Firelock - Fireproof Data Storage

Most of our customers don’t know what goes on behind the scenes to produce a successful vault project.  And that’s fine with us, since we know our customers have their own projects with deadlines to meet and obligations to fulfill.  Many also have their own customers that they strive to keep happy.  When you buy a vault from FIRELOCK, you can and should expect to have the vault installed on time and on budget. 

Once we get the go-ahead from the customer we send them the shop drawings to approve.  If any modifications are needed we make the changes on the drawings and overnight them to the customer within 24 hours of receiving the change request.  Once the customer has signed off on the drawings we create the bill of materials for all the panels, structural steel, gasketing and other components that are produced and consolidated at the production facility.  This bill of materials is checked and rechecked for accuracy.  When we have an estimated ship date for all of these components we order the doors, automatic door closer, fire suppressions system, and any other specialty components as needed.  These are all scheduled to arrive a few days after the delivery of the panels and other factory components.  If the job site has limited access or other issues, we can schedule all components to arrive the same day.  We also schedule our installion crews to be at the job site when the panels are delivered to supervise the unloading of vault materials.  The installers then start to construct the vault, and typically work seven days a week (unless access to the job site is limited, then we work out the schedule with the customer) until the vault is completed.  We educate and coordinate with the contractors who will perform the finish-out work to make sure that goes smoothly and avoid delays to completion of the project after our scope of work is completed. 

With so many suppliers that deliver when it’s convenient for them, and contractors who work several project at the same time at the expense of their customer’s construction schedule it’s no surprise when our customers tell us we exceeded their expectations.  At FIRELOCK we take pride in delivering what we promise and making each customer a satisfied customer–every time.

The movers and shakers in the data protection industry will be gathering in San Antonio, Texas on September 23rd and 24th at the BareMetal Data World Conference.  This organization is comprised of a wide variety of professionals in the data protection industry, including media vault owners, software and hardware vendors, disaster recovery experts, and those responsible for protecting the mission critical information of their organization.

As usual, Hugh Smith of FIRELOCK will be presenting a seminar at this conference focused on emerging trends in data protection and marketing.  As a recognized expert in disaster recovery and business continuity issues relating to preserving information in digital format, Hugh has over twenty years of experience in this industry. 

Over eighty offsite data storage firms have invested in FIRELOCK vaults to protect their clients’ most valuable backup data for disaster recovery.  These vaults are capable of maintaining the interior temperature below 125-degrees F. (the point at which data tapes lose information) even if the exterior temperature reaches 2,000-degrees.  Many owners and managers of FIRELOCK-equipped data storage companies will be at this conference to keep up to date with new trends in this industry.  I’m sure this will be an interesting and educational event for anyone interested in the data protection industry.

Depending on your frame of reference, August 24^th is a day of relief or a day of clean up.  Some of the pundit’s jokingly refer to the earthquake as having occurred on the well known “Bush’s Fault Line”  - but these same writers ran out of their offices and news stations were in full panic just before 2:00 PM along with Federal workers.

Reporters quickly searched out the infamous concrete block walls that routinely develop large cracks or in some cases collapse when exposed to rumbling earthquakes. The rigid building material simply does not do well with the 10,000 mile per hour earthquake shock waves so they make excellent photos for page one of the newspaper and the evening news.

So here we are in late August closing bridges and overpasses to assess the damage.  Airports closed down and trains stopped running as experts tried to determine what to do in an earthquake. As one blogger wrote: “I was so confused. I broke out my own front window, grabbed my big screen TV and ran out on the front lawn! Can you blame me?  I was confused!”

What you should see in the headlines is “FIRELOCK Fireproof Vaults once again withstood the local earthquakes and experienced No Damage!!  So Wednesday August 24^th is just another day for the 1,700 businesses that selected FIRELOCK for their vital records protection. Nuclear Power sites, U.S. Defense Department sites and Health Organizations functioned normally because the FIRELOCK Vaults carry a Zone IV Certification. In the offsite media storage industry 85 different service providers with millions and millions of tape back up stored in these vaults had another uneventful day!

FIRELOCK Fireproof Modular Vaults of Kutztown, PA is the world’s largest provider of Class 125 Media Storage Vaults. The vaults are magnetically shielded to protect computer media and servers and are structurally designed to survive a fire, earthquakes while providing a perfectly controlled environment for the vital media and servers within the chambers.

The Society of American Archivists is hosting its annual conference in Chicago this week, and FIRELOCK will be exhibiting the latest in vaulting technology for the protection of valuable records and historic artifacts.   A new trend in archiving is the digitizing of documents and photographs so they can be accessed by the general public online.  Of course these archives must be maintained on IT equipment, which is very heat sensitive.  FIRELOCK can provide Class 125 server vaults to protect this equipment from catastrophic fires, and avoid astronomical financial losses.

