Within an international system towards achieving the e-government
Al Harethi inaugurates Muscat municipality data center
Written by: Ibrahim Al Hasani
Photography : Solaiman Al Khusaibi
In keeping in touch with the technologies of shifting towards the e-government, HE Eng./ Sultan Ben Hamdoun Al Harethi , mayor of Muscat , yesterday , Sunday morning at the municipality in Darsait, inaugurated an integrated Muscat municipality data center in accordance with the international rules, regulations and standards. The management information system of the municipality supervises the center.. HE met a number of the officials and those specialized in cutting ribbon, allowing the start of work for this new system which is added to the municipal work system for promoting the service provided by the municipality .
Center objectives
Center aims at getting rid of problems and obstacles related to the infrastructure of information technology which adversely affects the efficiency and effectiveness of the provided e-services and at the same time limits the reinforcements and the technical expansions. It also aims at finding an integrated data meets the international regulations and standards, the most important of which is TIA 942 , assuring the readiness of the infrastructure for shifting into the e-government and the ability to achieve the technical integration with the other government authorities easily.
Two phases of work
Considering the amount of work in this project, it has been divided to two main phases: construction phase; it has been achieved in cooperation with the competent technical authorities of the units of Muscat municipality and through which emphasis was placed on providing all the main facilities .
and the second phase: initialization phase; through which the special designs of the center by its different facilities are chosen to meet the international regulations and standards in addition to the best exploitation of the absorptive capacity of the available resources, taking into account the future technical expansions .
Facilities
Center contains the main servers room, which is regarded as the main central data point. This room contains the servers and the main central systems, control room and the control room for resource systems subjected to the servers room, the network connections control room, the electrical power room which provides the center with the static, stable and uninterruptable energy because of the sensitivity of the devices inside it. It has been provided with backup power units or what is called UPS , in addition to an annex for the electric generator .
In the design of the main servers room subjected to the data center, it has been taken into account the use of the hot air control system emitting from the devices and which separates the hot air from the cold air and controlling it , which helps to reduce effectively the consumption of electrical power by 40 % comparing to the use of the other devices.
All facilities of the center have been initialized with high quality developed devices and technologies. Here are some of the most important advantages of them: the ability to integrate all devices, equipment and central units in the different facilities of the center for controlling work, regulating its management, the ability to identify the necessary needs for adding any device in the center by an active simulation system that specifies the proper location for this addition with giving an accurate indicators show the necessary needs if found, maintaining data and electrical systems and assuring their working under the worst accidental circumstances that may happen .
Challenges
Naglaa Al Rawahiyah, daughter of Naser, director of program management in the management information system, indicated that one of the most important challenges that faces the project is the process of transferring the infrastructure and its connection to the indoor and outdoor network from the previous location to the new location. It has been resolved by virtues of the cooperation between all members of the executive team and the auxiliary teams and following an accurate and detailed course of action that included studies of the current state and the state after the transfer as well as setting main and reference plans for transfer aimed at dividing the transfer phases into five main phases. In this division, it has been taken into account to reduce the necessary timing for transfer to avoid the loss arising from stopping the e-services and the operational integration of the systems related to the devices transferred in the one phase, to be checked ,assuring that they are safe and their actual operation immediately upon the completion of transfer .
Unique properties
Younis Ben Saif Al Omairi, the first system programmer (project manager), indicated that the most prominent in Muscat municipality data center is its inclusion of many of the following
technical properties that qualifies it to be within the most developed centers in the sultanate. One of the most important of these properties is installing smart conditioners which are able to deal with any urgent changes that might happen when adding or separating central devices and also the provision of the precautions necessary for the center facilities that enables them to deal with any emergency state that might change the level of the service provided by Muscat municipality in addition to the ability of the specialists to operate and control the operational process remotely .
The center. by turn, will ensure the addition of servers, central systems and their auxiliary systems. It has been established in accordance with all the international standards specialized in this regard TIA942/ANSI and according to the global trend towards the rationalization of energy consumption and the environment cleaning
Technical staff
In the implementation of this project, it was a staff specialized in the different fields and also one of the most important supporters and implementers of the project in the information management system in Muscat municipality network department, information safety department , database department, internet department, technical support department, program development department, application department , databases of the department of geographical information system, Muscat communication center, amount survey department, procurement and contract management, project and maintenance department and building`s director office.