The Data Center Frontier Executive Roundtable features insights from industry executives with lengthy experience in the data center industry. Here’s a look at the insights from Joe Reele, VP Solutions Architects, for Schneider Electric.
Joe Reele is Vice President, Solution Architects at Schneider Electric, responsible for bringing together the full suite of the company's products and services to provide complete solutions for its customers. Joe has more than 22 years of experience in strategic planning, business development, operations management, and system engineering strategies. He started his career with the U.S. Air Force Nuclear program and then led one of the world’s largest financial data center portfolios. Joe provides strong technical and business leadership skills with the proven ability to analyze an organization’s business requirements, identify deficiencies and potential opportunities, and develop innovative solutions to meet the customer’s business objectives.
Here's the full text of Joe Reele's insights from our Executive Roundtable:
Data Center Frontier: As data center builds and leasing in locations such as No. Va. And Silicon Valley remain increasingly challenged, the prognosis for industry growth in 2nd and 3rd tier U.S. data center markets continues to improve. What are your top 3 most attractive 2nd or 3rd tier data center markets in terms of power, cost, construction, operational, geographic or other advantages?
Joe Reele, Schneider Electric: I think in general that the tier 2 and 3 markets are attractive and offer growth opportunities. It's really led by technology and client needs/demands. In particular, the Midwest is interesting, such as Minneapolis, Denver, and maybe even Chicago.
Data Center Frontier: Given the rapid acceleration of AI technology momentum this year, what’s your 12-24 month outlook for planning or spending by hyperscale and colocation providers on any type of data center AI technology upgrades related to workload management and demand uptake from enterprise and consumer cloud customers?
Joe Reele, Schneider Electric: When you talk about AI from the hyperscalers' perspective, there are things that need to be taken into account across the entire fabric (both IT and OT) of the data center. Meaning at a very high level, the compute, network and storage (both technology and architecture of all), plus the power and cooling architecture, technology, and operation.
Similar in colocation, minus the IT, there could be an uptick in "AI infrastructure," for example, liquid cooling, with much higher power density. Sure, there will be spending across all of that to accommodate the growing adoption and use, but probably a small portion of the overall, call it "BAU" spend.
Data Center Frontier: The Russian author Leo Tolstoy once famously wrote, "Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way." Across the spectrum of colocation and hyperscale data center construction, expansion and operations, there’s a plurality of investors, builders and providers. What does each party optimally look for in the other to ensure a ‘happy family’? On the flip side, what factors could make for an ‘unhappy family?’
Joe Reele, Schneider Electric: For both answers, it comes down to the financial aspect.
For an unhappy family, it's the loss of money or not performing (financially) as advertised.
For a happy family, well, it's the opposite.
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