Projects

CityFibre investing £23m in High Wycombe to deliver full fibre rollout

CityFibre has named High Wycombe as the next UK town in line for a multi-million-pound investment in its digital infrastructure – a move that will see it join the nation’s growing list of full fibre enabled communities. CityFibre is investing £23m in a new town-wide network that will bring fast and reliable full fibre-enabled internet services within reach of almost every home and business in High Wycombe. Construction work on the full fibre network will start in June in West Wycombe, with Instalcom appointed as build partner. As work is completed in each neighbourhood, CityFibre will designate the homes ‘ready for service’, which means residents can choose to connect to full fibre-enabled broadband services when they go live in their area. Nationally, CityFibre is building new and better digital infrastructure for up to eight million homes and businesses through its up to £4bn Gigabit City Investment Programme. Full fibre networks, unlike many of the copper-based ‘fibre broadband’ services available today, use 100% fibre optic technology to carry data at light speed all the way from the home to the point of connection. This gives users speeds of up to 1,000 Mbps for upload and download (up to 1,000 Mbps), near limitless bandwidth and connectivity users can depend on. A full fibre connection also goes far beyond simply enabling access to the latest entertainment at lightning speed. As an essential digital utility, full fibre boosts households and businesses alike, with experts saying it will drive a range of economic benefits, such as making us more productive and innovative. As Area Manager, Neil Madle will lead the delivery of the High Wycombe project. He will be responsible for ensuring works are delivered efficiently and considerately, while also acting as the main point of contact for all stakeholders. Neil says: “The next chapter in High Wycombe’s story starts here. Our builders will soon get to work on a town-wide full fibre network – and we think people will be blown away by the difference it will make, both now and for generations to come. We cannot stress the importance of digital connectivity and the major benefits it will reap now and long into the future and can’t wait for residents and businesses to enjoy the results.” Speaking of CityFibre’s full fibre rollout plans for High Wycombe Peter Strachan, Cabinet Member for Planning and Regeneration at Buckinghamshire Council comments: “We welcome the strategic investment CityFibre are making in High Wycombe. A full fibre infrastructure will help businesses and residents right across the town to unlock the power of full fibre connections which offer unrivalled speeds. Full fibre connections carry data at light speed all the way directly from the home right through to the point of connection. These kind of speeds boost households and businesses alike, whether it’s a case of enabling access to the latest entertainment at lightning speed or helping to unleash productivity and innovation in local businesses. By offering such superfast speeds the City Fibre network could help transform the digital lives of around 125,000 people in High Wycombe.”

Alibaba Cloud launches third data centre in Germany

Alibaba Cloud has announced that it has launched its third data centre in Germany to support the growing digital transformation demands from customers across Europe. Located in Frankfurt, the data centre provides a wide range of cloud computing products ranging from storage, network to database. With the data residing in Germany, the data centre adheres to the highest security standards and the strict compliance regulations set out in the Cloud Computing Compliance Controls Catalog (C5) in Germany. Together, the three data centres offer European customers high availability, exceptional resilience and robust disaster recovery capabilities. With the introduction of the new data centre, Alibaba Cloud now boasts a network of 84 availability zones in 27 regions across the globe, offering a highly secure, scalable, robust and sustainable cloud infrastructure to support global customers embracing digital innovation. “The third data centre launch underscores our continuous commitment to serving the local German and European markets,” says Raymond Ma, General Manager of Europe, Alibaba Cloud Intelligence. “With our proven innovations and competitive solutions that meet strict security and compliance requirements, we are determined in our mission to support our customers with their digital transformation demands.” The new data centre also features free cooling operation via dry coolers - using naturally cool ambient air instead of mechanical refrigeration. The full free cooling hours are expected to reach over 7,000 hours a year. In addition, the data centre is committed to using 100% green electricity to power its operation, along with an intelligent cloud-based platform to monitor and optimise its daily carbon footprint for a more sustainable operation approach. Alibaba Cloud has been collaborating with customers in the automotive, manufacturing, retail and gaming sectors in Europe since it unveiled its first data centre in Frankfurt in 2016. Since then, Alibaba Cloud has also introduced multiple AI services to the market, such as Intelligent Speech Interaction, a Machine Learning Platform for AI (PAI) and GPU clusters to support clients’ demands for ongoing cloud-based innovation.  As a member of the Trusted Cloud Initiative of the BMWK, Alibaba Cloud was also the first cloud service provider to receive the C5 test certificate with extended requirements from the German Federal Office for Information Security (BSI). It also successfully passed the audit of German AI Cloud Services Compliance Criteria Catalogue (AIC4), the first applicable testing standard established by Germany's Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) for certifying the security of AI applications deployed in Germany. It has also partnered with companies including Siemens and SAP to drive digital transformation in China.  Alibaba is the world’s third leading and Asia Pacific’s leading IaaS provider by revenue in 2021, according to Gartner’s report, Market Share: IT Services, 2021. 

