How Your Tweets Impact Data Centers
From Facebook to Instagram, social media require bandwidth (and knowing what IKR means). The servers hosting that space have to go somewhere, a hot topic at the Bisnow Data Center Investment Conference and Expo (DICE) West at the Ritz-Carlton in Dallas yesterday.
Some 250 came from as far as Houston, Philly, Tennessee, and even California to hear about national data center trends. (Or they came a really long way for breakfast.) CBRE VP for the data center solutions group David Liggitt says even just a few years ago, Texas was eliminated from the short list of potential data center development because of a lack of tax incentives. This year, the legislature enacted a law that should attract more development, David says.
Panelists Boston-based IDC research manager data center trends and strategies Kelly Quinn, David, 451 Research senior analyst Glenn Ford, DC-based TechXact president Mehdi Paryavi, and moderator Stream Data Centers SVP Anthony Bolner (who went as Ron Burgundy for Halloween. Stay classy, data centers.) Glenn says providers are often specializing in areas like healthcare or financial services. They also differentiate themselves technically, operationally, and environmentally.
In Dallas: CyrusOne continues to expand in Carrollton; Digital Realty Trust acquired two data centers and is adding to its Richardson campus; Stream commissioned a new data center; T5 Data Centers expanded its Plano campus; and QTS entered the market acquiring a 700k SF former semiconductor plant, Glenn says.
Kelly (left, with Ramp Rate's Brent Eubanks) says there's growth in data centers across the US. (We're hoping for the day when there's mixed-use multifamily data centers. It'll sort of be like Tron.)Ã Through 2017, almost 12% growth is projected and in the service provider market, capacity will grow by about 22% by 2017, she says. The four key growth drivers: transactions like retail, financial services, and banking; content serving (think iTunes); archiving for organizing, retrieval, as well as for legal requirements; and computational for analysis and reaction.
Event sponsor e1Dynamics' Kevin Burke (left, with World Wide Power Products' Richard Fletcher) tells us the firm works wonders: it can can replace static UPS batteries and engine generators in one footprint.
Here's event sponsor Gordon Data Center Products' Steven Shugarts and Craig Eychaner, with MAAP Construction's Jason Biffle. Craig tells us Gordon has cornered the market by creating a unique ceiling system for data center applications that is structurally based. It simplifies data center operations because of its structural design, he says.
We found three event sponsors together with Oncor Economic Development's Terry Preuninger, AEP Public Service Company of Oklahoma's Janet Smith, and Tulsa Regional Chamber's Bob Ball. Janet tells us Tulsa has qualified sites with good power and fiber up and running with electrical rates 30% less than the national average.
