Amazon Web Services is making another large-scale business venture. The e-commerce giant has proposed building a data center up to 1.75 million square feet near the Dulles International Airport in Loudon County, Virginia. The 100.18-acre land, which Amazon purchased for $73 million in 2019, will be rezoned from industrial and mineral extraction use to general industry, which will allow for the data facility to be built.
The proposition for the building is expected to be heard in late July by the Loudon County Planning Commission.
“This application contributes to the public welfare in that it has minimal impact on county facilities and services while generating a significant amount of taxes for the county to use to benefit its citizens,” states Amazon Web Services in their rezoning application.
Loudon County dubbed the Goliath of data
Loudon County is the home to multiple data center facilities and is the No. 1 data center market in the country. Located just south of Dulles International Airport, Loudon currently houses 18 million square feet of data center space. Over 5 million of those centers came online just last year, and 70% of the world’s internet traffic passes through Ashburn daily.
The power density of a single data center is approximately 100-times more than that of a large commercial office building, and it’s the equivalent to nine small-sized shopping malls the size of your average Wal-Mart. Because of its reliable electricity and affordable land, Loudon is capable of housing these large-scale centers and has been dubbed the “Goliath” of data.
How are these large-scale centers able to operate?
To keep a large-scale data facility running efficiently, airflow management, server racks, and thermal containment systems are a must. Without these features, a data center can easily fail.
About 65% of IT equipment failures are directly attributed to inadequate, poorly-maintained, or failed air conditioning in the server room. Fortunately, about 80% of data centers employ or are looking into installing hot or cold aisle containment systems to keep servers at the correct temperatures and to reduce energy use.
With the proper management and maintenance, scaling your data facility doesn’t need to be challenging. In fact, Amazon Web Services recently applied for fast track planning permission to build three more data centers in Loudon County.
If you’re looking for the right data center supplies and products to scale your own data center, AMCO Enclosures has the equipment you need. To learn more about our modular server racks, thermal containment systems, and other products, contact AMCO Enclosures today.