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We recently met with a health tech company that has deployed a global cloud-based platform to perform DNA modelling . In this way , scientists employed by the company can work with vast amounts of data and share modelling results . This is expected to result in drug innovations and shorter time to market . Processing and moving this kind of data volume requires a company to become a kind of hyperscale data centre , or telecom company ‘ in disguise ’.
In business today , innovation is key in all areas . Companies that focus on protecting existing business models will fall behind those who adapt to change or lead by innovation . To succeed in any sector , businesses – especially those that are well established – need to be well-organised and managed and look forward in terms of creating , developing , and deploying new technologies . This might mean improving existing systems or taking a new , fresh and possibly innovative approach . Commercial viability and making sure solutions truly address the ever-changing needs of customers , is central to these developments .
Changing role of the DC The Internet has resulted in a complete redesign of the traditional supply chain . Software interfaces , not physical products , contain the value end-users want . Companies that successfully adapt to current trends will see great opportunities . Hardware manufacturers seeking to develop software solutions to maximise revenues are bound to focus on connectivity-based technologies , such as wearable devices , smart buildings , connected cars , artificial intelligence and robotics .
Next-generation data centres will play a huge role in further developing all of the aforementioned promising areas . High demand network communications and zero delay switching will be fundamental . 100 gigabit switching will gain pace and high-density , reliable infrastructure connectivity will be essential . Of course , the changing role and usage of networking technology also has consequences for data centre design .
Until quite recently , most content was delivered locally within data centres . But today , we see far more inbound and outbound traffic as millions of people worldwide access data and services 24 / 7 . Data centres are also becoming more virtualised and the utilisation of services is considerably higher . Businesses and ( government ) institutions are dependent on critical processes and want to be protected from technology issues and downtime , either caused by maintenance scheduling or system failure .
Emerging developments New applications relying on data centre technology mean that in the near future , colocation and cloud will be more important than ever . Virtualisation , resource management and more innovative ways of storing and moving data will also play an important role . Besides ‘ traditional ’ storage , tomorrow ’ s data centres will increasingly need to provide connectivity , risk management , redundancy and recovery services . Infrastructure inside and outside the data centre needs to be flexible , scalable and reliable in order to accommodate current and future applications .
There will also be an increased push towards far greater energy efficiency . It ’ s hardly surprising that companies such as Google have decided to build their own fibre networks . However , many in-house data centres won ’ be able to realise the economies of scale which a colocation provider might be able to realise , so this is not the ideal solution for everyone . Also , outsourcing tasks to a colocation provider means you ’ ll also need to develop the in-house expertise required to communicate with such a provider .
Accommodating future demands The next generation of data centres will require advanced energy management and control features and enhanced monitoring management capabilities . System management is likely to be shared between IT and facilities departments . Infrastructure will be more software-driven , allowing for greater flexibility and lower costs . Of course , in an increasingly complex system , manual documentation , fault-finding or cable tracking will no longer be a viable option . Troubleshooting or making decisions regarding infrastructural changes based on incorrect , out of date or unreliable documentation is like walking a tightrope without a safety net . AIM , DCIM and other monitoring solutions will become more important and increasingly integrated into networks . For suppliers , being able to provide integrated data centre solutions including tailor-made advice and consultancy services for a broadening range of applications is vital .
The changing role of data centres means the need to interconnect will increase further , allowing low latency transmission at high bandwidths . Optical interconnections that span several kilometres are of paramount importance for inter-data centre connectivity . In the past , operators might rent networking capacity on a shared pipeline from an Internet service provider . However , as demand changes , this will no longer suffice .
Data centres will need far more bandwidth than current infrastructure can provide . Ideally , they would need to implement a carrier grade , low latency optical backbone infrastructure with a high degree of reliability and scalability . By designing networks with the right kind of flexibility and reliability in mind , and making smart technology choices today , such bottlenecks can be resolved and the changing role of data centres can be accommodated both now , and in the future . n
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