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NAVER to Establish “GAK Sejong” following “GAK Chuncheon,” 10 Years of Stable Service Continues with Accumulated Know-How and Technological Investments 

 -“GAK Chuncheon,” the first data center by an Internet company in Korea, began operating in 2013, with 10 years of interruption-free, accident-free, and disaster-free operation
- Securely designed to operate for approximately 70 hours, even in the event of power supply abnormalities, without any service disruptions.
- NAVER has conducted more than 200 mock drills and operated a “consultative committee for data center rack capacity” to maintain service reliability

- “GAK Sejong,” the second data center, commences full operation in the second half of the year, presenting a blueprint for a “future robotics data center” that incorporates Team NAVER's technologies.

 

2023-02-12

 

Data centers are the foundation of the future cloud industry. NAVER Cloud prepared an opportunity to share the internally developed technologies related to data center facilities and software, as well as the know-how accumulated through a decade of accident-free and stable operation.

On the 9th, NAVER Cloud (CEO Kim Yoo-won) held a tech forum at GAK Chuncheon, its data center in Chuncheon, Gangwon-do, to reveal the technical expertise behind 10 years of consistent service and introduce the new data center “GAK Sejong,” which will be unveiled in the second half of this year.

 

[Photo] Roh Sang-min, head of NAVER Cloud Data Center

During the presentation, Roh Sang-min, head of NAVER Cloud Data Center, emphasized the importance of three operational keywords for GAK Chuncheon: "interruption-free," "accident-free," and "disaster-free." He elaborated on NAVER's unique technologies and operational excellence, which have enabled them to achieve such high levels of reliability and stability.

 

“GAK Chuncheon” celebrates its 10th anniversary, continuing stable services for 116 months through the dedicated efforts of personnel and the use of self-developed technologies

On June 13, 2013, NAVER unveiled "GAK Chuncheon," becoming the first portal company in Korea to establish its own data center.

GAK Chuncheon is located on the Gubongsan mountainside, offering a panoramic view of the entire city of Chuncheon, Gangwon-do. The data center has a gross floor area of 46,850 m2, which is equivalent to seven soccer fields, and it can accommodate around 100,000 units (height in rack units) of servers, making it the most significant data center outside the Seoul Metropolitan Area. GAK Chuncheon has played an essential role in Naver’s provision of continuous Internet services to users in Korea and around the world. Moreover, it is widely recognized as a leading global example in Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) management, such as energy efficiency.

NAVER Cloud has made significant efforts to train dedicated personnel and invest in research and development throughout the design, construction, and operation of GAK Chuncheon. To establish a data center operating system without relying on external sources, NAVER Cloud focuses on fostering dedicated personnel and internalizing technological capabilities in various areas such as electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, control systems, and communication.

 

Moreover, NAVER Cloud is independently developing a system necessary for data center facilities and service operations. In particular, they have developed a failure detection and analysis tool to respond quickly and adequately to service failures. NAVER Cloud’s self-developed service failure detection tool WMS (Web Monitoring System) can detect failure warnings that existing commercial tools cannot. The comprehensive failure analysis tool “Weave” is also self-developed and detects service and infrastructure failures on a single screen. It can analyze the situation comprehensively and provide practical recovery support during service failures by integrating database, network, and server information.

NAVER Cloud also established a contingency system to maintain service continuity during disasters such as earthquakes, power outages, fires, landslides, and floods. To this end, all of GAK Chuncheon's buildings are constructed to withstand earthquakes of magnitude 6.5 or higher, which is the same standard as that of Korean nuclear power plants.

In preparation for power outages caused by power supply abnormalities from Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO), GAK Chuncheon uses a dynamic uninterrupted power supply (UPS) to supply continuous power to servers. The dynamic UPS uses a battery-free, all-in-one generator. In power outages, rotational energy is converted into electrical energy through induction coupling of internal power outage compensation devices, which supply power for about five to seven seconds. The all-in-one emergency generator automatically starts to provide a stable power supply. Subsequently, the data center is designed to operate for over 70 hours uninterrupted by supplying fuel from the 600,000-liter underground tank at GAK Chuncheon to the UPS.

