With cloud computing, 5G on the horizon, and the proliferation of IoT devices, it’s no surprise that data is growing at a rapid pace. The projected amount is rather stunning. According to IDC, data will grow by 61% — up to 175 zettabytes — by 2025!
Where will the majority of this new data be stored? In the cloud. And whether it’s a public, private or hybrid cloud, that means data centers.
The increase in adoption of colocation and managed hosting services is expected to boost the growth of the data center construction market, reports BusinessWire, which estimated a 9% compound annual growth rate for data centers from 2019 to 2023.
It’s important to note that this growth isn’t just happening for big business. With colocation, small to mid-sized businesses can now take advantage of the benefits that a dedicated data center affords.
Here are 5 of those benefits:
- Cost Savings
For a company looking to build its own on-premises data center, costs will include installing fiber, buying hardware, installing cooling resources, maintenance, 24/7 monitoring, downtime due to troubleshooting, and disaster recovery. That’s a lot to bite off for a small to mid-sized business.
A much more affordable option is to partner with a data center provider for a colocation solution. A business will benefit from shared costs for resources and the opportunity to partner with a company that offers data center, cloud, and network services from a single provider.
Additionally, off-site data centers consume less energy, helping small to mid-sized businesses cut down on their energy bills.
- Hybrid Cloud
A data center provider that offers both colocation and cloud computing solutions can help your organization with the right hybrid cloud strategy.
If you want to continue to own and maintain your own infrastructure, choosing a solid colocation facility can be a great way to augment your approach to IT. Managing the physical data center is time consuming, and with data suites and secure private cabinets, moving infrastructure into a colocation facility can improve physical security and uptime, while still giving you the control you want over your IT infrastructure.
Hybrid cloud allows you to protect your data, burst into the cloud or find a suitable DR site that won’t break the bank. Combining these options with a provider that can move data around at the speed of light, provide cloud options and give you the control you’re looking for is an ideal solution for many organizations.
- Advanced Services
You may see the value of moving your infrastructure into a colocation facility, but what about access? Are there services inside the data center that could even further reduce the burden on your staff?
Data center providers offer smart hands with a response SLA that can serve the needs of your organization 24×7. You can also take advantage of managed services like SD-WAN, Managed Edge, or Engineering Services Agreements that can do much of the work that your staff doesn’t have time to do.
- Superior Security
Small to mid-size organizations typically don’t have the staff to monitor and watch the data center 24×7.
Data centers feature on-site personnel, video monitoring, secure access and mantraps. These improvements in physical security can help guard against unauthorized access and prevent breeches.
- Improved Compliance
With so much data being shared and hosting that involves multiple industries, data centers have to adhere to the strictest of compliance standards as one component of an overall solution to help customers stay compliant.
From HIPAA to PCI compliance, a data center has to be vigilant in protecting patient privacy and financial information. A quality data center will maintain a diligent audit schedule to ensure renewal of certifications or compliance and will show proof of compliance to its data center customers upon request.
Let FirstLight Be Your Colocation Data Center Partner
FirstLight provides carrier-grade infrastructure in their data centers, the option for full and half cabinets, data suites, and connections up to 100 gigabytes per second. Additionally, FirstLight provides a whole suite of cloud solutions like IaaS, Backup and Disaster Recovery to help organizations achieve their desired goals through a hybrid cloud architecture. Our colocation data center and cloud experts are available to discuss how FirstLight can help you improve resiliency and achieve your data center and cloud objectives.
Download our data center info sheet. Contact us today for a free consultation on our colocation offerings.
