A fire is the last thing you want to see in a data center facility. The consequences can be quite devastating, ranging anywhere from downtime to financial stress to the loss of human lives. Fortunately, today, advances in fire safety technologies, coupled with AI, can effectively detect and respond to fires at data centers.
When it comes to data centers, we tend to focus om
security and operational challenges. Yet fire safety is another important issue that can’t be ignored, considering mission-critical facilities like data centers can still be subject to fires.
“Fire is a serious concern for data centers. Data centers by their very design end up combining high-risk characteristics such as high electrical loads operating 24x7, dense concentration of power equipment, power distribution networks and cabling, large battery installations, and cooling systems – and with increasing AI-workloads, greater rack power consumption," said Poornima Bethmangalkar, Head of the Industrial, Manufacturing, Energy and Utilities Industry Group at Happiest Minds. “With rise in higher workloads, larger battery systems and higher power density, fire risk management is taking increased priority.”
Causes to fires at data centers can vary. According to John Bekisz, VP of Data Center and Critical Infrastructure Practice at Guidepost Solutions, these may include typical mechanical and electrical equipment malfunctions, plenum and cockloft fires, maintenance issues, and battery issues.
“Of particular concern is the use of Lithium-Ion battery usage in uninterruptible power supplies which can induce thermal runaway upon ignition and self-ignite generating their own oxygen, making traditional fire suppression techniques ineffective. This can lead to a hazmat incident,” he said.
In the aftermath of a fire at data center, the consequences can be severe and dire. “Fire hazards can result in … loss of life and the loss of critical data and infrastructure – leading to significant operational downtime,” Bekisz said. “Additionally, clients and service providers alike may have business interruptions including Service Level Agreement penalties if uptime is not maintained. Costs continue beyond the initial damage include cost to replace assets, and business reputation costs.”
Combating fire hazards in data centers
Luckily, fire safety technologies today, which have become more advanced than ever, can come in handy in combating fire hazards in data centers. These technologies can be divided into fire prevention, fire detection and fire suppression.
In terms of prevention, various solutions are used to make sure that fires don’t happen in the first place. “These include intelligent monitoring systems for power, battery management and cooling systems. Proactive and predictive maintenance systems and built-in automated shutdown mechanisms are also included,” Bethmangalkar said.
She adds that data centers are generally designed with fire safety in mind and typically come equipped with dedicated battery rooms, battery isolation mechanisms, compartmentalized rooms, fire-rated walls, fire-resistant doors and such.
In terms of detection, fire safety solutions can detect sparks, smoke and other early signs of a fire. “Fire detection includes microscopic smoke particles detection, which is a combination of smoke detectors, heat detectors, thermal detectors, air quality sensors and gas sensors.
Thermal solutions using infrared monitoring, thermal monitors and rack-level temperature analysis are also employed,” Bethmangalkar said.
Finally, if something minor is escalated into a fire incident, there are fire suppression technologies to make sure the fire is put out in the quickest manner. “Data centers typically avoid conventional water sprinklers as the primary response (so as not to damage equipment). They generally use clean-agent gas suppression such as inert gases and chemical clean agents. Water mist systems are set up to improve heat absorption and limit equipment exposure,” Bethmangalkar said.
Unification is key
To make sure these technologies work seamlessly as a whole, unification is key.
“Fire safety systems in data centers are usually integrated into a centralized control platform, for example fire alarm panel or data center infrastructure management system, for monitoring and control. Additionally, integration to the BMS (building management system) can help operators identify problematic equipment before ignition,” Bekisz said,
Bekisz adds that fire safety systems can also integrate with the data center’s security system to allow better detection and response.
“Fire safety systems are often connected to physical security systems (access control, video surveillance) through shared platforms or integration layers. This allows coordinated responses, for example unlocking doors and triggering cameras during a fire. They are typically interoperable systems to maintain safety reliability and compliance because of life safety code requirements,” he said.
From smoke detection to predictive AI
Increasingly, AI is applied to fire safety solutions in data centers to improve detection accuracy, reduce false alarms, and make fire hazard predictions based on present and historic data.
“AI is increasingly being used in data center fire safety, mostly for prediction, anomaly detection, and decision support. The shift is from being able to detect smoke and react to predict conditions that could lead to a fire and intervening earlier,” Bethmangalkar said, citing predictive thermal detection, battery thermal prediction and multi-sensor correlation as some use cases.
Meanwhile, Bekisz remarks that traditional fire codes are often insufficient to handle concentrated risks at data centers and as such, the industry is shifting from purely reactive alarms to proactive AI-enabled systems.
“AI algorithms monitor vast telemetry data, such as subtle temperature spikes, voltage fluctuations, and micro-particles, to identify smoldering electrical faults or failing batteries before ignition occurs. Machine learning integrations with VESDA ASD systems can assess and learn airflow habits of a facility and alert on anomalies. AI also filters out benign environmental disturbances (such as dust or localized humidity) to prevent costly, accidental releases of chemical suppressants,” Bekisz said.
He adds that while AI can do a great number of things on the detection front, fire safety solutions in data centers still need to adhere to National Fire Protection Association requirements, International Building Code and any existing local jurisdictional requirements to ensure the design is compliant.