Rack Power Switch Transfers Load in 8 Milliseconds

Raritan, a provider of data center infrastructure management (DCIM), introduced its Rack Transfer Switch (PX3TS) to help keep data center equipment operating through power failures. When the new switch senses power loss, it provides power load transfers from one power source to another without interrupting operations.

The PX3TS switch is targeted at cloud computing infrastructures and data center racks filled with one-power-supply devices.

By sampling the current 4,800 times per second with built-in sensors, the Raritan switch transfers the load within four to eight milliseconds. Raritan says standard automatic transfer switches take from 10 to 16 milliseconds to transfer loads.

Raritan’s patent-pending hybrid design uses both electromechanical relay and silicon-controlled rectifier (SCR) technologies. The company says its PX3TS switch also has greater energy efficiency than static transfer switches.

The transfer switch also provides remote monitoring and PDU unit-level metering to support capacity planning decisions and to utilize power resources efficiently. Real-time power information gathered by the switch can be shared with Raritan’s DCIM software for monitoring and managing the health of the rack and the data center.