Global Switch powers connectivity hubs worldwide
The last five years have seen dramatic changes in how people access, use and store data. Users want on-demand information to be delivered securely and cost-effectively, and stored safely for future use. These needs push governments and businesses to review interactions with employees, customers and stakeholders as companies determine the needed information technology (IT) resources and deployment requirements.
The last five years have seen dramatic changes in how people access, use and store data. Users want on-demand information to be delivered securely and cost-effectively, and stored safely for future use. These needs push governments and businesses to review interactions with employees, customers and stakeholders as companies determine the needed information technology (IT) resources and deployment requirements.
There has been a fundamental shift from customer-owned software applications running on company-owned equipment to multitenant applications running on shared computing resources. This shift towards cloud applications was achieved because of significant improvements in computing performance and network connectivity. This allowed the transfer of greater amounts of data at higher speeds, leading to data centres becoming dynamic communication hubs that support large-scale data transfers across the globe.
Responding to the demand for highly resilient and secure spaces for housing mission-critical IT equipment, Global Switch - the leading owner, operator and developer of large-scale, carrier-neutral data centres in Europe and Asia - has expanded its presence in the Asia-Pacific. The expansion also addresses the need for a network-dense and low-latency environment serviced by multiple telecommunication carriers and internet service providers in the region. Aside from service providers and government organisations, the world's largest financial institutions, system integrators and telecommunications companies also benefit from Global Switch's data centres.
"We offer best-in-class, large-scale, carrier-neutral, modern data centres to customers that want to control their IT solutions but prefer to have a specialist manage the core engineering services," says Damon Reid, Global Switch's managing director in Sydney.
Global Switch owns and operates nine world-class data centres totalling 290,000 square metres of space exclusively in the Asia-Pacific and Europe. These include the first-tier markets of Sydney, Singapore, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, London, Madrid and Paris, and soon Hong Kong.
Meeting customer demands, Global Switch will launch the first stage of its second Australian data centre spanning 26,000 square metres in Sydney later this year. Standing adjacent to Global Switch's existing Sydney data centre, Sydney East offers low latency and exceptional connectivity options through multiple providers. Global Switch is also developing a 35,000-square-metre data centre on the Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate in Hong Kong and a second data centre in Singapore.
"Data centres are an exciting business," Reid says. "It is a relatively young industry that brings together a range of professional disciplines and drives almost all activities in the world. Whether it's banking, buying food or playing a game on a tablet, all that data is driven out of data centres."
Providing comprehensive engineering solutions to meet customers' specific needs, Global Switch's technical experts evaluate and match a customer's requirements to the company's offerings. Global Switch ensures customers are able to connect directly to their chosen networks while enjoying uninterrupted power and optimised cooling within a highly secured environment.
"Customers come to us because they trust their engineering needs will be satisfied," says David Guth, regional development director for Asia-Pacific.
Aware of the environmental impact of data centres, Global Switch applies continuous improvement programmes to ensure that sustainable services are delivered. Aside from water recycling and free air cooling, the company follows international standards in energy efficiency. It works closely with customers and related industry peers to continually improve its ratings. Its facilities are designed with a power usage effectiveness that is 70 per cent better than the industry norm. Alternative energy sources to grid power, including gas and renewables, are also regularly investigated.
Expanding its footprint, it seeks to serve companies in Asia while strengthening its foothold in Australia. "We're the dominant provider in the data centre space due to our operational excellence and unrivalled network of customer ecosystems," Reid says. "Our time-to-market is exceptional, with multimegawatt solutions capable of being delivered in just a few months. In our risk-averse industry, our speed, conservative development strategy and strong financial position are very attractive to customers."
www.globalswitch.com
