Powering the Future: Inside Data Center Backup Power with Sal Accardo

Lakeland residents and businesses, from the historic downtown to the lakeside communities around Lake Mirror, relying on digital services might be interested in the evolving landscape of data center reliability, as discussed by Sal Accardo, a new Senior Vice President – Data Center at Exponential Power. Accardo, who recently joined the company, brings decades of experience in mission-critical power solutions, focusing on ensuring 24/7 uptime for data centers.

Accardo emphasizes that data centers are the backbone of our digital economy, and power failures can be costly, potentially thousands of dollars per minute for large facilities, according to the Uptime Institute. He highlights Exponential Power's comprehensive approach to stored energy, including UPS systems, battery technologies, remote monitoring, and preventative maintenance.

Four major trends are currently reshaping the data center industry:

• Rising Power Density: The increasing demand from AI and high-performance computing means racks that once drew a few kilowatts now pull tens of kilowatts, requiring more robust backup power systems.
• Energy & Sustainability: With data centers consuming a significant share of global electricity, there's a push for high-efficiency UPS platforms and lithium-ion batteries, which can integrate with renewables and microgrids.
• Edge Computing: To reduce latency, compute resources are moving closer to end-users, necessitating compact, rugged, and remotely monitorable backup power solutions for smaller sites.
• Proactive Reliability: The mindset has shifted from backup power as mere insurance to a critical asset requiring scheduled preventive maintenance, load bank testing, monitoring, and analytics.

Accardo states that modern data centers need backup power systems that are robust, intelligent, and scalable. This includes modular UPS architectures, advanced battery technologies like valve-regulated lead-acid (VRLA), Thin Plate Pure Lead, and lithium-ion, and integrated monitoring systems to track battery health.

Exponential Power aims to provide end-to-end support, from expert engineering and system sizing to installation, commissioning, ongoing preventive maintenance, and 24/7 emergency response. Accardo notes that the company works with various UPS and battery manufacturers to design tailored solutions for each customer, whether it's a large enterprise data hall or a network of edge sites. This approach provides data center managers with a single, reliable partner for the full lifecycle of their backup power systems.