Every day, we create 2.5 quintillion bytes of data – so much that 90% of the data in the world today has been created in the last two years alone,” according to IBM1. Despite a slow growing economy, the world’s seemingly insatiable demand for data is, in turn, driving demand for data center capacity. Over 80% of data center owners/operators have built a new data center or upgraded an existing facility within the past five years reports the Uptime Institute in a 2012 Data Center Industry Survey. Over half of those same respondents indicated their future data center budgets will be greater due to increased computing demands and the rising costs and investments required to keep data centers reliable, secure, and up to date.
Data centers have become an integral component of the IT infrastructures for most large companies and, at a macroeconomic level, integral to a vibrant economy, in
some regions one of the most active sectors in an otherwise weak economy. At the same time, data centers offer tangible benefits to the communities in which they locate, leading the way in redefining the digital economy while providing concrete economic benefits, including a steady flow of increased tax revenues, job creation and the opportunity for enhanced infrastructure, enabling even greater development opportunities...
Tracey Hyatt Bosman develops and executes incentives and location selection strategies for BLS & Co.'s corporate and institutional clients. She is a certified economic developer with twenty years of professional experience across a wide range of sectors, including data centers, manufacturing, headquarters, back office and contact center operations, and logistics.