AirTrunk scales up in Japan with announcement of Tokyo data centre

AirTrunk is strengthening its presence in Japan, announcing plans to build a new 110+ megawatt (MW) hyperscale data centre in West Tokyo, named AirTrunk TOK2 (TOK2). TOK2 will become the company’s eighth data centre, joining its rapidly expanding APJ platform that includes SYD1, SYD2, SYD3 and MEL1 in Australia, SGP1 in Singapore, HKG1 in Hong Kong and TOK1 in Japan. Collectively, the platform will offer 1.2 gigawatt (GW) of capacity. The new data centre is strategically located in western Tokyo, servicing a major cloud availability zone and complementing AirTrunk’s East Tokyo data centre, TOK1, that opened less than six months ago. Together, the data centres will provide location diversity for AirTrunk’s hyperscale customers in the Tokyo region. AirTrunk Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Robin Khuda, says: “As Japan continues to digitalise at scale, we are seeing strong shifts in cloud adoption, with analysts projecting the country’s public cloud services market to grow 19.5% annually to 2025. Global and Japanese technology companies are focusing on Tokyo as a key growth market.” Robin continues: “AirTrunk’s new TOK2 hyperscale data centre in West Tokyo, along with TOK1 in East Tokyo, will take our total capacity in Japan to more than 410MW, giving customers the unprecedented ability to scale and grow in the Tokyo region. The facility will be delivered with AirTrunk’s trademark speed, scale, reliability, and efficiency.” Built across more than 4.6 hectares (11.36 acres) of land and powered by dedicated high voltage substations, the agile campus will utilise flexible, innovative designs configured to meet customer requirements and drive greater capacity optimisation. Maintaining AirTrunk’s high efficiency and sustainability standards, it is designed to an industry-low power usage effectiveness (PUE) of 1.15 and will utilise direct air-free cooling.  AirTrunk’s Head of Japan, Nori Matsushita says: “AirTrunk’s multi-billion-dollar investment into the economy will support the Japan Digital Agency’s path toward digitalisation, contributing to the country’s post-COVID recovery. We are also creating thousands of jobs in Japan during the development and on-going operations of our data centres.” Nori continues: “It’s an exciting time to be a part of AirTrunk in Japan as we expand our team to support the growth of our data centre platform. With a diverse and flexible workplace, learning and development opportunities, a new state-of-the-art headquarters in Shibuya Tokyo and industry-leading data centres, AirTrunkers can make their impact as we scale and sustain the digital future of Japan and beyond.”

