Spending on Data Centers Is Growing Rapidly - Survey

Firms are globally investing 22 percent more on data centers than last year, according to a new survey from DatacenterDynamics.

Spending is set to continue to grow: In 2013, investment in data centers is expected to increase a further 14 percent. Results from the census indicate that total investment in data centers has grown from approximately $86bn globally in 2011 to $105bn globally in 2012.

“Our forecast for 2013 shows a slower rate of growth but still at a very healthy 14.5% over 2012 levels with a further $15bn of additional investment,” commented Nicola Hayes, managing director of DCD Intelligence.

The largest increase (22.5% globally) in investment from 2011 to 2012 is in the facilities management and mechanical and electrical (M&E) sectors including such areas as electrical distribution equipment and switchgear, uninterruptible power supplies (UPS), generators, cooling equipment, security equipment, fire suppression and data center infrastructure management systems. This was up $9bn from $40bn to $49bn, the survey found.

The IT equipment sector (including ‘active’ equipment such as servers, storage, switches and routers) showed slower growth at 16.7% - from $30bn to $35bn. Projecting forward this is expected to continue to increase but at a slower rate into 2013, the report said.

“Much of the increase in investment in the sector is being driven by growth in less developed markets - although we continue to see some growth in the mature data center markets of North America and Western Europe. Regions such as Asia Pacific and Latin America are the ones really fuelling global data center investment levels,” Hayes said.

Meanwhile, power requirements for the sector continue to rise. The survey showed a massive increase over the last twelve months of 63.3% globally to 38 gigawatts (GW) with a further 17% forecast for 2013.

Melanie Rodier has worked as a print and broadcast journalist for over 10 years, covering business and finance, general news, and film trade news. Prior to joining Wall Street & Technology in April 2007, Melanie lived in Paris, where she worked for the International Herald ... View Full Bio