Data Centre predictions for the future

Predicting the future is tricky business – but one thing is for sure: data centres are not going anywhere. One of the most secure industries out there at the moment, projecting a CAGR of 8% between 2023 and 2030, they are at the centre of the digital revolution. The most exciting recent developments in the technological world including AI, 5G, and the internet of things simply would not be possible without data centres. So, what does the future hold?

Data centre sustainability

Contributing to 2% of global greenhouse gas emissions alone, data centres are some of the most energy-intensive facilities in existence, and because of this the industry’s PR has been suffering. Sustainability is no longer considered a ‘nice-to-have’ and governments, clients and stockholders are putting the pressure on operators to go green by design, factoring in sustainability measures from the get-go rather than making modifications down the line.

Exploring alternative fuels to power data centres is the most popular and optimistic solution. Some of the larger data centre providers are already favouring solar farms to be installed on premises to meet energy needs for example the Moro Hub Data Centre in Dubai. In the future we expect fossil fuels increase in price as renewable energy sources are becoming a lot more affordable, and we are expecting to see many more data centres in the future getting their energy from renewable sources such as solar, wind and geothermal.

Demand for low latency

This is a key driver that is already influencing the Data Centre industry and will continue to do so in the coming years. Essentially, low latency describes quicker access to data and reduced response delays that comes from closer proximity to servers where the data is stored.

This is an interesting advancement for the industry as it is giving rise to newer, edge data centres. These are smaller, decentralised infrastructures that can be built into overcrowded cities and business districts allowing much faster data response rates.

Demand for quick data is a growing requirement for an increasingly digital world. Not only are the corporate world relying on it to improve business agility, modern software advances such as the cloud, e-commerce and 5G are putting the pressure on for these quicker response times.

Weatherproof data centres

Data centre designers are told to factor in 10 years’ worth of weather changes when planning their next build. But, given the adverse weather documented in recent years, conventional climate planning may not be the way forward for the future.

Cooling systems are designed on historical data sets which are not a comprehensive predictor for the weather that is in store as a result of climate change. Considering it was not long ago they were being designed for peak outdoor temperatures of 32 degrees, last year London experienced a record high of 40.3 degrees which brought Google Cloud’s data centre to a halt. In fact, Uptime institute found that nearly half of data centres have been effected by extreme weather. Designing data centres with unpredictability in mind and precautions against adverse weather is extremely important for the industry.  

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