Custodian selects Aqua as premier cooling partner for new Dartford site

Custodian Data Centres has enlisted Aqua to design, supply and install an innovative temperature control system at the new 10MW site located in Dartford, Kent. With Custodian’s award-winning Maidstone facility nearing capacity, Custodian commissioned its new ‘DA2’ facility in Dartford, Kent, to meet the continued growth demands of its customers. Less than 15 miles outside of Central London, Custodian’s goal was to provide an advanced facility for end-users to relocate and host their mission-critical applications. The new site is carrier-neutral, operating at a PUE rating of below 1.3 and powered by resilient, 100% dual diverse renewable energy feeds. Aqua delivers a highly energy-efficient, bespoke, closed-loop air cooling system with integrated free cooling. The design for Custodian’s DA2 includes 12 custom-designed cooling coils and a free cooling chilled water system, comprising of 3 x 500kW Aqua EcoPro+ optimised free cooling chiller units, to accommodate for the initial phase of the site opening. The EcoPro+ units operate on R454B green refrigerant. Utilising integrated free cooling chillers, drastically reduces the amount of time mechanical cooling is required, saving significantly on energy usage, carbon impact and wear and tear of components parts, in particular the compressor. The Aqua EcoPro+ units have an in-built, optimised, free cooling coil, resulting in a fully packaged solution. In addition, with an Aqua unit, free cooling is achievable at higher ambient temperatures than with any other brand on the market, making Aqua a suitable partner for Custodian and its ever-growing client base as it allows for upgrades and additional capacity quickly and easily as needed, depending on customer needs. The system installed at Custodian achieves all the benefits of a fresh air system but without the need for the costs and resources normally associated with air filtration and maintenance. Fixed humidity control enables precise temperature control, eliminates any guesswork, and achieves total peace of mind. EC fans installed on-site maximise system efficiency even further, as well as achieving stable pressure control. “With the new DA2 Dartford site boasting a 10MW capacity, we needed a reliable cooling system that could handle the increased demands from the bigger site. Aqua’s bespoke energy-efficient systems and esteemed trusted experts means our customer’s data remains protected and running at optimised efficiency”, says Callum Woodhouse, M&E Manager at Custodian Data Centres. “Their sustainability commitments align with our overall company goals in reducing our carbon footprint, whilst providing a cost-effective and reliable solution for our customers. As our customer base continues to grow and expand over time, this Aqua solution allows us to adapt to the additional demands, in a seamless and efficient way”. A fully concurrent maintained pipework system is integral to the design, ensuring no single point of failure, something which is essential in the data centre industry. In fact, a part of the pipework can be removed without affecting the normal facility operations. N+1 capability was built-in on the mechanical equipment, including fans, coils, and pumps - this gives the facility full redundancy, and in the unlikely event that a fault should ever occur, DA2 can continue to operate whilst maintenance is undertaken. Mike West, Contracts Director at Aqua, explains: “Custodian’s commitment to energy efficiency is evident throughout their data centre facilities and it was critical that the DA2 site needed to mirror the energy efficiencies achieved at Maidstone. Reducing carbon footprint for end-user clients – with lower operating costs – were key drivers in this project. Maidstone uses five times less energy per kW of IT load than an average data centre, a challenge we were more than happy to accept and believe we have exceeded!”.

