COVID-19 has increased demand for cloud services, such as PaaS, SaaS, and IaaS — a demand that will continue in the foreseeable future. Clients offering cloud services are experiencing rapid growth. On top of that, consumers are demanding unprecedented access, reliability, and speed. This leads to increased demand for suitable locations for data centers in both mature and developing markets around the world. Big Cloud (hyperscale) is on the rise.

Access to data as well as fast and reliable connections have become critical to many clients’ operations. The hybrid workstyles we’ve been experimenting with since the start of the pandemic have exposed gaps and limitations in current internet accessibility. While access to data is sound in affluent urban and suburban America, there are far too many locations with low or no available internet. As people continue to work from anywhere and reassess their living priorities, access to quality data services will shape our cities in the 21st century.

New technologies are allowing data centers to aid in sustainability goals. Incorporation of data centers into campus plans allows the heat generated from server racks to be utilized in central district heating. Power generation technologies are becoming more cost effective, allowing power to be created on-site. This helps reduce the demand on the power grid and lessens the reliance on fossil fuels. Additionally, data centers are seeing greater power densities per square foot, allowing for energy-efficient technologies, like immersion cooling, to be deployed. This helps the building footprint to shrink and thereby become more energy efficient.