demand that is consistent with our assessment of the gap CEEDA is filling."

 

Limbwala said that CEEDA accreditation offers data center operators verifiable evidence that their data center is following energy efficiency best practices.

 

CEEDA accreditation is offered at three levels – Gold, Silver and Bronze – providing an industry benchmark for data centers in the UK, where data centers are increasingly concerned about carbon legislation and rising energy costs.

 

The assessment itself looks at the way the client organization approaches energy efficient best practice across all areas of the data center. It covers IT equipment as well as procurement and operational process, data center cooling and power systems equipment, building control systems and how energy use is monitored and managed.

 

The BCS has been heavily involved in the development of the EU Code of Conduct and has used elements of this for best practice elements of the CEEDA accreditation.