Color PDUs and Cables Help Data Centers Identify and Manage Power Feeds

Raritan, Inc. added 10 new color choices for its intelligent rack power distribution units (iPDUs) to help data center professionals save time in identifying and locating power distribution pathways and in differentiating between multiple PDUs in a rack. As the largest provider of iPDUs, Raritan offers the most PDU color choices: red, blue, green, magenta, orange, yellow, white, brown, gray, light blue and black.

To make it easier to identify rack PDUs at a distance, from any angle and in all lighting situations, the entire PDU chassis is professionally powder-coated in color vs. affixing color stickers. Raritan also offers color options for its SecureLock power cords, which are used between rack PDUs and server power supplies to prevent them from accidentally disconnecting.

"Our customers, especially those with data centers using high-density server racks, were asking for color PDUs because it was becoming difficult for them to see how their entire power chain fits together," said David Wood, Raritan's Director of Power Management Solutions. "Color provides a quick and simple visual identification. A color-coded system, for example, can help to quickly identify a PDU's function and power path while dramatically simplifying troubleshooting."

Some customers, such as eBay, use color rack PDUs to make it easier to distinguish A feeds from B feeds for powering servers and other devices with multiple power supplies. Many customers select colors for their rack PDUs to match colors used in other elements in the power chain, such as feeds to and from UPSs, while others use color PDUs to identify different types of power, such as 208V three-phase Delta, 208V/120V three-phase Wye. In addition to making it easier to find power components and prevent human error, color PDUs and SecureLock plug cords add the additional benefit of maximizing uptime in data centers.