If data center floor panels ever need replacing, it is crucial that the mission critical equipment continues to run nonetheless.

At DCD's annual Colo+Cloud event in Dallas, Robert Boyle of Raised Floor OnSite talked us through the company's patented system that lifts equipment off the ground, allowing one to replace the panels without causing any downtime.

The system was developed with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in mind, whose floor panels regularly needed changing due to damage to the wear layer.

Boyle explained: "The core material was never really violated but the wear surfaces did what the wear surfaces are meant to do: wear out. So I developed a business where instead of replacing the entire panel, we replaced the wear surface."

But instead of moving operational equipment out, the company uses an aluminium gantry crane system to suspend it in the air.

Additionally, the company provides perforated air panels, cast aluminium grates, fan driven airflow systems, and is developing a ceiling based cable management system.

“Folks like Google and Facebook are building on slab, which now creates opportunity for cable management above; so we’re moving into that area as well."

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