FEATURE
Justin Jenkins , UK President and COO Europe , Vantage Data Centers
densities to unprecedented levels . While 15 – 20kW racks have been the norm , we are now seeing densities rise to 40 , 50 , even 100kWs . This calls into care consideration a facility ’ s immediate , and forwards , power availability .
Location This is likely to continue impacting space and service pricing due to the cost of real estate and labour . With this , demand will
THE GROWING COSTS AND
COMPLEXITY OF MAINTAINING
ON-PREMISE DATA CENTRES
– INCLUDING HOSTING
PRIVATE CLOUD SOLUTIONS –
WILL CONTINUE
TO FUEL THE ONGOING SHIFT TO COLOCATION DURING 2021 AND BEYOND . continue for more out of town locations that are free from the risks and constraints of metro locations – and generally come with a lower real estate price tag .
While in Europe the traditional data centre capitals – Frankfurt , London , Amsterdam and Paris – will remain buoyant , there will be increasing opportunities for using hyperscale cloud hosting and colocation facilities based in regional ‘ tier 2 ’ markets , such as Wales , Italy and Poland .
Data sovereignty GDPR compliance concerning the governance , control and security of company data is already well-known to both multinational enterprise organisations and hyperscalers operating across the EU . And for the UK in particular , its imminent ‘ Brexit ’ departure from the EU will serve to bring data sovereignty issues sharply into focus . The availability of fit-for-purpose data centres in individual countries will therefore become an even bigger priority for enterprises and hyperscalers to ensure compliance as well as address specific cultural requirements .
Sustainability Imagine a data centre that captures the heat generated by servers and uses it as a supplemental source of power . While this may not be economically feasible today , continuously trying to bring ideas like this to reality are essential to bring about positive change . Making data centres as environmentally friendly and energy efficient as possible must remain a major focus of the industry globally , helped by government incentives such as those in the EU surrounding the use of renewably sourced power .
Furthermore , with many conventional data centres consuming thousands of gallons of water a day , data centre providers will be striving to optimise Water Usage Effectiveness ( WUE ) – not just PUE .
Vantage is committed to using air-cooled chillers featuring a closed-loop system which requires no ongoing water source . Also expect to see growing innovation around on-site renewable energy generation , for power not dedicated to cooling and operating servers . ◊
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