Rosendin selected to build Meta’s Temple data centre in Texas

Rosendin has been selected to build Meta Platform’s new Temple Data Centre in Texas. The employee-owned company will work with general contractor JE Dunn to build the $800 million data centre building and site infrastructure in an industrial park located 50 miles north of the Austin Metro area. “We are proud to provide our expertise in designing and building this critical mission project in Texas that supports the public’s love for social media as a way to connect with friends and family, utilise the marketplace, and be entertained,” says Rosendin Project Executive, Paul Gottfried. “Rosendin’s vast experience building secure and energy efficient data centres with reliable power and communications systems makes us uniquely qualified for this important project.” Starting July 2022, Rosendin will hire 440 craft workers and staff in Temple. This includes skilled electrical workers with the IBEW Local 72, as well as prefabrication warehouse staff, BIM (computer modelers), estimators, project managers, and office staff. Career opportunities are available for experienced craft workers, as well as apprentices and those interested in exploring jobs in the construction industry. “Meta Platform’s new data centre is a true investment to the Temple community that is building a stronger digital infrastructure, creating high-paying jobs, and using clean energy solutions that will supported by 100% renewable energy,” comments Rosendin Division Manager, Shaun Mahan. The 900,000 square foot data centre aims to serve as a model of energy efficiency and will be supported by renewable energy from new solar energy plants. The project will also aim for LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold certification and receive credits for water restoration efforts. To date, Meta has invested more than 700 megawatts of new wind and solar energy in Texas. “Rosendin has been in business for over 100 years, and we value our long relationship with JE Dunn. We aim to be a strong partner to all the stakeholders by providing a stable, robust workforce of skilled craft workers with IBEW Local 72 who appreciate the value that innovative data centres have on communities,” adds Rosendin General Superintendent, Justin Prince. Construction on Meta Platform’s Temple Data Centre will begin in spring 2022 and create a total of 1,200 jobs during construction at the 400-acre site, located in an industrial park at NW H.K. Dodgen Loop and Industrial Park Boulevard. A statement from the Temple Economic Development Corporation says the area is a regional employment hub with 450,000 residents and a thriving business environment to diversified industries.

Kettering to benefit from full fibre boost as CityFibre announces investment

CityFibre has named Kettering as the next UK town in line for a multi-million-pound investment in its digital infrastructure – a move that will see it join the nation’s growing list of full fibre enabled communities. CityFibre is set to invest £17m in a new town-wide network that will bring fast and reliable full fibre-enabled internet services within reach of nearly every home and business in Kettering. Construction work will begin in early May around the Northfield Avenue and Rockingham Road area in the north of the town. As work is completed in each neighbourhood, CityFibre will designate the homes ‘ready for service’, which means residents can choose to connect to faster and more reliable full fibre-enabled broadband services when they go live in their area. Full fibre networks, unlike many of the copper-based ‘fibre broadband’ services available today, use 100% fibre optic technology to carry data at light speed all the way from the home to the point of connection. This gives users speeds of up to 1,000 Mbps for upload and download, near limitless bandwidth and connectivity users can depend on. As Area Manager, James Cushing will lead the delivery of the Kettering project. He will be responsible for ensuring works are delivered efficiently and considerately, while also acting as the main point of contact for all stakeholders. James says: “CityFibre’s investment will bring a change to connectivity for Kettering. It will bring choice for residents and businesses and align perfectly with the ambitious regeneration and growth plans for the town. Our builders will soon get to work on a town-wide full fibre network – and we think people will be blown away by the difference it will make, both now and for generations to come. We cannot wait for residents and businesses to see what is possible with digital connectivity and the important part it will play in each of our lives.” A full fibre connection also goes far beyond simply enabling access to the latest entertainment at lightning speed. As an essential digital utility, full fibre boosts households and businesses alike, with experts saying it will drive a range of economic benefits, such as helping residents access essential services and work from home, while enabling businesses to be more productive, innovative and access new markets. Speaking of CityFibre’s full fibre rollout plans for Kettering, Councillor David Howes, North Northamptonshire Council’s Executive Member for Rural Communities and Localism, says: “Getting the right digital infrastructure in place is a big priority for the council – it’s so important in so many ways. Increasing full fibre connectivity helps support economic growth and innovation as well as keeping communities connected. “We welcome CityFibre’s multimillion pound investment in Kettering and its wider plans for North Northamptonshire. I’m delighted that full fibre connectivity is now available to almost 30% of properties in North Northants, up from less than 10% two years ago. These current plans will help to boost this coverage and progress toward our targets of 40% full fibre by the end of 2023 and then 80% by 2028.”

