Nautilus Data Technologies is making history. The California-based company recently became the first in the world to successfully launch a waterborne data center prototype—charting a new course for future data management. The Nautilus Data Technologies data center solution incorporates advanced maritime technology with patent pending infrastructure systems and predictive software controls to create a revolutionary floating data center system— one that significantly lowers cost, increases rack density, improves energy efficiency, and eliminates water consumption, while also providing rapid scalability and global mobility.
Nautilus’ approach reflects the experience and vision of founder, Arnold Magcale, a U.S. Navy Special Forces veteran and early pioneer of Silicon Valley data centers. Magcale combined military security knowledge and maritime electronics expertise with decades of data center technology leadership, to re-imagine data center infrastructure from the ground up—creating the most significant data center industry advancement in decades.
“With the explosion of big data, it became increasingly clear that the traditional data center model was unsustainable— an outdated archetype that wastes massive amounts of energy and water at an unacceptable rate,” said Arnold Magcale, Nautilus Data Technologies Founder and CTO. “Nautilus Data Technologies is transforming the data center industry— providing a waterborne solution that dramatically reduces energy use and carbon emissions while eliminating all water consumption. It’s a model of efficiency—the model for the future.”
Nautilus Data Technologies is currently constructing its first commercial production facility at a Northern California Naval Shipyard. The commercial vessel is based on the company’s original proof-of-concept prototype, successfully validated in 2015 in association with Applied Materials and the U.S. Navy. The facility is being built on a military-grade, Coast Guard approved barge, and will be securely docked at a well-protected Northern California port.
Nautilus Data Technologies has a dozen pending patents, with its cooling technology among the more striking innovations. The technology leverages the natural body of water below the barge to cool the facility, safely re-circulating all of the water back where it originated. No chemicals are used during the process, ensuring the system provides a sustainable and environmentally friendly alternative to traditional land-based facilities.
“Nautilus Data Technologies is transforming the data center industry—providing a waterborne solution that dramatically reduces energy use and carbon emissions while eliminating all water consumption. It’s a model of efficiency—the model for the future”
The modular marine-based design is highly responsive to evolving market demands, and can easily be docked in emerging market locations wanting access to modern IT services—further helping to democratize information. The waterborne structure can also be built in half the time it takes to construct a land-based facility, allowing greater flexibility and rapid global deployment.
Nautilus Data Centers will provide hosting and colocation services in a multi-tenant environment with a standard configuration of up to 800 server racks, as well as custom-built data center vessels for dedicated customers and uses. The company’s advanced cooling systems will also be able to handle high-density and high performance computing requirements. Nautilus has broken the 30 kW per rack barrier and can scale environments up to 75 kW per rack, and potentially higher.
The Nautilus’s Data Center Infrastructure Management (DCIM) solution employs artificial intelligence for automated, lights out operation, further enhancing the productivity of operations and power management. A predictive DCIM will monitor the operations to dynamically control the data center’s humidity, temperature, and rack levels, without any human intervention, and provide customers detailed access to the operational status of their systems.
The company’s first commercial vessel will be commissioned in the summer of 2016 and Nautilus is currently signing customers who want to be on board for the historic launch. Additional vessels are in the production pipeline for 2017 and beyond. At Nautilus Data Technologies, it’s full speed ahead.
