More Data Centers Coming to Ashburn

By Adrian Maties, Associate Editor

ACC7

Ashburn’s Data Center Alley is growing. Just last week, DuPont Fabros Technology Inc. officially opened its newest facility in the region. Called ACC7, it is one of the largest multi-tenant data centers in North America and the largest in DFT’s portfolio.

ACC7 has 446,000 square feet of space and can deliver 41.6 megawatts of critical power when fully developed. Although it is the sixth facility on DFT’s 1.6 million-square-foot Ashburn campus, it is the first to fully use the company’s newest data center design.

Scott Davis, executive vice president of DFT, explained that ACC7 was designed in collaboration with the company’s customers and that it will be the standard for future data centers. ”It is an extremely customer-centric design, offering a high degree of flexibility and customization to appeal to a broad spectrum of customers,” he said in a statement.

DFT also said ACC7 offers the ultimate in energy efficiency and cost effectiveness without compromising reliability. “Minimizing our environmental footprint is always at the forefront of our design approach to data centers,” Davis added. “Many of our customers have pledged corporate social responsibility, and DFT wants to support their green business practices by designing energy-efficient buildings and limiting our use of potable water, a precious resource. Switching to reclaimed water for evaporative cooling at the Ashburn corporate campus reduces the cost of water consumption by 50 to 65 percent, giving our customers additional cost savings. ACC7 has been designed and constructed according to LEED certification requirements.”

According to reports from 451 Research, the Northern Virginia multi-tenant data center market is now almost tied with New York-Northern New Jersey for the top market in the country. The area features about 3.2 million square feet of data center space. It is known as ”Data Center Alley” because it has the highest concentration and some of the best data centers in the United States.

Photo credit: DuPont Fabros Technology Inc.