/in/ronvokoun @ronvokoun

Ron VokounDirectorMission Critical DesignRK Mission Critical

@WeAreRK

1. The Year of Modular

Modular no longer has to have the negative connotations associated with constraining containers thanks to new concepts on the market.

With open white space and ceiling heights of traditional construction – plus speed to market, scalability and accelerated depreciation – the market paradigm is poised to shift.

image: Centercore

“The modular approach to data center design, construction and delivery to the end-user is long past due.

The old paradigms of traditional raised floor data center design and/or the ‘build it all out and then fill it’ models are simply ineffective and wasteful capital management.”

~ Robert McClarySVP & GM, FORTRUST Data Centers

@RobertMcClaryFT

image: Twitter

2. Retail and Wholesale Colocation Merge

Wholesale players are coming down as far as 250 kW.

Meanwhile traditional retail players are signing customers into the multi-megawatt range, while offering the same array of managed services.

3. The Race to the Edge Will Continue

With our never-ending appetite for content, the race to the edge will continue with more players joining in.

The next frontier will be mobile, where more and more people are accessing their content.

4. DCIM Adoption Will Continue Slow & Steady

Hype alone cannot sustain the 70+ DCIM companies. There is too much noise in the market. Adoption will be slow until the market shakes out and there are more visible success stories.

5. Renewable Energy Adoption Will Accelerate

Renewable energy has matured to the point it is no longer a marketing gimmick, but is now a competitive advantage in the colocation market.

Who wouldn’t want to lock power rates for 20 years?

Image: Energy4Cities

“Data runs the planet, which is why Switch SUPERNAP wants to ensure data doesn’t ruin the planet.

Switch has always been focused on efficiency and sustainability inside of the data center, and for nearly 18 months we worked with our local utility and regulators to design a renewable energy tariff in southern Nevada that would allow us to construct one of the largest private solar projects in the world so we could achieve our goal of being 100% renewably powered.”

~ Adam KramerEVP of Strategy, Switch

@AdamInNevada

image: UP Global

6. TCO Loses Ground

It defies logic, but there has been a movement back towards pure CapEx-driven decisions.

Kudos to those that understand the benefits of energy efficiency, accelerated depreciation and other financial factors.

image: Supply Technologies

7. Water Usage Rises in Importance

Given water is the most subsidized and underpriced utility in the US, it will become a larger factor in TCO. But that isn’t the reason it rises in importance in data center design.

Risk mitigation will be the reason water usage climbs the ladder of design considerations.

image: bit-tech

8. Ghetto Colo Becomes a Product Offering

Lower levels of redundancy has become a product offering.

Whether it be bitcoin miners or a research cluster, there are many instances that do not require anything more than street power.

Look for more service providers to follow suit.

image: Gillaspy

“Every other layer in the IT stack has adopted a use-based pricing model - except the data center.

Aligned is bringing the first pay-for-use, consumption-based pricing model to the data center.”

~ Jason FerraraCMO, Aligned Energy

in/jasonjohnferrara

9. The Rise of the Data Center Density

Power densities were relatively flat in 2015 with some trending upward toward the end of the year. This trend will continue with a steady rise in density across all market sectors.

Legacy equipment is finding its way out of enterprise data centers, giving way to new equipment capable of more computing in a smaller footprint.

image: IT World

10. Hybrid IT Rules The Day

Many have predicted that public cloud would dominate the IT landscape. Although usage is rising sharply, it is nowhere near the IT market share some predicted.

Given the massive growth of IT and data in general, there is room for everyone.

image: Forbes

These are my fearless predictions for the data center market in 2016. You can also see how I did with my 2015 predictions on LinkedIn Pulse.

I’m interested in your thoughts. Please share your comments and let the debate continue.

Ron VokounDirector of Mission Critical Design, RK Mission Critical

@RonVokoun

This article originally appeared on Data Center Dynamics