Data center operations cover a wide range of tasks, and include handling visitor sign-in/out, attending to server racks, unlocking server racks, performing equipment inspection rounds, and visually checking LEDs on customer equipment and powering it on/off. And as the scale of data centers expands, the scope and volume of such tasks is increasing. It is also becoming difficult to find operators to staff these facilities, partly owing to the decline in Japan’s working population. As such, we are working on operational automation to ensure continuity of operations and high-quality service even under these conditions. Looking at the operational tasks traditionally performed by human operators, our approach going forward will be to assign robots to those tasks that robots are capable of performing so that human operators can focus on those tasks that only humans can perform and on tasks for which there is value in having a human touch. Accordingly, we are working to implement a range of automation systems, a key example being automated reception systems, as well as software robots and physical robots including autonomous security robots and drones.
Uses of robots
At IIJ’s data centers, we are also actively taking steps to automate operations using physical robots and drones. We are exploring the possibilities for physical robots by testing them in a range of tasks, including traveling around the data center, both indoors and out, performing inspection rounds to automatically check for equipment abnormalities using image recognition, serving as an attendant that guides visitors from reception to server room, and acting as an on-site observer when goods are being delivered or removed and there is a need to check that unauthorized persons have not gained entry. We already use drones for facilities inspections in high places that operators cannot access easily, and we are looking at further expanding the scope and proportion of tasks automated going forward.
Automated reception system
The automated reception system automates the following entry/exit procedures.
Building admission
Visitors use the reception terminal to confirm identity via facial recognition* and register any items being brought in. An IC card (smartcard), needed for unlocking server room doors and server racks, is issued on the spot.
Unlocking of doors and server racks
Visitors can unlock doors leading to the server rack they have applied to work on, as well as the server rack itself, by holding the IC card issued at the reception over the card readers.
Building exit
Visitors use the reception terminal to confirm identity via facial recognition and register any items being taken out. Visitors insert the IC card into the card collection device installed at the security gate. (The gate opens when the card is collected.)
*Information required for facial recognition is recorded in advance via eKYC (electronic Know Your Customer) technology. Visitors use an online interface to submit a photo of their face and an ID bearing a facial photo. Identity is confirmed once an operator checks those photos. Within the eKYC validity period, visitors can subsequently have their identity confirmed on site (facial recognition) without redoing the eKYC process.
OCP
IIJ's data centers are equipped with servers (racks) meeting the OCP (Open Compute Project) specifications that we have adopted on a portion of our services infrastructure. The OCP specification-compliant servers aim to be the most efficient for scalable computing.
OCP specification-compliant server racks use a centralized power supply, and power is distributed within the rack via bus bars, which reduces the man-hours and space required for cabling, and server parts can also easily be replaced without the use of tools.
