I recently read the results of a study performed by Campos Research & Analysis for Digital Realty Trust, Inc., that indicates an upswing in the U.S. data center market – which is good news for many of us in this industry. The information below is taken from a press release about that report.
Key Findings
- 84% of surveyed companies are planning data center expansions in the next 12-24 months
- 64% of surveyed companies with plans to expand in 2009 are planning to expand in two or more locations
- Surveyed companies plan to increase data center spending by an average of 6.6 percent in 2009
- Data centers account for an average of 35 percent of overall IT budgets for surveyed companies
Chris Crosby, Senior Vice President of Digital Realty Trust, had this to say, "Based on the results of this study, we expect to see sustained demand for data center facilities in 2009 and 2010 as companies implement these plans to expand their IT infrastructure. One finding that may surprise people is that companies are increasing their datacenter budgets in 2009. This is a reflection of how companies view their data centers as critical assets for increasing productivity while reducing costs. Also interesting are the parallels between this U.S. study and the European study we reported last month, with 4 out of 5 companies planning near-term data center projects in both markets."
Power Usage Effectiveness
Other findings reveal that 80% of surveyed companies report that their current data center facilities have a PUE energy efficiency rating of 2.0 or more and 26 percent report PUE of 3.0 of higher - indicating that current facilities are not highly energy efficient. (PUE is calculated by dividing the amount of power entering a data center by the power used to run the computer infrastructure within it.)
"The responses to our questions about PUE ratings are noteworthy because they indicate that PUE has wide acceptance as a methodology for measuring datacenter efficiency. With so many current facilities having PUE metrics above 2 and 3, there is a significant opportunity for companies to reduce their energy costs by implementing energy efficiency initiatives or moving to a datacenter facility with a lower PUE rating," added Crosby.
PUE Calculator
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About the Study
The study is based on a detailed survey of senior decision makers at large corporation in North America who are responsible for shaping their companies' datacenter strategies. The research was conducted for Digital Realty Trust by the respected research firm Campos Research & Analysis. Digital Realty Trust released the results of a similar study of the European datacenter market last month and highlights of that study are available on the Company's website. Kim Ream, Sr. eCommerce Specialist