Partner POV | Ask an Expert: A Conversation with Dipin Jain on EL2P - The Future of Intelligent Power Distribution
Article contributed by, Dipin Jain, Sr. Product Development Manager, Panduit.
We recently caught up with Dipin Jain, Sr. Product Development Manager at Panduit, to talk about the company's latest innovation: EL2P. Dipin shared his thoughts on what makes this intelligent PDU platform special and why he believes it's a game-changer for data centers everywhere.
Q: So Dipin, let's start with the basics. I keep hearing about EL2P around the office. What exactly is it, and why should people care?
Dipin: Great question! EL2P stands for "Elevate to Power," and honestly, that name captures exactly what we were trying to achieve. Our purpose was simple: develop a rack PDU that is built for the rack but designed for the user. You know, we could have just made another incremental improvement to our existing PDUs, but we decided to completely rethink the whole thing from the ground up.
Q: Really? That sounds like a big undertaking.
Dipin: Sort of… here's the thing, when we talked to our customers, they kept telling us about these pain points: deployment taking longer than it should, updates being operationally disruptive and extremely resource heavy, security concerns keeping them up at night hoping they were not going to be the next target, and installations that were just plain frustrating to get up and running. So, we thought, what if we could solve all of these problems at once?
Q: That's ambitious. Give me an example of what that looks like in practice.
Dipin: Sure! Take something as simple as the screen orientation. Sounds trivial, right? But if you've ever tried to read a PDU display when it's mounted upside down, it very quickly becomes challenging as the user frantically shuffles through the user's manual to figure out whether they are able to manually rotate the screen. If they find their PDU allows for that, it would take an unbelievably large number of button presses to get down to that portion of the menu. What did we do? We designed an accelerometer that automatically rotates the screen. It's simplicity right where you need it.
Q: I can see how that would be helpful. But who's actually using these things? Are we talking about massive hyperscale data centers or something more accessible?
Dipin: That's what I love about EL2P, although it's extremely capable, we specifically designed it utilizing optimal manufacturing methodologies, making it well-suited for a multitude of spaces. From enterprise data centers, colocation facilities, edge computing sites, to AI factories. Basically, anywhere you need secure, intelligent power distribution, we have an EL2P PDU for you.
Q: Let's talk performance. What are customers actually getting when they deploy EL2P?
Dipin: Three big things: simplicity, visibility, and speed. The touch screen I mentioned makes installation so much more intuitive - no more craning your neck or using a flashlight. The other benefit of the accelerometer is that it enabled us to optimize the supply chain by allowing for a single part number to be specified for either overhead or underfloor power. Also, we implemented a resistive touch screen that requires physical pressure to eliminate accidental bumps that we know can occur in the back of a busy cabinet.
Then there are our aqua colored outlets. We heard the black outlets were difficult to see in the back of a dark cabinet, so we took our black outlets and turned them into an easy-to-see aqua color….but we didn't stop there; we color-coded the outlets to the circuit breakers to simplify the load balancing 3-phase system. Then there's our Secure Zero Touch Provisioning. ZTP, which means you can get up and running faster than ever before. Integrators and AI factories love the efficiency they get from ZTP because it allows their build cell to configure their PDUs automatically, leveraging industry-standard DHCP. Last but not least, we certified our IPv6 network stack to the USGv6 standard. This is the level of some of our strongest alliances with Cisco and Dell.
- NEW 360 Swivel Cord
- Color-Coded Outlet Bank Switch
- NEW High Visibility Aqua Outlets
- NEW Smart Auto Rotating Display
- NEW LCD Touchscreen
- Communication Ports
Q: Zero Touch Provisioning sounds impressive, but also potentially scary from a security standpoint. How do you balance convenience with security?
Dipin: You hit on something really important there. Security wasn't an afterthought for us - it was a primary design driver. That's why EL2P complies with Cybersecurity standards UL-2900-1 and IEC 62443. EL2P also supports IEEE 802.1x and went the extra mile to gain USGv6 certification on the IPv6 network stack. Now, your question about ZTP is a keen acknowledgment that, inherently, there was a hole in the DHCP ZTP that the right individual could exploit. However, that's why Panduit's EL2P features Secure ZTP. Although it sounds similar, the difference is that SZTP is a certificate-based provisioning protocol that eliminates the security hole inherent in ZTP. I understand that may be a lot, but the general takeaway is that EL2P is specifically designed to be implemented in mission-critical/high-security environments.
Q: That's reassuring. But I have to ask - does all this intelligence and security come at the cost of complicated installations?
Dipin: Actually, it's the opposite! We obsessed over making installation easier. Tool-less mounting, cleaner power cord routing, and one-touch firmware updates. We literally brought installers into our design process and asked them, "What drives you crazy?" Then we fixed those things.
Q: Now, I have to ask the compatibility question because I know it's on everyone's mind. What if I already have existing infrastructure?
Dipin: EL2P was built to play nicely with others. It integrates seamlessly with existing Panduit racks, of course, but also with third-party racks, cabinets, switches, DCIM platforms, Cisco ecosystems, Redfish, you name it. We use open protocols and publish our MIB to stay fully software-agnostic, so you can slot EL2P right into your current environment without disruption.
Q: That's smart. What about the day-to-day user experience? Is this actually easier to manage than traditional PDUs?
Dipin: Absolutely. Managing the PDU after it's been deployed was another key pillar that we've designed into the EL2P. To support the EL2P Panduit offers, free of charge, a bulk update and configuration utility called SiteCommand. This web-based application takes all of the labor out of upgrading firmware down to just a couple of mouse clicks. Users can also utilize this utility to bulk deploy their configurations, which is beneficial even if they used SZTP during their initial deployment. Whether you're standing in front of the rack at 2 AM troubleshooting an issue, or managing everything remotely from your desk, EL2P just works better.
Q: You mentioned the visual design earlier. That seems like an interesting focus for something that's usually hidden away in a rack.
Dipin: That's exactly the point. We realized that power outlets are often the least visible part of your rack infrastructure, but they're also some of the most critical. So, we made them the most visible. Better visibility means better usability, even when you're working in those dimly lit data center environments, we all know and love.
Q: Before we wrap up, what would you say to someone who's on the fence about upgrading their power infrastructure?
Dipin: I'd say this: EL2P brings intelligence, security, and simplicity together in one platform. It's engineered for the edge, the enterprise, and everything in between. But more than that, it's designed for where data centers are going, not just where they are today. We believe the best investments are the ones that make your job (or your team's job) easier every single day.