Central to its delivery of services, Vantage’s Cardiff campus also serves as a regional Internet hub and major communications node for Wales and the West of England. In total 15 telecommunications providers offer regional, national and international connectivity services from the data centre for providing diverse, high-speed fibre solutions. As a point of presence (PoP) for the London Internet Exchange’s LINX Wales Peering Exchange, it means lower latency and an overall improved end-user experience for LINX members and their customers. Further connectivity credentials come with direct gateway connections into the network infrastructures of major public cloud providers, bypassing the public internet to ensure the delivery of extremely responsive, secure and reliable cloud-enabled services. The campus is also directly connected to the Janet Network operated by Jisc which serves the UK’s Education and Research communities.
The campus was established in 2007 when plans were hatched to develop a world-class data centre on a plot of land outside Cardiff. the 750,000sqft complex – approximately the size of Heathrow Terminal 2 - and massive direct to SuperGrid connected and totally renewable power supply, enough for a medium-sized city, offered the perfect mix for a data centre complex. The site was subsequently leased on a long-term basis from the Welsh Government and ever since has seen the benefit of a phased multimillion-pound investment programme, transforming the original building into Europe’s largest data centre campus.
Justin Jenkins, President UK and COO Europe, Vantage Data Centers, explains:
“We have always enjoyed a mutually beneficial relationship with the Welsh Government. A supporter and key proponent of Digital Strategy for Wales, our continued success in attracting major businesses to the Cardiff Capital Region will bring significant ongoing investment into the local economy. We have also evolved into a growing UK employer, intentionally focusing on diversity and inclusivity, as well as generating regular on-site construction engineering work for hundreds of local subcontractors.
“The location of our data centre in Wales combined with the scale means we can support established businesses, start-up operations and large scale companies looking to locate in Wales ad operate on a regional, national or global basis. In today’s digital economy every business relies on IT systems and these have to be in place from the outset for your business to survive and grow. With Vantage Data Centers, you can quickly and easily set up your IT operations and communication networks.”
Meeting all requirements - Global, UK and Regional
Today, Vantage’s Cardiff campus is home from home to the data of an impressive and growing list of blue-chip organisations. From UK government departments and major banks to BT, CGI, IBM, WiPro and other global giants, including some of the world’s largest software and cloud companies. With 72MW of 100 per cent renewably sourced power already connected, and 200MW more in reserve, the site offers more than enough forward power and power to rack densities for meeting even the most demanding Hybrid Cloud and HPC (High Performance Computing) requirements of specialist semi-conductor, engineering, and life sciences organisations - of which there are many in the region. Moreover, having Vantage Data Centers practically on their doorsteps is proving attractive to local enterprises looking for secure and cost-effective space to house perhaps an initial one or two server racks.
Learn more about Vantage Data Centers on the Vantage Data Centers website.
