Data Center and IT Facilities Priorities

Today, businesses undergoing digital transformation require the ability to support growing data volumes and data rates. Therefore, for future-proof data centers, data center and IT facilities teams need the right technology that fits into a sustainable investment strategy.

A major trend that began in 2018 is the growing demand and investment by enterprises and organizations for centralized cloud computing data center services as well as edge data centers.

The technologies developed by the hyperscale cloud giants are now migrating into the enterprise, where distributed applications dominate. The pressure on networks to perform is greater than ever before, and new technologies are beginning to be deployed to ensure that the network does not become a bottleneck for cloud computing.

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Competitive Advantage

Likewise, today’s digital economy businesses are deploying more computing, networking, and storage resources in edge data centers close to end users to provide fast and seamless access to critical applications and data. These edge data centers help optimize the response times that users of e-commerce and cloud-based applications expect.

Edge computing is driving efficient bandwidth utilization and minimizing network connections and physical reach, which introduces latency into the infrastructure. Along with other areas of data growth, edge computing applications will generate petabytes of data per day by 2020. Systems that intelligently process data to create business advantage are critical to customers' future prosperity.

Agile digital organizations rely on efficient data centers based on simplified design and flexible infrastructure platforms. We are witnessing more automation, more integrated solutions and software-defined functions that are reducing reliance on siloed systems. This allows users to take advantage of highly flexible infrastructure to increase capacity, monitoring and analysis, and improve data center efficiency.

In this context, IT and facilities teams face the responsibility and challenge of deploying a data center that fully meets all their needs, whether on-site or in a co-located facility. The advent of 5G mobility and the proliferation of endpoints, the maturity of cloud computing and the increasing presence of edge data centers have put a spotlight on the network as a primary driver for improving data center performance and scalability.

Priorities and solutions

To manage changing requirements, network teams must work closely with other business units. It is no longer a question of hardware or software, but rather providing services that meet business needs.

For IT and facilities teams, challenges range from designing, procuring and implementing the right IT and facilities to controlling costs and saving energy. Today, the typical multi-vendor, piecemeal approach forces data center operators to focus on costly integration to ensure interoperability. They need to consider issues such as support, management, operational inefficiencies and the increased likelihood of service level agreement (SLA) failures.

Additionally, data centers must be purpose-built based on the organization’s business direction and long-term growth projections. The pressure to maintain rapid and efficient scalability places increasing pressure on IT and facilities teams to meet capacity demands or migrate to higher data speeds.

End-to-end data center solutions that can interoperate will simplify the process of physical infrastructure design, specification, installation and management. These solutions optimize the data center to meet current and future needs. They also promote faster implementation, allowing IT and facilities stakeholders to stay ahead of demand.

It will also minimize risk, required resources, and total cost of ownership through the following capabilities:

1. Converged infrastructure that changes with business needs

The scalable architecture can meet changing business needs while reducing total cost of ownership and optimizing IT investment. For example, it provides accelerated design and seamless implementation to introduce new 40G/100G networks into traditional facilities.

2. High-speed connection

As data center convergence grows, the adoption of high-speed data transmission fiber and copper cable systems can reduce the pressure on physical infrastructure. They increase network throughput, reduce latency, and improve agility, scalability, and return on investment (ROI) to support new applications such as the Internet of Things.

3. Cooling optimization

By providing comprehensive visibility and control through real-time monitoring, organizations can be provided with actionable information that can reduce cooling energy consumption by up to 50%.

4. Basis for meeting service level agreements (SLAs), timelines and budgets

Efficient and reliable infrastructure, including cable management, routing, security, grounding and bonding and identification systems, enables data center managers to better meet service level agreements (SLAs) and deliver projects on time.

5. Reduce visibility into business and technical risks

Data center infrastructure management solutions provide a holistic view of the physical infrastructure, including real-time data on the power, cooling, connectivity, security and environmental status of individual devices from the enterprise to the data center cabinet.

6. Reliable infrastructure increases income

Innovative physical infrastructure enables colocation providers to build a better data center experience for tenants. Highly flexible, scalable, and quickly installed infrastructure speeds onboarding and increases revenue.

As IT and facilities teams consider data center priorities in 2019, it’s important to note the importance of designing and creating the most efficient and effective solutions to meet actual needs.