Concerns about colocation and why they are often misplaced

The study listed the four reasons given by enterprises for retaining in-house data centers:

1. Better cost control and lower transport costs to the outsourcing partner
2. Easier compliance with statutory and company regulations and standards
3. Better control over technical parameters such as application latency, availability, performance and risk profile
4. More effective security management

However, those reasons are just one side of the story. Here’s the other Here:

Ad 1: Costs: Short-to-mid-term costs are lower with outsourcing (if the data center offers state-of-the-art security and availability), and in the best-case scenario IT costs can be reduced to zero according to the Uptime Institute study. The analysts also suggest that colocation provides enterprises with better, faster and more inexpensive access to new technologies. According to market consensus transparency is another very important factor,  and enterprises looking for a colocation partner should choose one with transparent costs. maincubes is committed to transparency. For example, it offers a power consumption plan which allows customers to check the status quo online whenever they like, and only pay for the power they actually consume. Transparency builds trust.

Ad 2: Compliance with statutory requirements and company standards: Concerns about putting company IT workloads out to colocation data centers are hardly surprising when you consider the stringent data protection regulations associated with the GDPR. That’s why it’s so important to opt for a German-based data center that delivers legal compliance and is ISO certified.  maincubes guarantees comprehensive data protection compliance and GDPR conformity to customers, offering a higher level of security than many of them can achieve in their own data centers. With a colocation partner, it is also easier to comply with company standards, such as energy efficiency standards, because the PUEs of in-house data centers are often nowhere near the state of the art. The Uptime Institute established that the average PUE is 1.59, which is slightly higher than it was two years ago. Ultra-modern data centers such as maincubes’ FRA01 facility have a PUE of less than 1.3.  maincubes is currently building a zero-carbon data center in the Rhine-Main region.

Ad 3: Better control over technical parameters: The analysts conducting the study are not sure why enterprises prefer to use their own IT facilities for this reason because in-house data centers are susceptible to an alarming number of system crashes and all the associated costs. Around half of the enterprises affected don’t even quantify the losses incurred. More than three quarters of the survey respondents believed that measures could have been taken to prevent system downtime.  Although regular system stability tests are essential to preventing system crashes the Uptime Institute discovered that many in-house data centers neglect to perform them.  Stability tests are standard practice at colocation data centers and enterprises placing their IT workloads in the hands of a good quality colocation partner are always on the safe side. The GTCs of colocation service providers are a valuable source of information for potential customers about guaranteed levels of availability, latency and performance. maincubes contractually guarantees 100% availability and a failsafe power supply. In-house data centers don’t offer this guarantee. Another good reason to outsource.

Ad 4: Management of security measures: Enterprises should also give careful consideration to whether they really can meet security requirements better. Good colocation data centers not only carefully review and manage the technical parameters, they also take the appropriate security precautions. A good colocation partner provides comprehensive security and access control systems, state-of-the-art fire protection, reliable cooling and air conditioning and a 24/7 support service. Another argument in favor of colocation, which was revealed in the study, is that customers have access to state-of-the-art security solutions at a lower cost. To find out what a colocation service provider offers in terms of security and management you should check out its seals of approval and certifications.  For example, all the maincubes facilities are ISO-certified and TÜV-audited, and they were recently placed in the “Leader” quadrant by the “ISG Provider Lens“ for being a leading colocation data center with “comprehensive and higher quality colocation services for infrastructure housing, together with a wide range of connectivity services.“ Colocation customers can request an absolutely reliable 24/7 service if they need or want it.