The Alhambra Data Center is a critical operations facility responsible for processing Southern California Edison’s daily functions, including the management and delivery of electric power to its customers. One half of the building is business office and the other holds the electrical and mechanical equipment.

A 23,000 square foot mechanical yard next to the building holds all the necessary equipment to provide emergency backup power, Including up to eight diesel generators and uninterrupted power supply batteries. Other unique elements of this Data Center include two rainwater harvesting/reclamation systems and a waste heat recovery system used to warm office spaces in the winter.

The 30,000 gallon fuel tank installed for the SCE Alhambra project supports five generators and is the back-up fuel supply for the entire data center grid for SCE customers. This system was complicated due to the N + 1 requirements for the electrical and monitoring systems, but with the Owner’s desires and the customers in mind were we able to take the original design and make suggestions which not only saved the Owner money during installation, but will help with future maintenance requirements.

Strong collaboration allowed project team members to achieve LEED criteria more efficiently within the design-build framework. Coordinated decision-making also led to measurable performance improvements. The Data Center helps the city achieve a LEED Gold certification.