The generator is about more than the moment the power goes out. It’s not a set-and-forget tactic, it’s a safety net that needs attention and support so that it can deploy as needed when the moment strikes. Key to a generator’s viability (and in turn to the data center’s reliability and the provider’s peace of mind) is quickly and responsively addressing servicing conditions, making sure the equipment is maintained and ready at all times. All that processing is amplifying what the product is there for—it’s an insurance policy, but beyond that, it’s a partnership policy and a trust-building necessity.

It’s crucial to take the entire product lifecycle into account and see how a provider caters to every aspect. Can they build and deliver the product on time with a robust sourcing supply chain? Can they commission equipment, turn it up, and then be there for the customer throughout the ongoing service needs? Can they easily and reliably service the equipment globally as the customer scales? Furthermore, is the genset provider investing in the future and helping the customer benefit from that innovation as well?

Again, sustainability is an example of why a provider’s attitude toward long-term product innovation is vital in a world where data centers must lead broader societal progress on top of providing basic space, power, and connectivity. It’s important to note first that for any generator manufacturer, any technology that goes into the genset—even at an EPA Tier 2 level—offers emissions levels that are much better than what they’ve been in the past. When you move up the tiers, that impact improves even further—and selecting a provider that delivers robust solutions in those higher tiers is key for getting a product that is both powerful and conscientious.

Tier 4 generator sets, for instance, can be considered a clean-air-making machine. In some environments (and with the right sustainable solution), the air is cleaner going out of the genset than it is going in. Optimizing these green strategies with innovative after-treatment technologies, allowing for minimal maintenance demands and optimized continuity while meeting EPA mandates, isn’t something that can be found everywhere in the generator landscape—but it makes a difference. Thinking this way is a complicated task, but it’s the right way to look at our collective future.

A great genset partner will provide tailored solutions while also asking themselves: how do we make this more fuel-efficient? How do we make my system allow for less testing on the job site? How do we minimize wet stacking and monthly load tests, and furthermore, how can we augment this generator to reduce its impact on its surroundings further with something like a generator enclosure? This holistic approach treats the generator as part of a living, breathing system, and it creates more success in the short term while paving the way for industry leadership going forward. In this way, investment in the right generator partner becomes more than an investment in the data center’s well-being; it becomes an investment in ethical growth and innovation.

A new type of connected ecosystem

Networking isn’t just key for shuffling data to endpoints and across business footprints. There’s another kind of network that is just as important as physical fiber: the network of partners and the ecosystem of entities that an IT solutions provider is connected to. A data center generator provider is no exception. As outlined above, a generator is not just a standalone asset, it’s the product of extensive education, development, problem-solving and ongoing iteration. Sustainability, reliability, scalability, and efficiency all demand unique approaches, and with them comes the need to be sourcing complementary insight and services.

Just as no data center can maintain perfect uptime alone, no genset provider can deliver all the right tools and capabilities in a silo. When it comes to remaining prepared for changing regulations, close relationships with governing bodies are conducive to more successful products. Similarly, carefully selected third-party partner providers help keep deployments flexible according to unique demands, and they help teams access gensets across the world when they need additions or maintenance. This is a new type of networking that supports the data center holistically, in turn ensuring the utmost reliability and service excellence for mission-critical generator needs.

What’s ahead?

Data centers hope and pray that an outage doesn’t occur, and of course, the power provider does too. In a perfect world, a data center would never need a backup power product and data would always be out of harm’s way—but this isn’t reality. Instead, data centers must look for the next best thing—a great diesel generator.

Though often looked at as a necessary evil, the truth is that the necessity of these genset solutions is what’s driving progress and helping to build a more sustainable, reliable industry. At the end of the day, the backup generator is one of the most pivotal parts of today’s data hubs, and the right solution can be a make-or-break decision. Still, no data center has to do it alone, and with the right power partner on board, global data centers can scale securely.