Posted by Janet B. Stroud — December 8, 2023 — Global real estate and professional services firm JLL has announced it is working with Lumen Technologies and Schneider Electric to deliver ready-to-use modular data center solutions across the U.S. that prioritize quick deployment, adaptability and scalability. Lumen Technologies’ global network powers everything from metro connectivity to long-haul data transport and edge cloud, security and managed services capabilities, and Schneider Electric is a multinational digital automation and energy management company.
JLL, Lumen Technologies and Schneider Electric deliver cutting-edge, turnkey modular data center solutions nationally. Image courtesy of JLL
Using its extensive market coverage, JLL’s role is to manage the comprehensive site selection process. Land constraints are a challenge in today’s data center market, but JLL can quickly identify and secure sites, including approximately 5,000 along Lumen’s fiber network. As one of the largest and most connected networks in the world, Lumen brings the speed, global footprint and edge, storage and managed service capabilities to meet customer needs as they build for tomorrow. Schneider Electric provides the expertise in design and construction of the modular data center to get it operational within six to nine months.
This modern approach significantly reduces deployment times compared to traditional data center builds. Modular data centers also facilitate proximity closer to the end users, thus reducing latency helping companies to solve their challenges related to scalability and fast deployments.
The data center industry has experienced massive growth in demand due to artificial intelligence (AI), IoT, 5G and edge applications, leading to a supply-demand imbalance in some markets. Additionally, this growth is happening faster than the existing infrastructure to support it allows.
According to JLL’s 1H 2023 North American Data Center Report, the first half of 2023 posted record absorption, with hyperscalers, financial services firms, healthcare organizations and other major enterprises scrambling to secure data center space. With most of the year’s remaining supply already preleased or under exclusivity, operators must employ creative solutions — like modular data centers — capable of being rapidly installed, deployed on an accelerated timeline and with IoT adaptability.
Michele Hix, vice president Strategic Customers, North America Operations, Schneider Electric stated:
In today’s digitally driven market, data centers and networks are essential for business transformation. Our collaboration with JLL and Lumen Technologies provides our clients with options to handle the megatrends shaping business, cities and consumers everywhere with solutions that are digital, sustainable, efficient and built to scale. We are excited to partner and help customers thrive in this evolving landscape, by responding to their needs faster through the accelerated deployment of edge data centers.
Vincent Provenzano, head of Advanced Solutions, VAR Channel, Lumen remarked:
Digital transformations and next-gen tech like A.I. require more than just speed to market. Customers are also looking for edge compute, data accessibility, increased network security, application performance and control. This agreement draws on an innovative Lumen portfolio to deliver solutions that increase efficiency [and] speed and enable business growth. Working together, we can bring results that exceed customer expectations.
The JLL team is being led by Executive Managing Director Joe Smurdon and Executive Vice President Mark To.
Joe Smurdon explained:
Most hyperscalers are struggling to keep up with GPU demand and are allocating their capacity to the larger corporates, which leaves middle-market companies in a lurch. Additionally, the time and capital required to bring additional computing capacity online takes several years, so these companies are forced to put band aids on their legacy facilities; however, our approach allows for a modular solution to be up and running in a fraction of the time and cost. JLL, Lumen and Schneider, together, provide the key speed-to-market solution that overcomes all these challenges associated with traditional data center builds.
Find out more about JLL data center offerings at JLL.
