Facebook Hires Google Data Center Exec

Facebook announced today that Ken Patchett will be the manager of the company's new data center in Prineville, Oregon. Patchett previously worked at Google, where he supervised the data center campus in The Dalles, Oregon. Patchett previously worked at Compag and the network operations team at Microsoft.

“The people of Prineville have been so welcoming to Facebook and I look forward to working with the community going forward," said Patchett. "With my previous experience in The Dalles, I have seen what the presence of a data center can do for a community and we look to have similar results here in Prineville. We have a lot to do to bring our energy efficient data center online early next year, and continue to be committed to hiring as many local people as possible to build and operate the facility.”
Patchett isn't the first member of Google's data center team to migrate to Facebook.  Data center engineer Amir Michael, who recently outlined Facebook's plans to use on-board batteries on its servers, also came from the Google data center team.

In its announcement, Facebook noted Patchett's efforts to get Google engaged with the local community in Oregon (also profiled in The Dalles Chronicle), and included a comment from officials in The Dalles.

“Ken was a great member of our community and chamber, helping with economic development and bringing many new visitors into our area,” said Dana Schmidling, executive director of The Dalles Area Chamber of Commerce. “Ken is filled with innovative ideas, unceasing energy and optimism. He will be greatly missed here in The Dalles."