5 trends for data centres for 2022 according to Uptime Institute

The authoritative Uptime Institute has published 5 trends for 2022 for data centres. Our team includes Ivan Kuts and Oleksiy Galinovsky, both Uptime Institute Certified Tier Designers, who helped us to make a brief summary of the research on the current trends in data centre development in the coming months.

New generations and more energy-efficient technologies for chips. Due to logistical problems and the covid crisis, innovation in chip manufacturing has slowed down. However, in the first half of 2022, Intel will introduce a new generation of server processors, and by the end of the year, new solutions from AMD will also be launched. In addition, NVIDIA, Amazon Web Services and Alibaba are planning to switch to new technologies in chip manufacturing, relying on production facilities from TSMC and Samsung Electronics.

Large-scale infrastructure operators will benefit from better energy efficiency and speed on new generation chips.

As large consumers of electricity, data centres will increasingly come under pressure from governments and investors to reduce their carbon footprint and to meet reporting standards. Sustainability commitments that have been voluntary in the past will become mandatory, either through legislative initiatives or market pressures. Risks in the form of fines or negative public relations will continue to grow. The EU has pioneered the introduction of new environmental practices. Relatively small data centres (300 kW or less) will be subject to energy efficiency reporting and auditing standards.

Data centre operators oppose this level of transparency; Google has even classified information on water consumption at one of its facilities as a "trade secret".

Data centre operators will advocate nuclear power as a source of green electricity.

Data centres have long been under pressure to switch to renewable energy for their needs. However, years of talk have not yielded many tangible results. Nuclear power is seen as a low-carbon generation option. The development of modular nuclear reactor technology looks promising, so the data centre industry will increasingly show its support for this type of generation.

Control over critical infrastructure is increasingly concentrated in the hands of a limited number of key providers. Customers and regulators will demand greater transparency from providers regarding the resilience and security of the infrastructure. There will be a trend towards multi-cloud strategies for businesses, as already announced by JPMorgan.

All suppliers suffer from logistical problems, but large data center operators will benefit from the situation due to their resources and influence. Smaller operators will be forced to standardize in order to maintain their competitive advantages. Large data centers, due to their scale and volume, have direct contacts with vendors.