SUPPLEMENT A: REQUIREMENTS — TOPOLOGY

Topology reviews will: Focus on a) the capacity and capability performance requirements consistent with
the applicable Tier objective and b) Operational Sustainability enhancement opportunities that can be
built into the facility or technology components.
Tier Certification of Design Documents assesses the design topology of a data center’s site
infrastructures and provides unbiased recommendations and consultation to optimize both the
performance and operability of the data center. Tier Certification of Design Documents requires a
complete, 100% design drawing package to be delivered exclusively in PDF soft copy.
For Tier Gap Analysis, Progress Review: Concept Design, and Progress Review: Detailed Design,
it is understood that not all of the documentation requested will be complete at the current project stage;
however, please provide as much of the documentation as is currently available exclusively in PDF soft
copy.

Document Submission
As policy, Uptime Institute Professional Services treats all documents as highly sensitive. The drawing
package can be transmitted in the following manner:
 Via e-mail in a compressed ZIP file. E-mail size cannot exceed 50 MB.
 Secure Client FTP site or web-based file share such as Dropbox or Google Drive.
 Secure Uptime Institute Professional Services FTP site.
Prior to document submission, please verify the following:
 All documentation is in PDF soft copy.
 All documentation is presented in black and white.
• Documentation can be presented in color if needed to assure clarity, but a black and
white version must also be provided.
 All documentation is clearly labeled and titled as to the systems represented.
 For compressed files, please use ZIP file as RAR files are not accepted.

Topology
Design drawing packages must be delivered exclusively in PDF soft copy. Provide the following
documents sorted and arranged per the list.
1. Basis of Design document (sometimes called a Program Definition, Concept Design, or Concept
Design Report). Failure to provide a Basis of Design may result in additional time being required
to complete the review. The Basis of Design should include the following:
a. Background and objectives of the data center, including all the design parameters and levels
of redundancy (e.g., N+1, N+R, N+N, or 2[N+1]) in each critical space. State if it is a
colocation data center, an enterprise (dedicated to one user) data center, a stand-alone
building, part of a campus, or a shared building. Include the number of floors, floor areas, total
floor area, and the activities carried out on each floor (office space, plant space, data center
space, etc.
b. A building description that includes size of the computer room and establishes power system
and cooling system capacities, as well as individual capacities of all power and cooling
system critical capacity components. Include information such as the total facility power
requirement, IT power requirement, transformer capacities, engine-generator capacities,
diesel rotary uninterruptible power supply (DRUPs) machine capacities, uninterruptible power
supply (UPS) capacities, UPS battery ride-through time, cooling tower capacities, chiller
capacities, room cooling unit capacities, fuel storage, and water storage capacities.

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c. An electrical system description that includes the total IT load in each space and the detailed
analysis of the total electrical load on the engine-generator system. Include design load
calculations and distribution path descriptions, along with the redundancy of critical equipment
in each space.
d. A cooling system description that includes cooling load per critical space and total cooling
system load. Describe all components, such as cooling towers, chillers, pumps, and room
cooling design load calculations and distribution path description.
e. The Tier objective – Tier I, Tier II, Tier III, Tier IV, or a combination of different Tier objectives
in different spaces.
f. If there is a phased approach to construction, include all of the above for each phase.
2. Architectural sheets depicting size, purpose, and access to spaces making up the facility. In all
relevant documentation, clearly differentiate through shading, color, and/or appropriate labeling,
all critical space to be included in the Tier Certification from areas not included in the Tier
Certification scope.
a. Floor plans and layouts for each and every floor identifying all floor areas.
b. Identification of room names/numbers, including detailing the purpose of each room.
c. Identification of doors and accessibility.
d. Elevation and section views as necessary to clarify the design.
e. Tier IV requires layout drawings of all critical electrical, control, mechanical, and fuel
pathways.
f. For Tier IV, architectural plans may also require information about building materials and
cross sections to show means of Compartmentalization.
3. A floor plan of all critical spaces showing the intended arrangement of IT, power, and cooling
equipment. Show the room layout of each floor, including room numbers and names to identify
the purpose of each room; show doors and other access. Specify external plant space, server
rooms, telecommunication rooms, UPS rooms, electrical rooms, internal plant rooms, etc.,
showing the location of all critical equipment (engine generators, DRUPS, UPS, UPS batteries,
main electrical panels, cooling towers, dry coolers, pumps, chillers, room cooling units, etc.).
4. Electrical schematics (single-line diagrams/schematic diagrams) for both medium voltage and low
voltage systems showing the characteristics of the power paths from the service entry to the
computer device point of connection; show the power distribution from incoming power through to
the server racks and the cooling plant and equipment. Electrical schematics must also be provided
for all electrical control systems.
5. Electrical equipment schedules showing number and capacity of all backup power production
equipment (typically engine generators), continuous power systems (typically, static or dynamic
UPS and batteries), distribution transformers, and branch circuit distribution. Include a unique
reference identifier label for each and every piece of equipment (as shown on the layout
drawings), the equipment model number, equipment capacity in kilowatts (kW), and location.
Schedules or specifications for each piece of equipment which has been selected should be
provided by the manufacturer. Bid- or tender-type specifications can be accepted for equipment
for which a manufacturer has not been selected.
6. Electrical panel schedules for all mechanical equipment (lighting and receptacle schedules are not
required). Show the unique distribution board reference identifier (as shown on the layout
drawings), distribution board location, the upstream distribution board that supplies power to the
distribution board, the breaker reference numbers, the downstream distribution boards, and
equipment supplied with electricity from the distribution board.

