Combining Colocation and Containers

icecube_trailer

Colocation and data center services provider i/o Data Centers has deployed an SGI ICE Cube data center at Phoenix ONE facility, the companies said this week. The 538,000 square foot Phoenix ONE project doesn't officially open until next month, but i/o Data Centers is beginning some customer installations. 

i/o Data Centers joins a short list of providers of colocation providers who offer infrastructure support for data center containers, and is the first to spotlight SGI, the server vendor previously known as Rackable Systems. CRG West is partnering with HP and Verari Systems to offer hosting for their data center containers.

Combining containers and colocation can provide rapid expansion for companies that need to expand their data centers but are out of power or cooling capacity at their existing facilities. Containers can live outside but still require an external source of power and security.  i/o Data Centers supplies a secure infrastructure for the ICE Cube that includes conditioned power, temperature-controlled space and network connectivity.

"The ICE Cube allows us to leverage SGI's innovative and environmentally-friendly, modular data center solutions to provide unequaled value to our customers," said George Slessman, CEO at i/o Data Centers. "By combining SGI's industry-leading modular data center technology with i/o Data Centers' world-class infrastructure and service, we are providing a compelling, fully-integrated solution for our customers' data center needs."

SGI's ICE Cube can house 22,400 cores or 11 petabytes of storage in a 40-foot shipping container, and has capacity for up to 2,800 independent servers.

"SGI's experience in satisfying the cloud computing requirements of the world's most successful Internet companies gives us unique insight into the demands of the modern data center," said Tony Carrozza, senior vice president of worldwide sales and marketing at SGI. "The ICE Cube container enables i/o Data Centers to attract new users to cutting edge, energy efficient technologies that lower operating costs, reduce carbon footprint and accelerate time to deployment."

The massive Phoenix ONE project will be completed in three phases, with the first 180,000 square feet scheduled for completion by June 1. This will be followed by a second and third phases of 180,000 and 100,000 square feet, respectively.