Navigating Supply Chain Challenges: The New Reality for Data Center Buyers

In recent years, data center purchasing has undergone a significant transformation. What was once a straightforward process of ordering and receiving critical equipment has evolved into a complex dance of planning, anticipation, and strategic maneuvering. Enterprises purchasing data center space and power at scale are facing unprecedented challenges related to supply chain timelines. Addressing these challenges is the corner stone of our new white paper, “The Data Center Supply Chain Shock: Throw Out the Old Rules or Fall Behind.”

The New Landscape

Global and emerging brands are rapidly adopting AI, showcasing its significant impact. As a leading data center developer, CyrusOne has deep insights and a forward-looking perspective into the infrastructure needs of organizations, especially hyperscale and large enterprise organizations. From our observations in budgeting, business plans, and urgency, AI’s impact is disruptive and transformative as the widespread outsourcing of IT infrastructure and services evolve to meet the new reality. Organizations need to be asking different questions today than they were asking just one year ago.

Six Critical Questions to Prepare Your Organization for the Future of Data Center Purchasing

The paper delves into six critical questions enterprises should ask as they prepare for the future:

• What is the most critical action for data center buyers right now?
• Land is going for five times what it was just a few years ago in key markets. How can we be financially sensible and rein in costs, yet still engage in land banking to pursue our data center strategy?
• What is the forecast for energy availability in major data center markets? Are the restrictions we’re seeing in Northern Virginia going to repeat in other key data center locales?
• We’re seeing two-year wait times for key equipment that used to be available in 4-6 months. Will supply chain timelines return to normal any time soon?
• Does your current team have the expertise required to deliver the value of AI to your organization or do you need to consider being more tightly aligned with leading technology companies who are at the forefront of AI?
• We’re concerned internally that being left behind in the current supply chain squeeze will lead to permanent opportunity costs. Are we overreacting?

AI data centers require significantly greater scale and power densities than even today’s hyperscale data centers. This necessitates a new approach for those who plan, design, maintain, build, operate, and utilize data centers.

In the words of CyrusOne CEO Eric Schwartz in recent interview, “There’s a lot more to building data centers for AI platforms than just getting to density.”

He further adds, “The introduction and adoption of AI, along with other intelligence platforms from hyperscalers, startups, and many companies in between, has accelerated the development and deployment of the technology and added a new wave of demand for the digital infrastructure that CyrusOne develops and operates.”

As we continue to navigate this transformative era, CyrusOne remains committed to meeting the evolving needs of our customers and staying at the forefront of data center development in the age of AI.