When wildfires occur nearby, the closed-circuit television (CCTV) will detect any heat, and the fire detection software will promptly notify the security control center personnel. The waterproof guns installed on the rooftop of the server rooms will then spray water to extinguish the fire and prevent its spread.

In addition, a public-private joint firefighting drill with the Chuncheon Fire Station is held once a year to practice evacuating people, putting out fires, and rescuing individuals in case of fires that occur in various locations within the data center.

 

To ensure disaster recovery, NAVER Cloud has implemented network architecture and distributed its data centers and services

 

Data centers are usually located in the Seoul Metropolitan Area to ensure easy access to relevant infrastructure. However, if all facilities are concentrated in one location, they may be vulnerable to crisis management during a disaster. For this reason, NAVER Cloud built its own and leased data centers in different areas, such as Gangwon, Chungbuk, and Gyeongnam, in addition to the Seoul Metropolitan Area. The location of NAVER’s second data center, GAK Sejong, in the Sejong Advanced Industrial Complex was chosen because of its physical distance from GAK Chuncheon.

 

A well-designed network architecture and a distributed deployment based on service characteristics are also essential to ensure uninterrupted services. To achieve network stability, NAVER utilizes multiple telecommunication providers instead of relying on a single provider. The company has secured sufficient capacity by incorporating scale-out storage and redundancy systems to enhance the network architecture’s processing capability. On a tightly woven network architecture, NAVER has optimized service distribution so that services can be provided from another location in case an issue arises in one area. This system prevents service interruptions or data loss.

NAVER also established a “consultative committee for data center rack capacity,” enhancing service stability and efficiency. The committee accurately predicts and utilizes the rack capacity by coordinating with relevant departments, such as data center planning and technology departments that develop data center technologies and provide services, service infrastructure management department, and IT infrastructure engineering department.

Because data centers are critical facilities, compliance with multiple legal obligations and certifications is needed. Accordingly, GAK Chuncheon complies with several regulations, including the Personal Information Protection Act, Standards on Cloud Computing Service Information Protection, and Regulation on Supervision of Electronic Finance, regularly being examined for its service operation status. NAVER Cloud has acquired 13 information protection certifications, which is the highest number of certificates for a communications service provider (CSP) in Korea.

 

For ensuring operational stability, more than 200 mock drills have been conducted; in case of emergent situations, the AI assistant “WORKS Bot” sends real-time alerts

 

The significance of having a Business Continuity Plan (BCP) has increased during the pandemic, as it ensures the continuity of business operations during a disaster and enables quick recovery.

NAVER Cloud has developed a BCP to maintain uninterrupted services in any situation. The BCP includes a manual for response measures in case of heavy snow, storm and flood damage, terrorism, and infectious diseases. The plan also provides detailed instructions on the actions that should be taken by individuals based on their job positions and department, as well as emergency contact lists and reporting procedures. In addition, NAVER Cloud configured a dedicated team for the BCP, which will function as a control tower in case of disasters, to ensure business continuity.

 

Over the past 10 years, more than 200 mock drills were conducted, including BCP mock drills twice a year, public-private joint drills once a year, and operational stability checks one to two times a month. Through continuous training, NAVER ensures fast decision-making, allows internal communication using NAVER Works’ AI secretary WORKS Bot, and identifies available resources and quick recovery in actual disaster situations. The WORKS Bot delivers real-time information on temperature and humidity levels, heat detection, and service disruptions to all facility operation staff.

In January, during a mock drill of a "GAK Chuncheon main building fire situation," the disaster management staff were able to quickly alert employees within five minutes of detecting the mock fire via SMS and the Trouble Ticket System (TTS). They subsequently asked for on-site situation and extent of damage to check for any potential casualties. Later, they informed the fire station, KEPCO, and Korea Gas Corporation (KOGAS) of the fire and requested their cooperation.

