Schneider Electric has introduced its InfraStruxure for Small IT platform, designed to enable small-to-medium sized businesses (SMBs) to design, build, deploy and manage critical, physical IT infrastructure with capabilities previously available only to large enterprises. The platform is intended to speed the deployment, configuration and installation of IT infrastructures in small environments, such as a server room, network closet or non-dedicated space.
Comprised of both software and hardware, Schneider says the new InfraStruxure offering suits deployments ranging from small IT environments up to two megawatt data centers. The company says the customizable platform assembles the components necessary to address the major pain points faced by today’s SMBs, including: pressure on human and financial resources; the increasing amount of devices accessing and straining corporate networks; and lack of space to properly deploy small, smart IT environments.
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"Because the industry primarily uses a component approach, current offerings do not address the growing complexity of critical, small IT spaces,” comments Dave Johnson, SVP of Home & Business Networks for Schneider Electric. “We’re excited to launch a comprehensive solution to this problem by developing an integrated, simplified platform that consolidates vendors, reduces man-hours and enables remote device and environmental management.”
According to the company, via the InfraStruxure for Small IT platform, businesses can design a tailored combination of UPS systems, server racks, cable management, physical security, PDUs, cooling technologies, management infrastructure, and software. Targeted results may include elevated efficiency, realization of virtualization and consolidation opportunities, reduced downtime, extended life of equipment, and a reduction in energy consumption, waste and emergency shut-downs.
After installation, the integration of individual outlet control, energy reporting and other critical management functions into one central dashboard will allow IT managers and system engineers to achieve remote manageability, and in turn, tackle a plethora of chronic small IT management issues via remote monitoring and control of power systems, integrated environmental monitoring, proactive maintenance and alerts, and streamlined management of multiple devices and sites.
Further, Scheider Electric says it will provide a variety of design tools and solution guides to educate and help VARs, ISVs, systems integrators and IT organizations smoothly deploy InfraStruxure for Small IT installations and coordinate them to their respective spaces, technical challenges and growth needs. The company says its guidelines will detail specific recommendations to meet challenges, explain various features and benefits, as well as provide business justifications for each implementation.
The company says it has already developed two user-friendly design tools to help customize the platform, including one to help channel partners configure solutions for customers, and another, publicly accessible web portal to help guide and educate customers on how to best solve their challenges. Both tools will be available in mid-May. For more information, visit www.schneider-electric.com.
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