Three energy trends in the new normal impacting datacentres at the edge

As the world comes to term with the new normal, there is an urgent need to manage, store and protect escalating volumes of data that is now being felt across all industries but most notably, by datacentres. Datacentres rely on uninterrupted power to conduct business as usual even when utility power fails. Today’s critical power systems designed to provide continuity of power at a datacentre are complex. Datacentres must be capable of reacting to change efficiently. 

To adapt to the increasing complexities of the industry, datacentres and providers are shifting their priorities to meet the unique needs of these facilities who are facing numerous challenges from these growing, complex environments.

Let’s take a closer look at three key trends that will affect the digital economy of the future:

#1 With the pandemic accelerating digitisation, demand drivers remain strong

Over the past 25 years, the commercial datacentre sector has proved resistant to economic recessions. Also, a wave of new investors is joining the very active market for datacentres. Investments in datacentre budgets are rising by 12% across the Middle East; the UAE’s growth is expected to be even higher, with a forecast of 37% throughout 2020

Datacentre owners will continue to weigh innovative technology with the opportunity for cost savings and operational efficiency when partnering with technology and equipment providers. Experts forecast double digit growth but smaller datacentres and co-locations.

#2 The next wave of Internet build-out is underway, with much more at the edge

Bandwidth, costs and latency are among the reasons why more edge capacity is needed. All datacentres are working to drive down energy consumption to advance sustainability in their centers and decrease costs.

The demand for edge computing is being driven by new applications coming to the market that require low latency, and cloud and colocation datacentre providers will likely lead the shift. However, do not expect the edge to replace the cloud, rather they will complement one another.

#3 Datacentre energy use will continue to rise in 2020, straining the grid 

The world will be spending more on energy over the four decades than it has for the past 400. Internet traffic growth is at 42% in the Middle East and Africa region, almost double the rest of the world – with an impressive two billion internet users, 21 billion network devices and 1.3 million video views per minute. Most datacentres in the region are working to drive down energy consumption to advance sustainability in their centers and decrease costs. 

To stay protected, increase operational efficiency and lower energy usage, datacentres will continue to seek out new and innovative ways to guarantee success for themselves and their customers. This in turn, is driving the demand for new technology solutions that provide more control, flexibility, reliability and added security to manage and protect massive amounts of data.

Key takeaways 

• Datacentres must be capable of reacting to change efficiently.

• Investments in datacentre budgets are rising by 12% across Middle East.

• The world will be spending more on energy over four decades than it has for the past 400. 

• Internet traffic growth is at 42% in the region, almost double the rest of the world.

• Most datacentres in the region are working to drive down energy consumption to advance sustainability.