Colocation: Why outsourcing to a data center is a better option

Colocation: Why outsourcing to a data center is a better option

01-03-2017 13:37:39

The marketplace is changing fast and that has a big impact on the demands that organisations have for their IT. The IT needs to be adaptable and flexible and adjust to the changes in scale that these developments bring about. That is why many organisations choose to outsource their data center capacity to professional data centers. Only in this way, they can adapt to the continuously changing market, because they can lower the costs for flexibility, scalability and IT. Now following will be a number of reasons why it might be good to consider outsourcing to a data center.

Limiting risks

What if you no longer have access to your corporate data? Or when there is a fire in your office building? What are the consequences of a power outage? Of course you will want to do everything in your power to avoid such incidents. By housing your data in a data center, you can considerably limit the risks and increase the continuity of your services.

Information security

Another important reason for outsourcing, is that companies have to deal with increasingly strict safety measures when it comes to information security, especially companies that work with confidential data. When opting for outsourcing, it is important that the data center you choose has the required certificates, like ISO 27001 and NEN 7510.

Lower energy cost

New technologies are constantly being developed to reduce the use of power within data centers. Residual heat is being used to heat other spaces, improvements are being made in the field of temperature tolerance of IT equipment, outside air is being used for cooling, etcetera, etcetera. This makes that data centers are many times more efficient than in-house server rooms. This is not only beneficial for the environment, but also very good for cost reduction.

Expertise

One of the most important factors of a data center, are its people. They have the technical skills and knowledge. Your systems will be monitored 24/7 by people with the expertise that is needed. The equipment in itself, however well set-up, is just not enough. In the end it all comes down to using the technical equipment with understanding, in a coherent manner, and matching the user’s needs.

Spreading the risks with redundancy

All services in a data center are redundantly executed. This means that everything is set up twice, from the power supply to the connectivity. If one cooling machine fails, for example, another cooling machine takes over. More and more data centers are now offering a twin data center option, where data storage is spread over two data centers, with the intent to increase a service’s availability and prevent damage to the data. Businesses that require maximum levels of security, use one location to back-up the other.

Focus on core activities

As an entrepreneur, you will want to keep your focus on reaching your corporate goals, and not on activities that you are not entirely familiar with, unlike your core activities. That takes up a lot of time and energy and does not always get you to the desired IT results. Often you will also not have the knowledge to be able to choose the best solution that gives as much flexibility as possible. Are you, or is your IT manager fully up to speed with all of the latest developments in this specialist field?


By: Larissa Wiedeman