This conference runs all week, with the exhibition open on the evening of Thursday, August 25th and all day Friday the 26th at the Hyatt Regency Chicago.  We’ll be there to share how we help archivists design and acquire a vault custom built to meet their exact requirements.  We’ve exhibited at this conference for several years and expect it to be beneficial for exhibitors and attendees alike.

The heat wave that now covers most of the U.S. is a serious threat to the health of those who don’t have access to a climate controlled refuge.  Many businesses that rely on outdoor work, such as landscaping and construction, have had to curtail or shut down their operations out of concern for their employees’ safety.  The triple-digit temperatures and heat indexes are also a threat to IT operations, which must maintain temperatures below a specific temperature (usually around 80-degrees F.) before the servers and other equipment start to malfunction and shut down.  More on that issue in this blog: http://blog.servervaulting.com/?p=338

A less obvious but just as critical issue is the protection of temperature-sensitive magnetic media that is used to store backup data.  The data tapes that contain this mission critical information must be protected from cycling of temperature and humidity levels, and can lose data when exposed to temperatures over 125-degrees F.  FIRELOCK builds fireproof modular vaults to maintain the interior temperature below this critical threshold even if the exterior temperature reaches 2,000-degrees in a catastrophic fire.  A beneficial by-product of the unsurpassed insulating capabilities of these vaults is an R-33 insulation rating.  This makes them very economical to climate control, even when a heat wave strikes.

How can a small business take advantage of the protective capabilities of FIRELOCK vaults?  By utilizing the offsite data storage services of one of the members of the network of FIRELOCK-equipped companies located all over the country.  There are many offsite storage companies that claim to offer climate controlled tape storage, but most are just a partitianed area of a warehouse with an air conditioner.  When exterior temperatures soar the lack of insulation in the tape storage area pushes these substandard HVAC systems to the point of failure, and critical information is at risk of being lost forever.  That’s why it just doesn’t pay to take chances with your backup tapes.  With all the other concerns business owners face today, the weather shouldn’t be one of them.

Once again wildfires are burning out of control all over the Southwestern states.  Thousands of residents of the threatened areas have been evacuated, leaving behind their homes, businesses and institutions in path of these fires.  Today’s headlines warn of the threat to the nuclear material stockpiles at New Mexico’s Los Alamos National Laboratory, which are being monitored by the National Nuclear Security Administration.

While the threat of radioactive particulates being spread by the winds is big news, the media doesn’t cover the much more likely threat of the loss of mission critical information and historic documents.  How many businesses could be wiped out if the wildfires destroy their irreplaceable business records?  How many towns will lose their historic documents and current vital records? 

What can these business owners do to protect against the recurring threat of wildfires?  For most businesses an excellent solution is utilizing the services of their local offsite data storage company.  That way they will know their operational backup data and archival data tapes will be protected–as long as the offsite service provider has invested in a data-rated fireproof vault.  There is a network of these conscientious data protection firms around the country who have installed Class 125 vaults to ensure the survival of their clients’ information even in a worst-case-scenario disaster.

For public record custodians, such as town clerks and town managers, the best option is often the purchase of their own Class 125/Class 350 vault to protect their community’s irreplaceable records.  Because even a small FIRELOCK vault will keep the interior temperature below 125-degrees F. for two hours (to protect digital media) and below 350-degreess for at least four hours (for paper documents) even if the exterior temperature reaches 2,000-degrees, it significantly increases the chances of survival of the vault contents when the fire consumes the building around it.  Chances are everyone must be evacuted from the town when an out-of-control wildfire strikes, including the fire department. 

Homes, businesses and municipal buildings can be rebuilt after the fire has run its course, but mission critical information and historic documents can’t be replaced.  It’s up to business owners and public authorities to protect these vulnerable information assets, because it’s likely wildfires will be back again next year, and the year after that, and the year after that…

The Town of Plympton, MA is the latest municipality to invest in a FIRELOCK vault to protect their historic documents and vital records.  Plympton is a small town that dates back to 1707, so needless to say they have some historically significant and irreplaceable documents within their archives. 

Town of Plympton, MA

To protect their archival and current records they decided to do it right and build a vault that complies with Massachusetts specifications for historic document and vital record preservation, which is a Class 350-Six Hour/125-Two Hour rated vault.  This means the interior of the vault must remain below 350-degrees F. for at least six hours to protect paper documents and below 125-degrees F. to protect digital media, even if  the exterior temperature reaches 2,000-degrees F.  By installing a vault that meets state specifications they were able to win a grant from the Massachusetts Community Preservation Commission program to cover much of the cost for the vault.  They chose FIRELOCK to build this vault because it is the most economical way to meet the state’s stringent standards, and the vault can also be relocated or expanded in the future if needed.

