Attachment 10 - SOCAMES Design Alert 4.pdf

HEFP/10NA5G/07JUN21

Clarification to the field is needed regarding the design of space for Telecommunications Rooms (TRs) in existing facilities for the Electronic Health Record Modernization (EHRM) initiative. The design reference, Infrastructure Standards for Telecommunications Spaces – Version 3.0 requires 170 sq ft TRs for clinical spaces. However, due to existing space and structural constraints, HEFP SEP requires, at a minimum, only 100 sq ft TRs for clinical spaces in existing buildings.

The Infrastructure Standards for Telecommunications Spaces – Version 3.0 was developed by the Solution Delivery-Data Center and Infrastructure Engineering (OIT SD-DCIE) team and published to the TIL August 21, 2020. HEFP SEP identifies the following references as standards for all Information Technology (IT) physical infrastructure design and construction projects:

Infrastructure Standards for Telecommunications Spaces – Version 3.0 and VA OEHRM Site

Infrastructure and End User Device Requirements. These references are discussed and provided to each station during and after their scheduled scoping session to identify the work needed to modernize IT infrastructure across the enterprise.

During the site scoping sessions, HEFP SEP uses the Generic Floor Plan for TRs (Two Rack Requirement), detail 3, page 155 in Appendix B-7 of the Infrastructure Standards for

Telecommunications Spaces – Version 3.0 to communicate and coordinate space requirements for existing TRs to support EHRM. The baseline TR template is a 10 ft x 10 ft (100 sq ft) generic floor plan with two 2 ft x 4 ft racks to house the IT infrastructure.

Infrastructure Standards for Telecommunications Spaces – Version 3.0 specifies that a clinical TR should have a generic floor plan layout of 170 sq ft to support four 2 ft x 4 ft racks. This specification for clinical TRs has created a conflict with the standardized baseline TR of 100 sq ft that HEFP SEP works with the sites to achieve.

HEFP SEP discussed the conflict in TR size requirements with the OIT SD-DCIE team. HEFP SEP identified that due to VAMC/CBOC space deficits, existing building footprints, and the number of TRs, it is difficult to meet the 170 sq ft space requirement without a detrimental impact to healthcare operations. Furthermore, based on the average number of end users associated with each TR, most TRs only house 2 racks and require 100 sq ft of space. HEFP SEP and OIT SD- DCIE agreed that the 100 sq ft baseline standard was the practical approach in existing buildings.

HEFP SEP (SOCAMES 6) Design Alert 4

Problem

Background

HEFP/10NA5G/07JUN21

All EHRM projects that require TR work in existing spaces shall minimally use the Generic Floor

Plan for TRs (Two Rack Requirement), detail 3, page 155 in Appendix B-7 of the Infrastructure Standards for Telecommunications Spaces – Version 3.0 which requires a 10 ft x 10 ft space to support two 2 ft x 4 ft racks. Room dimensions shall be increased by 20 sq ft for any additional 2 ft x 4 ft racks.

All new construction of clinical spaces should adhere to the standards as written.

Please use this link, https://www.cfm.va.gov/til/dguide/OIT-InfrastrucStdTelecomSpaces.pdf to locate the current version of Infrastructure Standard for Telecommunication Spaces – Version

3.0 published August 21, 2020.

Solution

Notes https://www.cfm.va.gov/til/dguide/OIT-InfrastrucStdTelecomSpaces.pdf