DataBank, a provider of business solutions for data center, cloud, interconnectivity, and managed services, has announced the development of a new 94,000 sqft data center in downtown Atlanta – for anchor-tenant, Georgia Institute of Technology.
Located in Midtown Atlanta, DataBank’s ATL1 data center will serve as a HPCC (High-Performance Computing Center) and will house the Southern Crossroads providing “high speed, high bandwidth” connectivity to research and education sites throughout the southeast and across the US.
Construction of DataBank’s ATL1 data center is scheduled for Q4 2017. To support the HPCC needs, the data center is designed to deliver power densities of up to 45kW per cabinet. Once online, DataBank will operate 13 data center locations across seven markets (Dallas, Kansas City, Minneapolis, Salt Lake City, Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Atlanta) totaling more the 500,000 square feet of deployed data center space.
Georgia Tech’s Academic Program
The new HPCC is part of Portman Holdings’ CODA development, a 645,000 square feet mixed-use office complex currently under construction in Georgia Tech’s Technology Square. Georgia Tech’s academic and research programs will be the main tenant under a long-term lease for both the data center as well as the adjoining office tower.
“We are delighted to be working with DataBank as the developer and owner of the data center,” said Georgia Tech Executive Vice President for Administration and Finance Steven Swant. “Technology Square represents a significant investment by Georgia Tech, the City of Atlanta, and the State of Georgia to create and advance a vibrant technology ecosystem around Georgia Tech. The HPCC data center is at the core of that effort.”
The HPCC project at CODA is being spearheaded by Georgia Tech to create public-private collaboration leveraging Georgia Tech students, faculty and knowledge to solve real world business problems. Researchers and industry participants working in the adjacent office tower will have direct, high-speed fiber access to Georgia Tech’s latest fleet of super computers and unique datasets located inside the HPCC, as well as the on-site expertise of Georgia Tech’s academic community.
“This project is a two-fold win for us,” said Raul K. Martynek, CEO of DataBank. “Not only will we be the backbone support for Georgia Tech’s leading-edge research activities, we also gain entry into an attractive technology-driven market. Atlanta is a great fit for DataBank given its position as a hub for regional interconnection and peering and the large base of enterprise companies looking for the high-quality data center space and services.”
DataBank is collaborating on the development of ATL1 with Next Tier HD, a privately held real estate development group headquartered in New York, NY who has been involved with this project since 2015.