Then, if the fire became more widespread, they elevated the alert level to “serious,” ensuring regular service operation to expand infrastructure facilities if necessary. The situation is reported to the Chief Risk Officer (CRO) in real-time, and all services will be recovered without any problem.

“We are committed to recovering major services within the golden time of failure response. It is the mission of NAVER Cloud to prevent service disruptions and data loss,” said Roh Sang-min, head of NAVER Cloud Data Center.

 

NAVER establishes itself as a global ESG management company beyond eco-friendly data centers

During the presentation, Roh discussed ESG and highlighted the growing public interest in the ESG management practices of companies that operate data centers.

 

[Photo] Jung Soo-hwan, the director of NAVER Cloud’s IT services(left) 

and Roh Sang-min, head of NAVER Cloud Data Center(right)

GAK Chuncheon is an aggregation of eco-friendly data center technologies that aim to reuse various resources. One example is utilizing natural wind in Chuncheon, where the average temperature is two to three degrees cooler than in the Seoul Metropolitan Area, to cool down the heat generated in the server room. The waste heat generated in the server room is not discarded externally but collected through a waste heat recovery system. This heat is then used to warm the antifreeze that flows through specialized pipes buried underground. The waste heat is also used to power a snow-melting system that prevents the large cargo trucks carrying the servers from slipping on the road during the winter. Furthermore, rainwater is collected and stored in detention basins for reuse in gardening and fire-fighting, while solar generators assist in saving 210 MWh of electricity annually.

Recently, NAVER has been actively promoting ESG management not just in its data centers, but also at the corporate level. In October 2022, NAVER became the first Internet portal company in the world to commit to the RE100 and EV100 initiatives. In December, NAVER achieved the AAA rating, the highest rating available from MSCI, a global ESG rating institution, for the second consecutive year. These accomplishments have established NAVER as a leading company in ESG management.

 

“GAK Sejong” starts operation in the second half, expected to become a future robotics data center incorporating Team NAVER’s latest technologies

NAVER plans to complete the construction in the second quarter and start operating its second self-developed data center, “GAK Sejong,” in the third quarter of this year.

GAK Sejong is a hyper-scale data center that spans over 293,697 square meters, which is six times larger than GAK Chuncheon. With a power supply capacity of 270 MW, 6.7 times greater than GAK Chuncheon, GAK Sejong is expected to accommodate over 600,000 server units. As a future robotics data center, it is expected to establish itself as the key driving force of the cloud industry with the world-leading infrastructure by incorporating NAVER’s technological capabilities, including big data, AI, and robots.

NAVER plans to apply the knowledge and experience it has gained over the past decade of operating GAK Chuncheon to make GAK Sejong a data center with enhanced productivity and stability through cutting-edge IT integration. For instance, advanced technologies such as robots and autonomous driving will be incorporated in “GAK Sejong,” similar to the tech convergence building “1784”, which is the NAVER’s second office building. While 1784 was designed to focus on the coexistence of humans and robots, “GAK Sejong” will focus on improving on-site work productivity using robots and autonomous driving shuttles.

In addition, NAVER is placing emphasis on energy efficiency from the construction phase of GAK Sejong to ensure stable IT services for the next 20 years. The company plans to actively utilize eco-friendly renewable energy while complying with the government's carbon reduction policies and nuclear phase-out.

 

Jung Soo-hwan, the director of NAVER Cloud’s IT services, said, “NAVER Cloud will continue to provide stable services by investing significantly in advanced technologies like robots, AI, and cloud. By using data centers as the basis of the cloud industry, we aim to develop globally competitive cloud businesses. GAK Sejong will serve as a key foundation for the growth and expansion of NAVER's hyper-scale AI HyperCLOVA, which has recently garnered significant attention.”

 

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