Now that the vault is in place the custodians of these 300-year old documents have peace of mind knowing they have done their part to safeguard their community’s historic treasures.  Because the vault is also capable of protecting digital media, such as computer backup tapes, the Town of Plympton is also prepared for record preservation in the future.  What a great way to preserve the past AND be ready for the future.

This week FIRELOCK will be exhibiting at the Expo of PRISM International’s annual conference at the world famous Doral Golf Resort in Miami, Florida.  This gathering of offsite record and data storage service providers brings in the top players in the industry, and is a great way to learn about best practices and new technologies.  FIRELOCK is a long-time participant and sponsor of this event, which has helped us build many great relationships with the members of this organization.

Over the years we have also built up a network of offsite data storage centers that leverage the capabilities of their FIRELOCK Class 125 data vaults to gain a competitive advantage in their markets.  Because the large national offsite data storage companies do not equip their facilities with true data-rated vaults there is the opportunity for the independent owner-managed companies to win clients with more secure storage facilities.  These Class 125-rated vaults (meaning the temperature will be maintained below 125-degrees F. for the specified duration even if the exterior temperature reaches 2,000-degrees F.) help you meet NFPA 232 standards for the protection of documents, backup tapes and other record media.  The more discerning clients look for service providers who meet this strict standard, and are willing to pay a premium for this higher level of protection.

If you’re attending the PRISM conference please stop by and see us in the Expo hall.  We have lots of great information to share about how you can gain a competitive advantage in your market.

Between the natural disasters in Japan and the civil war raging in Libya, energy prices have been ratcheting up relentlessly in the past few weeks.  The unstable and potentially disastrous crisis at Japan’s nuclear power plants is likely to curtail any significant expansion of nuclear power sources in this country due to paranoia over safety issues.  Of course these events lead to higher operating costs for power-hungry data centers.  This blow to the bottom line is felt especially hard by organizations who operate multiple data centers.

One way to mitigate the financial burden of rising energy costs is to minimize the number of data centers in your network.  But how can you do this without increasing the risk of downtime?  By protecting one data center with a Class 125 server vault, you can mitigate the risk of losing mission critical information and equipment.  Only FIRELOCK can provide a true-data rated server vault to keep the interior temperature below the critical 125-degrees F. threshold for two to four hours (depending upon the size of the vault) even if the catastrophic fire reaches 2,000-degrees F.!  Networking equipment is especially vulnerable, and protecting it with a vault that meets NFPA 75 standards is cheap insurance against what could be catastrophic losses.

Even after the Japan recovers from their natural disasters and nuclear power plant crisis, and Libya reaches some degree of stability, there will likely be some other destabilizing events that drive up the cost of energy.  The current administration in Washington seems determined to limit utilization of fossil fuels to meet our energy needs, so supply will always lag behind demand.  There are many ways to improve energy efficiency within a data center, but none as successful as reducing the number of data centers in operation.  That is by far the most effective way to manage rising energy costs.

In a large-scale data center the individual server racks of equipment are often considered to be expendable.  The redundancy of information on the network and excess capacity that has been planned into these facilities gives some data center operators a  false sense of security.  The theory is that even if there is a major disaster at the data center they can continue operations as usual by utilizing the excess computing capacity in the unaffected areas.  The achilles heel of these data centers is the networking equipment, which effectively cuts off this data center from the outside world when a disaster strikes this vulnerable area.  A multi-million dollar data center can be taken off-line for an extended period of time because this one area of the data center was not protected.

An economical and effective way to safeguard this critical area is with a Class 125 modular fireproof vault.  The vaults designed, manufactured and installed by Firelock are capable of maintaining the interior temperature below 125-degrees F. for two to four hours (depending upon the size of the vault) even if the exterior temperature reaches 2,000-degrees.  This ensures the survival of the delicate network communications equipment even in a catastrophic fire in that area.  The power and network cables would need to be replaced, but this would be a much faster repair than replacing all the lost equipment and cabling in an unprotected facility.  What is the cost difference between hours of downtime versus days of downtime for your organization?

Every year we become more dependent upon the flow of information, and downtime becomes more and more costly.  Firelock vaults have been protecting mission critical IT equipment for over twenty years, and have been installed in the most advanced data centers for Fortune 500 companies, military bases, managed hosting companies and others who cannot afford to lose their data center operations.  Technologies have evolved over the years, but the vulnerability of data centers to disasters remains the same.