By James C. Elledge, IFMA Fellow, CFM, FMA, RPA, RIAQM
Published in the March 2008 issue of Today’s Facility Manager
QWhich of the following is not an example of redundancies for mission critical facilities?
a. A diesel generator;
b. Storage for potable water;
c. Storage for mechanical system make-up water; or
d. All of the above.
Michael Del Mastro
Architect
Michael Del Mastro, Architect
Albuquerque, NM
ABased upon the way the question is worded and the four possible answers, I would select “d. all of the above.” I would base my answer on the strategic use of the term redundancy.
Accordingto the Uptime Institute’s White Paper entitled, Tier ClassificationsDefine Site Infrastructure Performance, “The components beyond thenumber of capacity units required to support the computer equipment arereferred to as redundant. If one unit of capacity is required tosupport the computer equipment, more than one unit of capacity isinstalled. Terms such as N+1 or N+2 are commonly applied.”
Using this definition, the other answers are not suitable. None are truly redundant.
The white paper referred to above is available from the Uptime Institute to registered users here.
Elledge,facility/office services manager for Dallas, TX-based Summit AllianceCompanies, is the recipient of the Distinguished Author Award from theInternational Facility Management Association (IFMA), is an IFMA Fellow, and isa member of TFM’sEditorial Advisory Board. All questions have been submitted via the “Ask TheExpert” portion of the magazine’s Web site. To pose a question, visit this link.
