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The demand on data centers has never been higher, and it’s only going to grow. How do we build and run today — for tomorrow? The Data Center Tech Bytes podcast series features big industry conversations that take place in just a small amount of time. Join us as we begin to re-define the data center of the future, and get ready for smarter and more sustainable operations to support greater connectivity and capacity.
In episode eight, Frank Nash, Vice President of Technical Sales at Schneider Electric and Mike Brown, Group Leader of Preconstruction at Faith Technologies get real about how the hyperscale data center trend is impacting the people who make it happen. The “value chain,” that is, consulting engineers, construction managers, electrical and mechanical contractors, channel partners and integrators, are experiencing a change in their roles as big as the demand for more computing power.
The newer way to work for hyperscale demands
“One of the biggest shifts we’ve seen over the past several years, and that will continue into the future, is the need for greater collaboration — overall across the value chain and within teams. Also, when it comes to planning and executing these large projects, the electrical contractor is playing a more prominent role,” says Mike. “There’s a lot more planning up front as projects grow and timelines shorten.”
A critical part of that planning now is thoroughly understanding how all the different members of the value chain will contribute and can work together. In the past, every role in the value chain stayed in their lanes. But the complexities of such large scale data centers bring opportunities for all to weigh in on design and build for the most effective outcome.
The hyperscale project process has almost become one of reverse engineering, according to Mike, with so much emphasis placed on quality control and speed to market, pre-construction has become more common. This approach also helps overcome what Frank calls one of the greatest challenges the industry’s facing: a huge labor and skills shortage.
Hyperscale, or as Franks says, is driving “hyper speed” in the form of compressed build schedules is also impacting manufacturers and procurement. End users and their partners are also collaborating more to meet this need. However, that’s not the way it was always done. The traditional contracting approach was scope and install, versus interact and share.
Listen to the episode for more insights
Find out more about how the value chain is keeping up with hyperscale demands, what tactics, like preconstruction, will help the industry get ahead and how Faith Technologies is taking a unique approach to changing perception of the trades to attract new talent. Listen to the full Data Center Tech Bytes episode now.
