Data Center Expansion New Sites Trending Up

Budget IncreasesThe economy is a bear and traditional growth tech markets continue to shrink across the board. VARs in the data center game can expect budget growth of up to 8% for opening new data centers and related IT projects through 2010.

The Growth Plan83% of survey respondents plan to expand their data centers over the next 12-24 months, and 36% have definitively decided to make it part of 2010’s budget.

Tapping the PartnerThe future is bright for data center VARs. Over 80% of Enterprises looking to new data centers plan to use partners that specialize in data center design and construction or leasing to make their plans a reality.

Massive ScaleThe planned projects are expected to be big, and that means a ton of hardware sales for VARs. Of those enterprises looking to expand, 70% are planning data centers that are at least 15,000 square feet in size.

One is the Loneliest NumberThose new data centers won’t stand alone. More than 73% of respondents plan to add two or more facilities as part of their data center expansions. At 15,000 feet a pop, that spells opportunity for VARs focused on the data center.

Data Explosion, Shrinking Power SourcesSo what’s driving the invigorated data center market demand? Well, coupled with the exponential increase in data (a recent Berkeley study says more data has been created in the last 3 years than the whole of human history), enterprises aiming to cut and control costs are searching for locations with adequate power and favorable utility rates.

CXO & Finance Holds the InfluenceSo, the successful sales tack? Looks like VARs looking to score new business need to look up the leadership chain if they want to make it happen. Finance and Accounting now takes a larger role in the decision process, and CXOs supersede IT as the final decision maker by a margin of 2:1.

Survey Details:The research compiles the results of a survey conducted by Campos Research & Analysis, and sponsored by wholesales data center distributor Digital Realty Trust. The survey focused on interviews with senior decision makers in IT/IS and Finance with responsibility over data centers and at corporations with over $1 billion in annual revenue throughout North America.