New to Local Edge Configurator: Factory Rack Integration of UPSs, PDUs and More

We are always looking for ways to increase efficiency and profitability for our partners and I’m happy to share the latest advancement in that effort: factory integration of racks that you design with our Local Edge Configurator (LEC).

The LEC, of course, is the online tool that partners can use to configure and order the exact mix of UPSs, PDUs and other peripherals in a variety of our data center racks and enclosures. It makes the ordering process easier and more accurate, enabling you to sit beside your customer and jointly plan out exactly which components go where. We’d then ship the rack and components to your site, or your customer’s, and you’d put it all together.

Now, we’re taking that last step off your plate. Rather than send you all the components separately, we’ll pre-install them in the rack, per your specifications, in our factory. Then we ship just one (shock-proof) box to wherever you like. All that’s left is to add IT and network components, enabling you to get new IT capacity fired up in no time.

Both Partners and End Users benefit from integration service
The benefits to our partners are many. First, not having to install all the components saves significant time and frees up warehouse space in system integration centers allowing more focus on the IT piece of the puzzle. World Wide Technology, Inc. (WWT) for example, a end user as well as system integrator partner that I must add also performs rack integration has begun to use Schneider Electric’s rack integration service for their own data center spaces. For WWT’s new Lab As a Service (Laas) deployment they had several employees dedicated to configuring racks and installing components for its data center lab, where customers can test-drive various configurations of IT equipment. Pre-integrated racks from Schneider Electric saves much of that time, leaving only IT equipment to be installed. What’s more, WWT can be assured all racks, PDUs and other supporting infrastructure is setup and installed in the exact location it specifies – every time.

With pre-integration, partners and customers have far less packaging material to deal with, in some cases literally hundreds of boxes. That’s an important consideration for companies making an effort to run more environmentally sustainable operations.

The LEC also makes it easy for you to follow various IT vendor alliance reference architectures for integrated compute, storage and networking, as well as our own reference architectures for various configurations – a 5kW tier 1 local edge solution, for example. The LEC will ensure you meet the architecture’s requirements and our factories will install all required supporting infrastructure and partners will populate the IT gear referenced.

Reference architectures are a great way to ensure design consistency and repeatability, if you need the same configuration in multiple locations – such as a series of retail stores or branch offices. Or, you can come up with your own custom design and again ensure consistency across numerous deployments.

More rack models, UPSs and PDUs on tap
If you’ve got prior experience with the LEC and our pre-integrated Micro Data Center solutions, now you’ll find it supports more rack and enclosure models, including several NetShelter SX premium data center rack enclosures, NetShelter CX line of enclosures that look like office furniture and can take the place of a server room in open office spaces. Also new is the EcoStruxure 6U Low Profile Wall Mount rack enclosure, a low-profile enclosure that allows heavy edge servers, networking equipment, and UPSs to be safely mounted on a wall, secure and saving valuable floor space. This is the first wall-mount rack from Schneider Electric eligible for pre-integration and shipment as a turnkey solution.

We’ll be rolling even more products into the LEC tool over time, including new UPSs, rack PDUs and rack platforms that support higher weight loads, stay tuned to the LEC blog for all the latest details. Any partner with access to the LEC can take advantage of this rack pre-integration capability and it is available worldwide, from our factories in Pennsylvania supporting the U.S. and in the Netherlands supporting Europe and International markets. Gain access today by logging into your partner page. Not a partner? Click here to learn how to join and take advantage of this new capability and let APC by Schneider Electric help you deliver data center infrastructure to your customers faster, reliably, with less effort on your part, and in a more sustainable fashion.