Why smaller data centers are taking off

“The main functionality of an edge center is not to preserve data, but to complete a task and return results as fast as possible,” says Colm Shorten, JLL’s Global Data Centre Business Development Manager. “They improve connectivity and help move packets of information across a wider net, at higher density and speed.”

And when it comes to business, both the manufacturing and energy sectors have some of the largest demand for edge computing, with much of the data being machine-to-machine generated thanks to increasing levels of digitization and automation.

“The digital world never sleeps, making data centers of all sizes critical to the global economy,” says Glover.

In uncertain times, the impetus for becoming a data-driven organization has never been stronger. Forrester estimate that firms driven by data insights, grow on average more than 30% annually, while a recent JLL survey shows hybrid work is resulting in a much greater reliance on technology and real-time data. 

Although currently less than 10% of business data is created and processed at the edge of the network, Gartner suggest that figure will rise to 75% by 2025, leading to a greater need for distributed infrastructure.

“In the near future, we’re likely to need in the region of 10 times more edge sites than hyperscale, enterprise or co-location data centres,” Shorten says.

Market research analysts predict the global edge data center market to grow at a CAGR of 22.1%, reaching US$ 57.8 billion by 2031.

Take I Squared Capital’s latest global infrastructure fund, which is investing $500 million to establish multiple edge platforms in underserved cities and regions across Europe, with 10 initial locations planned for Germany.

In South America, Brazilian telecom operator Megatelecom who provide B2B data transport services, plan to deploy dozens of edge data centers closer to enterprise users.