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Green Data Centers

A growing thirst for processing power
Increased GPU and Cpu utilization increasing workload
Some of the world’s largest data centers now consume enough electricity to power 80,000 homes.
5g will disrupt the industry

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UPSes and Alternative Energy Solutions

What is a uninterruptible power supply?
How can it make Alternative Energy more Realistic?
Protects Against Outages
Increased Capacity and health of Energy Grid

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Long-Term Potential

Data is a growing sector that integrates into all industries. The need for data centers will always be existent

Processing power and storage is essential, will become even more relevant as technology continues to advance
AI, cloud computing, smart devices, 5g

With green deals and planet conscious initiatives on the rise, green data centers will play a crucial role in the transitioning of many corporations to “planet friendly”
Reliable data centers are key to many businesses who operate and deal with data in any form and scale; Market Expansion

“Voltage fluctuations and dropouts of as little as 30 milliseconds can betwedamage IT equipment, triggering expensive outages. Statista reported that the median cost of enterprise server downtime in 2019 was en $400,000 and $500,000 with 15% of enterprises reporting costs of greater than $5 million. For operators of multi-tenant data centers the potential costs are much higher, including lost business, penalties for failure to meet service level agreements and legal exposure.” (Gillain 2020)

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Business Plan

Step 1: Have data centers invest more into alternative energy sources

Step 2: Impose sustainability practices on the supply chain

Step 3: Integrate green energy with continued energy practices

Step 4: Swap to a fully operable system relying on green energy as primary power and not ancillary power supply

Step 5: Utilize the free capacity of the uninterruptible power supplies to reduce outages and allow more processing power

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Porter’s 5 Forces Model

Threat of New Entry

Not imitation resistant but initial time and cost of entry discourages potential competitors

Supplier Power

Possibility to substitute exists

Current market offers range of suppliers for renewable energy options

Cost of changing (if market dominance is attained, suppliers will compete to supply)

Threat of Substitution

Substitution options may be present but are discouraging due to high switching costs, data breach possibilities, complications
Switching costs: become dominant/prevalent enough in industry where firm is relevant and effective enough to achieve and justify a high switching cost

Competitive Rivalry

Current competitive rivalry is low (due to time, cost
Customer loyalty/reliance is relatively easy to build

Buyer Power

Currently, buyers hold power but there is a limitation to their options for database centers. Sustainable database centers are not as prevalent within the market yet.
Building a scale advantage as we enter the market (customer retention and addition predicted to be high)

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Value Chain

INBOUND LOGISTICS

Renewable energy supplier relationships
Power purchase agreements

OPERATIONS

Server virtualization
Carbon intelligent data center design
Maximizing use of carbon neutral sources
Fuel cells

OUTBOUND LOGISTICS

Consistent & Predictable high quality product delivery

MARKETING & SALES

Appeal of sustainable database centers

SERVICE

Customer service
Service guarantee

INFRASTRUCTURE
HRM
TECHNOLOGY + R&D**: automating max processes to keep overall costs low, maintaining most efficient data base management technology internally and externally
PROCUREMENT: attaining best agreements with energy suppliers

Maintaining and building clientele is baseline for growth and market dominance

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Value Chain - INBOUND LOGISTICS & OPERATIONS

INBOUND LOGISTICS

Supplier relationships

Renewable energy suppliers
Suppliers hold upper hand

Power purchase agreements define the profitability and reliability of business

As a developing firm, it is crucial to gain bargaining power with suppliers to secure a strong standing within the industry before the market becomes more saturated and have to compete with others to secure supply.

OPERATIONS

Server virtualization
Carbon intelligent data center design

Maximizing use of carbon neutral sources
Fuel cells show potential

Operational systems is where value is added to a business. There is a need to be unique and efficient to gain a competitive advantage within the market and secure a strong standing before market saturation occurs. Imperative to build an operations system with high quality and predictable outputs.

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Value Chain - Marketing & Sales

MARKETING & SALES

Appeal of sustainable database centers
Viral Marketing Strategies.

Technology and social media to communicate and gain exposure

Transparency on sustainability goals

Leverage “sustainability” and “earth friendly” to attain more clientele and boost network effects
Network Effects

Controlling and leveraging the leading standard for green data base centers

Long term - scale advantages and high switching cost

Benefit from economies of scale

As green database centers are a relatively newer field within the industry, there is initial market appeal if correct exposure is obtained.

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Financial Structure

High Initial Expense for implementation (Cost of Capital & Production) → overrun by long-term earnings and equity
Current market is not competitive but the potential for high returns will draw funding sources relatively easily

Funding Sources

Green conscious companies and organizations
Leveraging returns on investment to crowdfunding sources

Economies of Scaling

More clients = higher margins
Bulk costs will reduce overall expenses and increase profit margins

Long-Term Profitability

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Major Challenges

Water Supply Safety/Fossil Fuel Use

Increased Energy Use

Sustainable Data Center Stability

Evaporative Cooling Technologies

Server Virtualization

Solar and Wind unpredictability - UPSes

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Future Implications

Pros

Some forms of renewable energy are unlimited
Produces little to no pollution
Self Sufficient with very little maintenance needed
Long term cost efficiency

Cons

Initial expenses are very high
Some renewable energy sources are dependent on an unpredictable environment

Wind / Sunlight

Renewable energy, given enough time, will be more cost efficient and environmentally friendly than fossil fuels.

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References

BrandPost Sponsored by QTS | Learn More Intelligent Infrastructure Today By QTS , & |, Q. (2020, July 30). Green Data Centers –

Scaling environmental sustainability for business and consumers collectively. Network World. https://www.networkworld.com/article/3569189/green-data-centers-scaling-environmental-sustainability-for-business-and-consumers-collectively.html.

Gillin, P. (2020, December 9). New Concepts of the Sustainable Data Center Arise Amid an Evolving Market. Data Center Frontier.

https://datacenterfrontier.com/sustainable-data-center-special-report/.