Global colocation and interconnection provider, Equinix, has announced the opening of its new International Business Exchange (IBX) data center in Amsterdam at its Science Park campus. The $113M data center, called AM4, would further increase Equinix’s capacity to meet growing demand for hybrid cloud, interconnection and connectivity.
High connectivity would make Amsterdam Science Park an attractive location and cloud hotspot in Europe. “With its connectivity to continental Europe as well London and the Nordics, Amsterdam has become a key hub for cloud and other service providers to offer enterprise interconnection,” said Penny Jones, senior analyst, European Services, 451 Research. “European enterprises are starting to realize their current network architecture is no longer optimal for digital transformation as they journey to the cloud. A deployment in a network-dense interconnection-oriented facility such as that being offered in Amsterdam could be a viable option to support their digital transformation.”
The initial phase of Equinix AM4 includes space for 1,555 colocation cabinets and is planned to have four data center expansion phases. At full build the vertical data center will represent a total investment of $189 million and provide 4,200 colocation cabinets across eight floors with more than 125,000 gross square feet (11,500 square meters) of data center space.
Equinix’s Amsterdam data centers at Science Park would realize significant energy savings and reduction in their CO2 footprint using an in-ground Aquifer Thermal Energy Storage, instead of mechanical cooling, and has one of the lowest operating PUE’s in the retail colocation sector.
“Amsterdam has long been a key digital gateway and a significant piece of Equinix’s global data center footprint,” said Eric Schwartz, president EMEA, Equinix. “Businesses are increasingly looking for network-rich locations that have cloud connectivity but are also located in close proximity to end users. By moving IT to these sort of environments, businesses create a digital edge that increases performance and end-user experience, but also allows them to adapt to meet future needs. The addition of Equinix AM4 gives these businesses yet another way to interconnect in this key market.”
