Connectorized rPDUs for Hyperscalers

Standardized power connectors can significantly streamline data center deployments, reduce lead times, and ease the complexities of managing diverse power requirements across global facilities, enhancing efficiency and accelerating speed to market for hyperscalers.

How power connectors boost your speed to market

Standardization and Compatibility

Reduced Lead Times

Streamlined Supply Chain

Imagine a scenario where a major tech company tells its team, "We've got a perfect solution for the next wave of groundbreaking software. Let's dedicate all our resources and launch it." But before they can launch, their data center partners call with bad news: they can't source the Power Distribution Units (PDUs) for another six to eight weeks.

This delay is unacceptable.

Unfortunately, this is the current state of affairs due to the complexities involved in:

Building expansive and complex facilities across multiple continents
Managing different power infrastructure and voltage requirements for each continent

The question for hyperscalers remains: How can we deploy capital wisely and design a solution that meets the needs of today while also scaling up for the future?

Streamlining supply chains with power connectors

Data center delivery has become increasingly difficult as the need for rapid deployment of power distribution units (PDUs) grows. Different regions have unique safety requirements that complicate procurement, as even standard PDUs require varying part numbers based on location, impacting efficiency.

The Open Compute Project (OCP) has responded to this challenge by providing open-source documentation aimed at supply chain improvement. Within OCP, the Rack & Power Group focuses on standardizing racks for easier integration into data centers. Microsoft’s Project Olympus initiative has contributed to this effort by developing open-sourced next-generation rack-level solutions.

Built on the ideas of Project Olympus, the Open Rack V3 (ORV3) allows facilities to build a versatile power infrastructure compatible with diverse geographies through its plug-and-play Power Shelf connector.

Building up inventory for swifter deployment

With a universal PDU like the HARTING solution for Schneider Electric, data center facilities can stock and ship PDUs for launches in Europe, North America, China, or anywhere in the world. By implementing a single PDU model across all facilities, it becomes possible to order in bulk and prepare for the next five years of greenfield facilities.

One major tech hyperscaler waited eight weeks for PDUs because their manufacturer could not deliver faster.

By switching from a hardwired PDU to a universal PDU with globally compatible connectors, delivery timelines dropped to just two weeks, cutting PDU lead times by 75%. This change removes supply chain points of failure, reduces procurement stress, and simplifies commissioning.

HARTING Partnership with Schneider

Learn more about how HARTING's partnership with Schneider enabled seamless plug-and-play solutions.

Learn more about this partnership