Data centre
power metering
Power and energy at the AC distribution points that matter: incomers, UPS inputs and outputs, cooling and PDU feeders. Delivered to your DCIM or EMS, or to RIOD Live.
THE PROBLEM
Capacity and efficiency both depend on where you measure
Data centre operators need power data for two reasons. Capacity planning asks how much headroom each UPS, PDU and feeder has before the next customer goes live. Efficiency asks how much of the total goes to IT and how much to cooling and losses.
Smaller server rooms and edge sites often have neither. Their UPS shows a load percentage on its front panel, the cooling has no meter at all, and nobody is sure how close the room is to its limit.
Any efficiency metric, including PUE, depends on measuring at the right boundaries. Measure IT load at the wrong point and the figure looks better or worse than the site really is.
HOW WE SET IT UP
Meter the boundaries, feed your DCIM
Map the measurement boundaries
We start from the single-line diagram and agree where facility power and IT power are measured: incomer, UPS input and output, cooling feeders and PDU supplies. That plan comes before any hardware is chosen.
Meters at the AC distribution points
Connected sub-meters go on the agreed points, sized to each feeder. Existing UPS units, PDUs and meters that expose Modbus are read through our gateway as they are.
Into DCIM, EMS or RIOD Live
Data goes to your DCIM or EMS through an API, or into RIOD Live for dashboards, capacity reports and alerts. RIOD Live can also run on your own server inside the facility.
Alerts on headroom
Rules alert the operations team when a feeder or UPS approaches its limit, by call, SMS, WhatsApp, email or push, so capacity problems surface before a breaker trips.
AT A GLANCE
Data centre power metering at a glance
- Measured
- Power, energy and the electrical parameters each meter provides
- Hardware
- Smart energy sub-meters at AC distribution points; RS485 Modbus IoT gateway for UPS, PDU and existing meters
- Connectivity
- Ethernet and Modbus TCP inside the facility, 4G for edge sites
- Security
- MQTT over TLS 1.2 from every device
- Integration
- DCIM or EMS through an API, or RIOD Live on our cloud or your server
- Reports
- Audit trails on every report, PDF and Excel export, AI access to the data through MCP
- Measurement note
- PUE and power quality figures are reported once the measurement points and instruments are set up for them
FAQ
Questions buyers ask us
Where should power be measured to calculate PUE?
Total facility power is measured at the utility incomer, and IT power as close to the IT equipment as practical, typically at UPS output or PDU level. Consistent boundaries matter more than any single meter, so they should be agreed and documented before the figure is reported.
Can energy meters feed our DCIM software?
Yes. Meter data can be passed to DCIM through an API, and many DCIM tools also poll Modbus TCP directly. Our gateway brings serial RS485 meters onto that network.
How do we monitor power in a small server room?
Meter the server room supply, the cooling feeder and the UPS output. Three points give you load, cooling energy and headroom, which covers most decisions for a small room or edge site.
Can we monitor power quality as well?
Power quality analysis needs instruments set up for harmonics and transient capture. We can integrate dedicated power quality analysers over Modbus alongside the energy meters where that analysis is needed.
Need power data at the right points?
Share your single-line diagram or describe the UPS and distribution layout. We will propose the metering boundaries and the integration into your DCIM.