Eaton announces the construction of campus for UPS and energy storage

Eaton has announced that it is building a new campus for its critical power systems in Vantaa, Finland, integrating all current activities into a much larger site. Stated for completion by the end of 2023, the 16,500 m² site will house research and development, manufacturing, warehousing, sales and service under one roof, and will create up to 100 additional jobs. Eaton’s expansion in this area is driven by strong business growth and the demand for systems that ensure business continuity, be it for data centres, commercial and industrial buildings or healthcare and marine applications. Situated in a prime location next to the Helsinki airport, the Vantaa facility will serve as Eaton’s Critical Power Solutions headquarters and a centre of excellence for data centres. Eaton has a strong knowledge base in Finland, as its local subsidiary, with 250 employees, has been developing and manufacturing UPSs and power conversion technology since 1962. The decision to expand was prompted by growing demand for the output of Eaton’s existing factory in Espoo, including the grid-interactive UPS and energy storage systems that will support the energy transition away from fossil fuels. Eaton says that it is dedicated to improving sustainability and energy efficiency – both in terms of its processes and the products it manufactures – and this project is no exception. In fact, the existing Espoo plant has already sent zero waste to landfill since 2015, and the new building will feature various innovative Eaton technologies for reducing the carbon footprint, from power management solutions to electric vehicle chargers.  Karina Rigby, President, Critical Systems, Electrical Sector at Eaton in EMEA, says: “By investing and strengthening our footprint in Finland, we’re building on Eaton’s strong local heritage while delivering on our commitment to sustainability. Eaton’s power quality business is growing, driven by digitalisation and the energy transition, and thanks to the new Vantaa campus, we’ll be ready to support our customers now and in the future. It’s particularly exciting to see how UPS technology has evolved over time – today, it not only ensures business continuity for critical applications but also plays a role in the switch to renewables, by acting as a source of flexibility that supports grid stability.”

CityFibre celebrates latest milestone in Nottingham’s full fibre rollout

Internet users across Nottingham are now able to connect their homes and businesses to the best digital infrastructure available thanks to progress made by CityFibre. CityFibre has now made the majority of homes in the Wollaton area of the city ‘ready for service’, which means residents can choose to connect to full fibre-enabled broadband services when they go live in their area. The rollout is now progressing into new areas with construction underway in West Bridgford, Basford, Hyson Green and Arboretum, while work in areas such as Lutterell, Bulwell, Compton Acres, Edwalton, Abbey, Gamston, South, Meadows and Trent Bridge is set to start in the next three months. Homes in the Bilborough, Aspley and Leen Valley areas are also ready for service. Once the city-wide rollout reaches completion in 2027, almost every home and business locally will have access to full fibre services from a choice of internet service providers. Speaking of this latest milestone, Dominika Walker, CityFibre’s Area Manager for Nottingham says: “CityFibre has been making great progress in Nottingham and people we've spoken to have been amazed at just how much fibre we've put down so far. Reaching this latest milestone means residents can now start to benefit from this digital investment that will future-proof their connectivity for decades to come.” In celebration of this latest milestone, CityFibre welcomed Lilian Greenwood, MP for Nottingham South, for a tour of the works in Wollaton, giving her a closer look at the project. Lilian Greenwood MP comments: “The build progress is very encouraging and it’s great to see that households and businesses throughout the city are already experiencing the benefits. “Becoming one of the best-connected cities in the UK with CityFibre’s state-of-the-art infrastructure is vital to Nottingham’s future. Full fibre connectivity will support our economic, social and smart city ambitions.” Nottingham is one of 60 other locations in the UK to benefit from CityFibre’s £4bn Gigabit City investment programme which will bring new and better broadband infrastructure within reach of up to eight million homes and businesses nationwide. In Nottingham alone, CityFibre is investing £117m to make it one of the world’s best digitally connected communities. Unlike many of the copper-based ‘fibre broadband’ services available today, full fibre networks use 100% fibre optic cables to carry data at light speed all the way from the home to the point of connection. This gives users consistently faster speeds for upload and download (up to 1,000 Mbps), near limitless bandwidth and connectivity users can depend on.

