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The Department of Emergency Services of Queensland, Australia has introduced a Data Centre to their Head Office site in Kedron. The new data storage facility is central to supporting the underlying systems for the delivery of ICT services for emergency and disaster management across the region. Existing firm relationships and innovative product design secured Molex as the structured cabling system provider throughout this new Data Centre infrastructure.
DES and the Data Centre Project
The Department of Emergency Services (DES) is the principal emergency and disaster management agency in Queensland . The agency’s organisational structure is unique to Australia , as unlike other emergency departments throughout the country, all the emergency and key support services of Queensland are positioned under one management umbrella. This streamlines communication between each department, facilitates management and improves the efficiency of service it provides to the community. The DES organisation incorporates Queensland Fire and Rescue Service, Queensland Ambulance Service, and Emergency Management Queensland. Furthermore, DES employs more than 7,700 full-time and part-time employees and is supported by more than 85,000 volunteers across Queensland.
The DES Head Office is located in the Emergency Services Complex at Kedron in Brisbane ’s northern suburbs. The entire complex is a low-rise campus environment spread across numerous buildings. The DES deemed it critical to introduce a new 500m2 Data Centre to this site to provide secure back-up systems for the delivery of their IT operations, as well as additional data storage. In the construction of the Data Centre, DES had a number of strategic requirements that needed to be met, the most vital being; Data Centre consolidation, ease of management and visual aesthetics. Furthermore, being the central Data Centre for ambulance, fire and incident response to the Queensland community, issues such as data integrity and reliability within the ICT framework were of paramount importance. DES IT personnel therefore selected trusted vendors that they knew could deliver the listed specifications for the build.
Sound Partnerships
Molex was the preferred vendor and was solely specified to supply the complete structured cabling infrastructure to the Data Centre. Glenn Walker, Project Manager – ICT Operations at DES comments on the reason Molex were selected as their first choice for cabling system design and implementation: “The Department of Emergency Services have over the years formed a strong partnership resulting in Molex being adopted as the standard product deployed throughout the state”.
Once Molex had been selected, EDC Systems won a public tender to design and install the Data Centre’s IT network. EDC Systems has been a Molex Certified Installer in Queensland for a number of years and have successfully undertaken numerous projects using Molex’s products and site certification. Clint Wallis, Operations Manager at EDC Systems is proud of the relationship they have with Molex and delighted with the assistance and support offered by the company on a number of levels: “The support we receive from the Molex team, both locally and from their head office is second to none, which gives us peace of mind when offering Molex as our solution of choice to customers. This project was no exception. Grant Colledge (State Manager) from Molex was on site on numerous occasions undertaking progressive site inspections through the life of the project, providing input and assistance where required. Grant also provided logistical support ensuring we had the required products when we needed them, which was of great help as the project had tight timeframes to adhere to”.
The Installation
A combination of Category 6 and fibre optic cabling solutions were installed to form the Structured Cabling System. Products from the Molex PowerCat™ copper and Lightband™ fibre product ranges were chosen not only for their robust and reliable reputation, but also to meet the aforementioned strategic requirements.
The capability to efficiently marshal and terminate multiple copper and optical fibre cables, whilst maximising available rack space and delivering a user friendly and well managed environment is key to proactive network management. The DES therefore chose the Molex PowerCat 6 Angled Patch Panel as its copper termination solution. Due to the natural departure angle of patch cords from the panel, no horizontal management is required, thereby eliminating the cost of horizontal cable management’s and the associated labour charges. This solution aligns directly with the Department’s move toward consolidated Data Centre solutions involving reducing the footprint of equipment, and has literally halved the amount of rack real estate required for patching. The angled patch panels have also provided a very neat and professional cabling solution that will avoid the inevitable development of “spaghetti leads” that can develop within a large Category 6 patch panel.
Molex’s WR (wall or rack) range of Fixed Fibre Enclosures was also selected for the termination of numerous cores of OM3 fibre for the project. The enclosures can be mounted flush or recessed in 19” cabinets and are designed to allow for rear, side and base access for incoming/outgoing cables.
Due to the resultant maximisation of the server room’s available floor area and rack space, the chosen solution has enabled the DES IT team to effectively plan for future ICT requirements with the knowledge that space in the central communications room will not be a problem.
“As with all installations the result is only as good as the vendor completing the installation”, says Grant Colledge , State Manager at Molex Premise Networks. “The Department has found that the Molex Certification process and on-going training for its installation partners has culminated in the ability to implement Molex products within strict pre-defined parameters. This has resulted in a quality outcome and a zero failure rate which in turn enables ICT solution providers to have the utmost confidence in the underlying cabling infrastructure supporting systems”.
Conclusion
Molex has been DES’s solely specified provider of SCS solutions for their corporate LAN/WAN for the past five years. The cabling infrastructure installed in the new Data Centre was of sound quality and enabled consolidation by maximising the floor area used and catering for future cabling requirements. Glenn summarises: “Molex’s investment in quality innovative solutions and strong relationships with its installation partners has resulted in a seamless installation, thus enabling the Department to realise a number of strategic and operational goals and further enhance confidence in the departmental cabling solution”. This emphasises that not only was the product quality and reliability essential to the build, but the commitment and support shown by Molex and EDC Systems, and their collaboration were also key in contributing to the success of this project.
