Rushikesh Jadhav
Data Centers have been playing an increasingly important role helping businesses sustain during the pandemic. This role is certainly getting critical with the growing economy into the future as organizations deep dive into digital transformation.
Data, everything and everyone is a kind of data in one way or another, the world’s data, so it is important to understand the power and reach of Data centers that manage and make sense of this data. In its essence data centers have been synonymous with computers since their existence in more than one way. Now, this data has grown so much that we need data centers and cloud for that matter to help collect, store, evaluate, organize, protect and transfer this data as required from one part of the earth to another.
Data centers have the capacity to do much more than this, and during the pandemic, businesses have realized their true potentials and value. Due to COVID 19, digital transformation has got a major push and brought businesses to embrace this digitization wave for the best.
Embracing the cloud has truly given businesses a second chance to innovate, improve and create an impact to prosper. Although this wave is not going to stop here, the cloud and data center industry is set to rise and proliferate with innovation and technological advancements in business and our day-to-day lives.
Transition post Pandemic
A little before the pandemic, the traditional data centers operated by corporates were set up to manage IT operations in-house. To support functions that couldn’t be managed outside the premise, that was also within budget, organizations preferred the on premise set-up.
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Today, the scenario is quite different, organizations are moving towards the cloud, MSPs or colocation service providers which are more beneficial in terms of cost efficiency, operations, flexibility and even security. In a cloud, set-up business can benefit from the storage capacity and scalability.
For Small, Medium, Businesses (SMBs) the cloud is an eminent choice as they fall short on manpower and finances that are required for an on-premise set-up. In this growing economy, organizations are redefining business strategies that are in line with the current market scenario and technological advancements. Data centers availability and constant quality of service that was maintained during the pandemic when the demand was higher has helped several businesses to sustain and thrive. In the year 2020, the data center market was estimated at $48.9 billion. By 2026 this estimation will witness the rise of the data center market to $105.6 billion.
Factors Driving the Growth
Digitization of current process, due to pandemic businesses realized that some processes can be done digitally saves time as well as efforts
SMEs shifting towards digital technologies
The industrial sector leaning more toward digitization
The boom of Over-the-top (OTT) platforms, as more and more entertainment platforms are emerging
Rise of advanced technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), Machine Learning (ML) and Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Power, Networking and Downtime
Data centers can also be considered as server farms, that perform critical functions such as storing the data, recovery and backup, managing and analyzing the data and lastly networking. Data centers function on something called Power Distribution Units (PDUs), along UPS these components ensure uninterrupted, clean and efficient power supply. In order to avoid situations of disturbance or power outages, UPS makes it possible for data centers.
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With the help of reliable power sources, data centers can run smoothly without any hiccups. The usage of the internet is increasing expeditiously and so with it the demand for data storage, which makes it important to avoid situations like outage or downtimes. As per a recent study, more than 70% of outages at data centers are caused by human errors.
Downtimes can cost a fortune to organizations which are quite difficult to recover from and get back to normalcy. Hence, for businesses data center infrastructure is a crucial and key component while moving on to the cloud. In 2019 the global market prediction of data center infrastructure was at $94.56 billion, this figure is further expected to rise and reach $142.31 billion by the year 2027 as per reports.
Security – The top priority
Data today is considered the most valuable asset for any organization or even an individual. As technology will keep advancing so with the value of data will keep increasing.
Security is a major concern for data centers, as it holds tons of crucial data. In order to protect and keep this gold-like data safe, data centers and organizations have compliances, policies and precautionary measures in place. Since everything is becoming digital, we are more prone to cyberattacks, hacks, data breaches, viruses and such disasters. Businesses and IT leaders are investing heavily in manpower, tools and software with the help of finances and experts to ensure data safety and security from cyberattacks. Organizations must have a strong technology base along with a smartly planned data center management strategy for smooth functioning.
Demand Pulls Growth and Market Trends Pulls Both
The Asia-Pacific region has the highest demand for data centers globally, thanks to the major shift to the work-from-home system during the lockdown which increases data traffic. Such demand pushes data center service providers to improve the infrastructure of their data centers and evolve as per the latest market trends.
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With the introduction of 5G network, developers and organizations will swoon in to deliver their consumers with single-digit millisecond performance time via their applications. 5G is set to change and innovate the entire connectivity game. Automation is another key factor in the growth of the cloud, due to the pandemic, everything had to be digital and less to minimal manpower usage.
By adapting to AI and Robotic Process Automation (RPA) solutions, the data centers of the future will operate. As we move closer to the depth of digital transformation, organizations are building strategies that keep up with the growing demand for their consumers.
The consumer today is smart and will be much smarter in the coming years, they are not afraid to explore and experiment and look for smarter solutions to make life easier. In this competitive market, businesses want to thrive and be on the top of their game. While migrating to the cloud, businesses and IT leaders must look for service providers that are constantly upgrading on par with the market trends that meet their needs. Cost-efficiency, flexibility, scalability, etc. are all the key elements for businesses to shift to the cloud, but going further this demand will increase in terms of quality and agility and data center service providers must be ready for this change.