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7. Electrical load calculations, listing all in loads that will be supported by the engine generators and
UPS systems, in kilowatts (kW). Load calculations should show load during normal operations, as
well as during maintenance; include fault scenarios for Tier IV only. Load calculations must be
provided for each discrete phase.
8. Mechanical schematics (one-line/flow diagram) for the cooling system (including chilled and
condenser water piping, valves, and instrumentation for chilled water systems, or similar level of
detail for direct expansion or other cooling systems); this should also include the evaporative
cooling makeup water system (if applicable). Supply schematics or single-line diagrams for
engine generator and DRUPs fuel supplies; cooling tower or adiabatic cooling water storage and
piped distribution to cooling towers or coolers; condenser water from cooling towers, hybrid
coolers, dry air coolers, etc. to water-cooled chillers; and chilled water distribution from chillers to
room cooling units. Also include schematics or single-line diagrams for refrigerant pipes from
outdoor condenser units to indoor cooling units; adiabatic cooling water distribution from water
storage tanks to adiabatic direct or indirect air room cooling units; or air distribution systems for
ventilation and cooling. Include all pumps and valves, plus any sensors and meters. All
components must have unique reference labels. Drawings and documents are also to include any
water leak detection and containment systems.
9. Mechanical equipment schedules (including ambient temperature design conditions and
capacities), showing a unique reference identifier label for each piece of equipment (as shown on
the layout drawings), the equipment model number, equipment capacity in kilowatts, and
equipment location; include condenser and/or chilled water flow rates in liters/second (l/s), cooling
water flow and return temperatures, supply air flow rate and temperature, return air temperature,
electrical power requirement, outside air temperature, room air temperature, any freeze protection
systems, glycol content of cooling water, specific heat capacity of glycol solution, and the freezing
point of the glycol solution. Schedules or specifications for each piece of equipment which has
been selected should be provided by the manufacturer. Bid tender type specifications can be
accepted for equipment for which a manufacturer has not been selected. Calculations must be
provided for makeup water and power consumption. For Tier IV only, also provide calculations for
Continuous Cooling.
10. Mechanical load calculations which list all in loads that will be supported by the mechanical plant,
and individual critical rooms, in kilowatts. Load calculations should show load during normal
operations, as well as during maintenance; include fault scenarios for Tier IV only. Load
calculations must be provided for each discrete phase.
11. Chilled/condenser water treatment subsystem (if applicable). If water treatment is critical, then
detailed schematics and labeled drawings must be provided and equipment included as in the
above mechanical equipment schedule.
12. Computer room/raised floor cooling subsystem, including makeup air and humidification
subsystems. Include details on the critical room cooling units as described above.
13. Engine-generator fuel system schematics or single-line diagrams and layout plans showing
equipment and pipework routes from storage tanks to engines (bulk storage, point-of-use tanks,
pumps, piping and valves, treatment, control system, power supplies, fuel treatment, and leak
detection and containment). Calculations must be provided for fuel consumption.
14. Fire system (detection and/or suppression) electrical riser diagram showing the connection of
critical equipment to the fire system. Include schematics or single-line diagrams of the fire
detection, fire alarm, and fire suppression systems and detailed drawings of any connections
between panels and electrical and cooling plant if these are shut down on activation of any of the
fire detection, alarm, or suppression systems. Detailed description of whether the system is
designed to shut down any critical systems.

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15. Site plan showing telecommunications paths (from entrance to property to the first point of
demarcation; the first point of demarcation is where the incoming fiber terminates and before the
communications and data cables are distributed throughout the data center). Provide plan
drawings to show the route of the incoming fiber from the site boundary to the rooms where the
telecommunications server racks are located. This could be a server room, or could be a
dedicated telecommunications room, sometimes called a meet-me room (MMR), MDF, MDA,
communications (comms) closet, etc. For any telecommunications rooms outside of the server
room, specific IT loads must be identified as well as indication of active or passive loads.
16. Emergency power off (EPO) system (if required by local authorities having jurisdiction or the
project owner).
17. Sequence of Operations for the systems detailed above (Tier IV only).
18. Electrical and mechanical system locations and layout of the distribution paths on architectural
sheets showing Compartmentalization for complementary systems (Tier IV only.
19. For Tier IV, provide fire compartment plans and cross section drawings to show
Compartmentalization of complementary services (e.g., System A and System B).

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