Rack for a data center

A rack for supporting data center equipment including servers, the rack comprising:

• a frame having first and second lateral ends opposite one another in a lateral direction of the rack, and front and rear ends opposite one another in a depth direction of the rack, the depth direction being perpendicular to the lateral direction, the frame comprising:
• at least two vertical wall supports laterally spaced apart from one another, the at least two vertical wall supports provided with a plurality of laterally-extending mounting rails that are vertically spaced apart from each other to supportively accommodate mounting of the servers within the rack, each of the at least two vertical wall supports including a respective lower portion incorporating two parallel vertically-extending flanges;
• and
• a base structure defining a bottom portion of the rack and mechanically fastened to the lower portion of the at least two vertical wall supports, the base structure incorporating a first opening and a second opening extending in the lateral direction of the rack for receiving a fork of a lifting machine along the lateral direction of the rack, the base structure comprising:
• a first upper wall defining in part the first opening;
• a second upper wall defining in part the second opening, the second upper wall being generally parallel to the first upper wall;
• a lower wall disposed between the first and second upper walls along the depth direction, the lower wall extending vertically lower than the first and second upper walls;
• two parallel side walls extending at least partly vertically upwards from the lower wall to a respective one of the first and second upper walls, the two parallel side walls and the lower wall defining together a middle cavity;
• and
• each of the two parallel side walls defining a third opening and a fourth opening for receiving the fork of the lifting machine along the depth direction of the rack,
• wherein, the two parallel side walls and the middle cavity of the base structure are configured to accommodate the two parallel vertically-extending flanges of the at least two vertical wall supports for mechanically fastening the base structure thereto, and
• wherein, a first vertically-extending flange of the two parallel vertically-extending flanges is fastened to a first side wall of the two parallel side walls, a second vertically-extending flange of the two parallel vertically-extending flanges is fastened to a second side wall of the two parallel side walls, and each of the at least two vertical wall supports further comprises a horizontally-extending flange fastened to the lower wall.