The Top 10 Data Center Stories for April 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic continued to dominate the news in April, as the services delivered by the data center industry continued to serve as a lifeline to the global economy. Our in-depth pandemic coverage accounted for 8 of the 10 most popular stories during the month, with Vantage Data Centers’ acquisition of NGD and the trend toward high-density racks filling out the top 10.

Here are the 10 most popular stories on Data Center Frontier in March 2020, in order of article views:.

• Google Will ‘Recalibrate’ Spending on Data Centers, Citing COVID-19: Google says it will review its spending on data center infrastructure as part of cost-cutting related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The company invested $13 billion in data centers in 2019.
• Data Network Traffic Impact From COVID-19: Here’s a “by the numbers” summary of the latest data points on COVID-19 related driven traffic gains for Zoom, VPN services, video games, cloud computing, Internet exchanges, content delivery networks and other online services.
• A Cloudy Future: Data Center Demand and COVID-19: The COVID-19 pandemic has reinforced the importance of data centers for society. What will data center demand look like going forward? The shift to online services will likely offset the economic setbacks in key sectors, according to three securities analysts tracking the sector.
• Pandemic Poses Challenges for Data Center Construction, Supply Chain: Data center construction continues to move forward, with a handful of projects slowed or halted by COVID-19. But analysts see risks for data center construction projects and the supply chain supporting them.
• Virginia’s Data Center Alley Prepares for Lengthy COVID-19 Lockdown: As Virginia begins a COVID-19 lockdown for the next 2 months, Loudoun County has created a task force to help Data Center Alley’s critical infrastructure sector navigate the crisis.
• Microsoft Cloud Use Soars Amid COVID-19 Social Distancing:Use of Microsoft’s cloud services is soaring amid the COVID-19 pandemic, with usage increasing as much as 775 percent in regions implementing social distancing and shelter-in-place orders.
• Rack Density Keeps Rising at Enterprise Data Centers: The amount of power used by each data center rack continues to rise for enterprise users, according to new research from AFCOM, the industry association for data center professionals.
• Virtual Commissioning: Delivering New Data Center Capacity in a Pandemic: Compass Datacenters used a “virtual commissioning” process to deliver a new data center in Raleigh, using live-streaming cameras and wireless sensors to manage the process remotely, with on-site tasks completed by a small group of staff separated by safe distances.
• Vantage Acquires NGD to Continue European Expansion: Vantage Data Centers is continuing its expansion into European markets with a definitive agreement to acquire Next Generation Data (NGD), a massive data center facility in Cardiff, Wales.
• COVID-19  Resources for Data Center Professionals: Here’s a list of industry resources for data center professionals about the COVID-19 Coronavirus pandemic, including best practices from industry groups, perspective from analysts, and policies and contingency plans for data center providers.

Voices of the Industry

In April, Data Center Frontier’s guest column series, Voices of the Industry, featured insight from leaders from DataBank, Anord Mardix, Telescent, Sabey Data Centers, EdgeConneX and Cyxtera. Here are the Voices columns that were most popular with DCF readers last month.:

• Now, More Than Ever, Remote Management of Data Centers is Essential (DataBank): If ever there was a time for data center owner-operators and their customers to embrace automation and remote monitoring of their infrastructure, that time is now. Lance Devin, Chief Information Officer at EdgeConneX, highlights how in today’s climate, remote management capabilities for data centers have become even more critical.
• Don’t Let Busway Be the Weak Link in Your DC Electrical Safety Chain (Anord Mardix): Andy Banks, Director of Databar Sales (North America) for Anord Mardix, explores in detail how the Busway can efficiently and  effectively distribute power throughout a data center environment. By designing safety directly into the components being installed on live busway, operators can minimize risks associated with busway installation and maintenance and prevent electrical accidents.
• Bringing Automation to Physical Fiber Cross Connects (Telescent): Bob Shine, VP of Product Management and Marketing at Telescent, explores ways to automate physical fiber cross connects. Automation ensures the integrity of the testing process, connectivity records and measurement results.

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