CityFibre works on Luton's digital foundations as part of investment

Work to bring full fibre connectivity within reach of almost every home and business in Luton gets underway as CityFibre breaks ground on a new infrastructure rollout that will future-proof the digital needs of the town for generations to come. The rollout forms part of CityFibre’s £45m digital infrastructure investment in Luton and Dunstable. Construction has begun in Luton, with works starting in the Stopsley area, and is being delivered by Instalcom on behalf of CityFibre. The team will use a range of construction methods while working in close partnership with Luton Council and the local community to deliver a fast rollout while managing potential disruption. The rollout is expected to move into Dunstable early next year. As the network is completed in each neighbourhood, CityFibre will designate the homes ‘ready for service’, which means residents can choose to connect to full fibre-enabled broadband services when they go live in their area. In Luton, services will be available from an increasing range of broadband providers. Across the UK, CityFibre is already working with launch partner Vodafone to supply full fibre infrastructure for customers on selected Vodafone Pro Broadband plans as well as TalkTalk and Zen, with other partners expected to join the network soon. Speaking of the project, Jean Gowin, CityFibre’s Area Manager for Luton and Dunstable, says: “I’m excited and proud to see work getting underway in Luton today. This is the start of an exciting new chapter for the town as it gets ready to embrace and thrive in the digital age. We appreciate this is a huge build project and there will be some short-term disruption. However, once the network is built, our full fibre will serve the community’s connectivity needs for decades to come.”. Paul Alderton, Communications Director, at Instalcom says: “Instalcom are delighted to be undertaking the network build in Luton for CityFibre. Our civils teams, fibre installation teams and fibre termination and testing engineers will be working collaboratively with the CityFibre build team to ensure that the works are undertaken with minimal disruption. The Instalcom Management team have worked tirelessly during the mobilisation period to ensure that the program of works was produced and agreed in conjunction with Luton Borough Council. We are looking forward to a successful fibre build.”

Ondat teams with SUSE to protect customers’ with Kubernetes security

Ondat has announced that it is teaming with SUSE to deliver management of digital authentication credentials (secrets management) in Kubernetes to protect access to sensitive data for SunnyVision. This comes just after the release of Ondat’s Trousseau open source project in February. Previously, secrets management in Kubernetes was complicated and added lots of components – anathema for security professionals. The Trousseau open source project addresses these issues, leading Ondat and SUSE to team up to provide this enhanced security for their customer, SunnyVision. With SUSE Rancher and built-in Trousseau, SunnyVision can now leverage the native Kubernetes way to store and access secrets in a safe way by plugging into Hashicorp Vault using the Kubernetes KMS provider framework. No additional changes or new skills are required. “Segregation of the encryption keys in our multi-tenant environment means every data volume has its own key and has secure access protected from any of the other tenants,” says Bill Wong, CEO, SunnyVision. “Trousseau guarantees the security of keys, and without it this sort of secure data storage for containers would be very complex and near impossible.” Andy King, Partner Solution Architect at SUSE, comments, “The Ondat data platform is used by SunnyVision as the basis for its database as a service (DBaaS) which is attractive to managed service provider (MSP) customers. MSPs are able to build services on the DBaaS to provide customised solutions to their customers. The integration with SUSE Rancher to easily consume Key Management Systems (KMS) addresses the critical need for protecting sensitive data in cloud-native solutions deployed in the Kubernetes ecosystem.” Trousseau uses Kubernetes etcd to store API object definitions and states. The Kubernetes secrets are shipped into the etcd key-value store database using an in-flight envelope encryption scheme with a remote transit key saved in a KMS. Secrets protected and encrypted with Trousseau and its native Kubernetes integration can connect with a key management system to secure database credentials, a configuration file or TLS (Transport Layer Security) certificate that contains critical information and is easily accessible by an application using the standard Kubernetes API primitives. “Secrets management has always been one of the most difficult issues in Kubernetes,” says Romuald Vandepoel, Principal Cloud Architect with Ondat and the project lead for Trousseau. “We’re glad to see Trousseau applied to that long-time problem being deployed at major installations as part of SUSE Rancher.”