How Data Centers are Developed

Facilities Management

More and more people are consuming data today. This is evidenced by the boom in usage of cloud and video conferencing tools in everyday tasks. This, in effect, has led to the proliferation of data centers. 

Data centers are seeing an upward trend as the global data center market is expected to grow by 10% from 2021-2030. Subsequently, the growth of the e-commerce industry has furthered the construction of data centers, with the market size for data center construction projected to increase by 5.9% until 2027

With data centers at an all-high demand, it poses a lucrative opportunity for companies that want to delve deeper into the industry. Here is a closer look at how data centers are developed. 

Stage 1 – Site Identification 

The first key part of building data centers is identifying the right site. This would require some initial market knowledge and research and building on the relationships and contacts of the landowner. Then an in-house analysis would be done to benchmark the site against similar land or property in the surrounding area. Once this review is done, it would be important to identify any local resources that can be tapped into for better efficiency in the site construction. 

Depending on the company, there would be some considerations to look into before building and developing the site such as: 

  • Location of existing Telco sites 
  • Existing HV networks and future supply
  • Medium/high pressure gas routes
  • Metro and long-haul fiber routes
  • Flood and flight path
  • Heavy industrial – chemical production, fuel shortage
  • Existing use classes
  • Surrounding building heights 
  • Land pricing 

Stage 2 – Architectural Due Diligence 

Building a data center is no easy feat and needs its proper architectural due diligence. Partnering with qualified architects is a great start, especially architects that are experienced in undertaking a data center project from experience. Considerations in design should be kept in mind such as the traditional and water cooled adiabatic designs. There should also be high-level massing exercises on the shortlisted sites to determine the MW capacity as data centers consume a lot of energy.

Stage 3 – Planning and Utilities Due Diligence 

Utilities are another important consideration. For power, it is best to engage with the national grids or distributed network operator (DNO) for existing and future capacities, timing and cost. Doing commission route proving exercises is also another option to consider. 

The right planning should be done in correspondence with the local municipalities to get qualification on the consent of the scheme pre-submission. This is in combination with the Visual Impact Assessments which detail the effect of the landscape development. Then other utilities can be taken into consideration such as internet connection, water, and gas. 

Get started on building the next data center project 

With the right experience and professionals on board, companies looking to expand to constructing data centers can turn to real estate experts such as Santos Knight Frank. Having a real estate partner like Santos Knight Frank can aid companies with the land purchase negotiations and with finding the right land to turn into the next data center. 

When it comes to real estate services, Santos Knight Frank is a real estate agency with a great track record of serving clients with services such as occupier services & commercial agency, investment & capital marketsresidential & sales leasing, property marketing, research & consultancy, valuation & appraisal, project management, asset management,  property management, facilities management, technical services & engineering solutions. Learn more about Santos Knight Frank through the website https://santosknightfrank.com/

If you want to know more about data centers, you can also read about Why companies are moving from in-house servers towards data centers.

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About Santos Knight Frank

The world of real estate can be a difficult place to navigate. Whether property is your investment or a tool that drives your business success, you need a partner who can guide you in every step of the way.

Since 1994, Santos Knight Frank has been guiding Fortune 1000 companies, BPOs, private clients, and institutions in all facets of real estate. We advise companies on their best office, retail, and industrial location, oversee commercial fit-out projects, and manage facilities. We have facilitated over 4 million sqm of office transactions on behalf of clients and managed over 40 million sqm of real estate under our property & facilities management arm.

Our residential brokerage platform and wide collection of bespoke homes allow our private clients to buy, lease, and sell properties within their budget, timeline, and lifestyle.

For landlords and investors, we provide valuations and appraisal, consultancy and research, sales and leasing, and property management services across the Philippines.

Santos Knight Frank is part of the global Knight Frank network of over 384 offices in 51 markets, including the strategically important U.S. partnerships with Cresa (commercial real estate) and Douglas Elliman (residential real estate).

We are locally expert and globally connected, end-to-end and best-in-class – as any great partner in property should be.