Gartner Says Energy and Floor Space Constraints Will Cause Significant Disruptions to U.S. Enterprise Data Centers During Next Three Years

Business Wire, Oct 2, 2007

Analysts Examine the Latest Issues Related to Data Centers and Green IT During the Upcoming Gartner Symposium/ITxpo, October 7-12, in Orlando

STAMFORD, Conn. -- By 2011, more than 70 percent of U.S. enterprise data centers will face tangible disruptions related to energy consumption, floor space, and/or costs, according to Gartner, Inc. In fact, during the next five years, most U.S. enterprise data centers will spend as much on energy (power and cooling) as they will on hardware infrastructure.

"CIOs of large U.S. organizations must prepare for a period of rapid changes in their data centers," said Rakesh Kumar, research vice president at Gartner. "This disruption will be accompanied by a significant increase in capital and operational expenditures. Failure to respond quickly and appropriately to the changing market conditions and technologies will result in needlessly high energy bills, expensive service contracts and delays in implementing new technologies."

Gartner estimates that more than 70 percent of the world's Global 1000 organizations will have to modify their data center facilities significantly during the next five years. The United States has the biggest concentration of large (greater than 50,000 square feet) data centers, the majority of which were built more than seven years ago.

"These legacy data centers typically were built to a design specification of about 100 to 150 watts per square foot. Current design needs are about 300 to 400 watts per square foot, and by 2011, this could rise to more than 600 watts per square foot," Mr. Kumar said. "The implication is that most current data centers will be unable to host the next generation of high-density equipment, so CIOs will have to refurbish their established sites, build new ones or look for alternatives, such as using a hosting provider."

During the next two or more years, three main issues will come together and cause the disruption:

* Legacy data centers won't have sufficient power and cooling requirements for the next generation of high-density server and storage equipment.

* The volume growth of IT infrastructure will exceed the available data center floor space for most organizations.

* The need to manage upward-spiraling energy costs through optimization tools and modeling techniques.

During the next three or more years, one of the most-important changes to the U.S. data center landscape will be midsize and large users' increasing propensity to use data center hosting services. Traditionally, the U.S. market has been reluctant to embrace the leasing of space and running IT services from that location. However, during the past nine months, Gartner has detected a shift in attitude that will accelerate during the next few years.

The fiscal equation of an expensive capital cost for a new, owned data center -- as opposed to the much more inexpensive, ongoing operational costs of leased space -- will encourage companies to explore the use of hosted space. The perceived issues of lack of control and weaker security with hosting players generally haven't manifested themselves.

"The net result is that leasing space from a well-designed, modern data center hosting provider can yield financial and operational benefits," Mr. Kumar said. "Currently, the market is supply constrained, resulting in a rapid increase in costs. We expect this hosting market to become very attractive during the next few years, so users should move quickly to secure good prices."

Additional information is available in the Gartner report "U.S. Data Centers: The Calm Before the Storm". The report is available on Gartner's Web site at http://www.gartner.com/DisplayDocument?ref=g_search&id=525445&subref=s implesearch. (Due to its length, this URL may need to be copied/pasted into your Internet browser's address field. Remove the extra space if one exists.)

Gartner analysts will provide additional analysis regarding the data centers and Green IT during the upcoming Gartner Symposium/ITxpo 2007, taking place October 7-12 in Orlando, Florida. Symposium/ITxpo is the industry's largest and most-strategic conference for senior IT and business professions. More than 6,000 senior business and IT strategists from virtually all major industries will gather to gain the latest advice on the biggest challenge: driving profits and performance with IT. Gartner's annual Symposium/ITxpo events are key components of attendees' annual planning efforts. They rely on Gartner Symposium/ITxpo to gain insight into how their organizations can use IT to address business challenges and improve operational efficiency. Additional information is available at www.gartner.com/symposium/us.> Members of the media can register for the event by contacting Christy Pettey at christy.pettey@gartner.com.

About Gartner

Gartner, Inc. (NYSE: IT) is the world's leading information technology research and advisory company. Gartner delivers the technology-related insight necessary for its clients to make the right decisions, every day. From CIOs and senior IT leaders in corporations and government agencies, to business leaders in high-tech and telecom enterprises and professional services firms, to technology investors, Gartner is the indispensable partner to 60,000 clients in 10,000 distinct organizations. Through the resources of Gartner Research, Gartner Consulting and Gartner Events, Gartner works with every client to research, analyze and interpret the business of IT within the context of their individual role. Founded in 1979, Gartner is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, U.S.A., and has 3,900 associates, including 1,200 research analysts and consultants in 75 countries. For more information, visit www.gartner.com.