Chandler Data Center Construction Project Undergoes Comprehensive Emergency Drill

At CyrusOne, the health and safety of every employee, contractor, vendor and customer is our top priority. We make it our mission to strive for continuous improvement to ensure a safe environment in all our data centers.

As part of CyrusOne's commitment to safety, our data center construction project in Chandler, Ariz. recently held a comprehensive emergency drill and rescue training with the Chandler Fire and Rescue Department and the project's general contractor, Skanska. The goal of the fire drill was to reinforce the safety preparedness of onsite workers as well as to better familiarize the fire department with the facility. Watch the video!

Details of the fire drill were not shared with participants in advance—even the fire department and rescue squad did not know what they were responding to until the call came in. The drill included building evacuation and a mock rescue scenario in one of the data halls under construction, where a mannequin fell through from an open floor and laid across a live electrical line. When the call came, every onsite worker in the data hall evacuated. Designated team members conducted clean sweeps through all areas to make sure everyone had evacuated and proceeded to the muster points outside. The Chandler Fire and Rescue members made their way into the building to assess the rescue situation involving the mannequin on the electrical line. Following some discussion,the rescue crew decided to pull the mannequin from the electrical line through the floor opening from which it fell. Following the drill,the fire department,Skanska and CyrusOne held a debriefing to share insights and key learnings,including what went well and any areas for improvement. �The emergency drill helped reinforce the evacuation processes for our team,ensuring they know exactly what to do and where to go during an emergency evacuation,� said Douglas McDowell,EHS Manager at Skanska. �Safety is at the heart of what we do,and drills like this help make sure we are well-prepared and stay safe in the event of an emergency.� CyrusOne is focused on supporting our local communities and strengthening relationships with community services,like the fire department. The emergency drill was helpful to all parties involved � employees were able to strengthen and practice their evacuation skills,and the fire and rescue department became better acclimated to CyrusOne�s facility and the layout of the building. If an emergency,such as the one demonstrated in the emergency drill does occur,CyrusOne has an event management system and emergency response protocols designed to protect the safety and security of our teammates,customers and partners,and to minimize the risk to our business. We also prioritize customer communications at these times to ensure our customers are kept up-to-date on status,so they can activate their own business continuity planning,when needed. �CyrusOne has extensive preventative measures already in place; it�s all built into the systems and infrastructure,� said Tammy Luther,Director of Environmental Health and Safety at CyrusOne. �When you live and breathe these things and practice them,they become so much easier to do when there is an emergency. When that fire alarm goes off,don�t panic,know where exit routes are,and follow your emergency response plan.� Just as we prioritize the safety of our teammates and partner with contractors to work safely at our sites,our focus on safety extends to our local community and the customers who share our colocation spaces. To provide shared guidelines,we�ve developed a Customer Safety Handbook that outlines general safety rules,as well as topic-specific considerations,such as safe ladder use,electrical safety,fire prevention,and material handling. These rules all have one thing in common: they are there for the safety of all who work in or operate our data centers. We also show a safety video to our customers and visitors prior to them visiting or working in our data centers. The safety video highlights general safety information and best practices for customers and visitors to follow when inside our data centers. As there are various safety hazards that are seen in data centers,CyrusOne wants to ensure that all customers and visitors are well-informed of these hazards and how they can stay safe when visiting or working in our data centers. Additional details about CyrusOne�s commitment to safety are included in our 2023 sustainability report. The emergency drill serves as a reminder for us all about the value of fire safety,cooperation between our facilities and the local fire departments,and why safety is of the utmost importance. Because of exercises like this,we are able to keep our construction sites and facilities as safe as possible.