Schneider Electric launched a series of updates to its vendor-agnostic and CPD-accredited digital education platform, Schneider Electric University. Available in 14 languages and accessible globally for free online, the professional development platform is designed to address the data center sector skills gap, helping industry stakeholders to upskill and stay up to date with the latest technology, sustainability and energy efficiency initiatives affecting the sector.
To-date, Schneider Electric University has delivered more than one million courses to more than 650,000 data center users, with more than 180 countries represented by its global user-base. The new updates to the Schneider Electric University Data Center Certified Associate (DCCA) qualification include fundamentals of power, cooling, racks and physical security, and guidance on how to optimize data center designs to drive resilience, energy efficiency and sustainability. Among the new courses are: Optimizing Cooling Layouts for the Data Center; Fundamental Cabling Strategies in the Data Center; Examining Fire Protection Methods in the Data Center; and Fundamentals of Cooling II – Humidity in the Data Center.
The curriculum addresses key focal points for the industry such as Data Center Site Selection and Planning, which offers guidance on how to select brown and greenfield sites for access to renewable energy; Alternative Power Generation Technologies, which helps drive the implementation of renewable energy strategies, on-site power generation and use of technologies such as microgrids; and Battery Technology for Data Centers, which evaluates the sustainability impact of different types of UPS batteries, the benefits of Lithium-Ion technology, and offers an analysis of the associated lifecycle costs.
Addressing the industry skills gap
Research in the Uptime Institute Annual Data Center Survey 2021 estimates staff requirements will grow globally to nearly 2.3 million in 2025. Further, 32% of respondents reported difficulty in retaining staff, with 47% having difficulty finding qualified candidates for open jobs. Attracting and retaining talent within the industry, which is the heart of the digital economy, is now reaching a critical mass.
“In the last few years data center capacity demands have grown exponentially, reaching record new highs as digitization and cloud adoption accelerates. The sector skills shortage, however, remains a significant challenge and has potential implications for other connected industries,” said Pankaj Sharma, EVP Secure Power Division, Schneider Electric. “By providing guidance on the latest technology and sustainability initiatives, we believe the Schneider Electric University offers an invaluable resource to help bridge the skills gap by empowering business ecosystems, reskilling the workforce, and training the next generation of professionals to build the data centers of the future.”
